The United States of Homeland Security is a cabinet department of the United States Federal Government. The Department’s mission is to ensure a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards.
The cabinet was formed November, 25, 2002, after the September 11th terrorist attack.
While created due to the September 11th attacks, the DHS’s primary responsibilities are the protection of the U.S territories, man-made accidents, and natural disasters. Its stated main goal is to prepare for, prevent, and respond to domestic emergencies, particularly terrorism.
Unlike the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security works in the civilian world to protect the United States within and outside of its borders.
The DHS is the 3rd largest department, maintaining over 200,000 employees; they sustain jobs that range anywhere from aviation and border security to chemical facility inspectors.
Some of the major DHS responsibilities are to include:
- Enhancing security and terrorism prevention
- Enforcing and administering to the immigration laws and border control
- Ensuring resilience to disasters
- Securing cyberspace activities, and
- Strengthening the DHS Department
Education is a vital necessity if you want to prepare and work towards having a career with the DHS. There are thousands of jobs and opportunities that you can apply for with various education backgrounds. To view a list of potential jobs and fields of interest, visit the Homeland Security website.
Additional specialties within the Criminal Justice field that you can look into as a career:
- Criminal Investigations
- Crime Scene Investigator
- FBI Special Agent
- Law Enforcement
- Corrections Officer
- Forensics
