Is There Any Prospect For A Criminologist And Social Researcher In Nigeria?

  Perhaps enlist in the Nigeria Police Force?

@Ajanlekoko
  LOL.  .  .there's nowhere else now Besides lecturing, like you said.
In Nigeria there are some good courses that just have no solid place at all, e.g Forensics. Kinda sad, but I guess we just have to keep believing things will get better.

Thank you all for you reply. Very useful.

I studied criminal justice. I am thinking about coming ome next year. Is there any job out there for someone like me?

do you have experience with security companies? That's one area you could look into.

You could also try to get employment with the state or federal govt first while you're feeling your way around. The state pay is very poor but you can do that while searching for a niche elsewhere. With a federal job, you'll be transferred to different parts of the country and it may take a while before you're able to settle down. That's assuming they're even hiring. But the pay is better and I think they provide housing and maybe a car, though I'm not too sure about the car.

Police and lecturing are also viable options. As a lecturer, you'll be able to network more, especially if the university is a good one. Many colleges have forensics depts, btw.

LLB and LLM in Justice would place you in the court system though you'd still have to go to the Nigerian Law School if you have a foreign degree.

@poster
  Dude, you are hot! I mean, check your qualifications out! I think you should take rasputinn's advice.  .  .get some good ideas going, package them and go sell sell sell to the top firms/companies in Nigeria, any and every sector. They will buy you, really.
  Guess one just has to create opportunities if none seem available.

Acknowledged with thanks. Very useful information. I will start sending my CV around on my next trip to Nigeria.
Thank you very much.

You are very right that there is not enough prisons to accommodate criminals in Nigeria but I can assure that prison is not the best place to reform many of the criminals in Nigeria. Nigeria prison conditions are awful and inhumane. In my own opinion people that belong to prison in Nigeria are not in prison and if you have money you can avoid prison sentence. To work within prison service in Nigeria will be a challenge and hardwork but will be rewarding. In fact sentencing and some aspects of criminal Justice  in Nigeria needs government intervention and the dedication of people working the system.

But I think a criminologist can work as an EFCC, A STATE SECURITY SERVICE (SSS), ICPC,CUSTOM,NDLEA,AND A LOTS MORE IN NIGERIA.

     I too am about to go for it on National Open University of NIgeria.

Any Option for that?. Please I too I need an advise for this please anyone with a ggod advise?.

You are very right.

I thought much about this post and I fill like dropping this- as a Criminologist in the real world, you are supposed to be working with a crime fighting agency. It could be the Nigerian Police or any of the Nigerian Armed Forces. Dont just think about how bad the Nigerian Police has been, think of having a career push and experience, from there you can go places,if you really want to stand out-u move up.Guess what up I mean-u shoot urself to other reputable international organization; and let me tell you something-The Nigerian Police Force will be a force to be reckoned with in the years to come, so b a part.i'm already on my way, lol

@poster

I believe lots of good advice had been given on this thread. I don't know what the Nigerian law says about the nature of forensic evidence that is admissible in court. I know the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) have got forensic researchers (although I don't know what they do). I'm assuming all the kind of forensic evidence admissible in law courts of western developed world are also admissible in Nigeria Courts.

That said I believe there are lots of good prospects for a forensic criminologist in Nigeria. Think about the state of public safety, kidnappings, robbery, murder, etc. Do you think it is in all those instances that law enforcement agencies are actually not interested in solving the cases? Public and private sector organisations are losing faith in the police and are looking at setting up crime prevention, detection and other mitigating systems and controls.

 You can set up consulting firm and consult for Police, SSS, and other law informant agencies in the areas of forensic analysis and general public safety (I am assuming you've got practical experience in all these areas). You can consult for private and public sector organisations prostates. There are a lot of areas you can look into here. You might need to go to the Nigerian Law School (I see more advantages than disadvantages in you doing this) and also possess the general 'street smarts' of a business person operating in a chaotic business environment like Nigeria. Someone already mentioned teaching jobs at a Nigerian University. I believe this is a very good idea. This is what I'll do if I have your degrees. The teaching will give you a lot of time to run consultancies an opening into the Nigerian environment. It should be relatively easy for you to get this because of your PhD. As a way of publicity and strategic placement, you might consider becoming a regular seminar resource and newspaper article contributor on public safety (I believe there is a huge gap here between what can be achieved and what currently obtains).

If I'm 42 and I have all your degrees, I definitely will not consider NPF, SSS, etc job as a regular staff but probably as a contracted consultant. NPF, SSS, etc might not have budgets that could enable them to hire consultants such as forensic experts to assist with specific investigations like it’s done in countries like the UK, etc.  If this is the case, you might still be able to make tonnes of money as a trainer, curriculum designer, facilitator, etc. There are lots of things that could be done in Nigeria.  Opportunities only limited by your imaginations (you might not even need to imagine anything, just adapt what you’ve seen overseas to local environment). You only need to go with an open mind. This will let you see other related opportunities and gaps in the market.