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Protective service

First-line supervisors of security workers

Typically requires High school diploma or equivalent

What is this page & how do I use it?

This is a research report for one career — the kind an analyst would write for a stock. The rating at the top is the neutral baseline (same for everyone); below it come the cases for and against, how the last official forecast for this career actually aged, and what the education path costs and pays.

How to use it: read the bulls-vs-bears case, then hit Score this career to weigh it against your other options with your own interests factored in.

CareerStar rating
RiskyMedium uncertainty

Analyst take: Decent prospects — +2.7% projected growth, moderate AI exposure (41/100).

41
/ 100
low riskhigh
top row = high reward

Data note: O*NET 29.0 doesn’t cover this SOC code yet, so its skill profile (used for fit, moat, and related careers) is estimated from sibling occupations in the same SOC group — see methodology.

Moat (borrowed from investing — the water that defends a castle): how shielded this career is from AI. Narrow = some shelter, but AI can reach a real share of its tasks.

The small grid is a style box (borrowed from Morningstar’s fund reports): the blue square places this career on reward (top row = high) versus risk (left column = low), against all 730 careers. Medium uncertainty means the score leans partly on forward-looking bets like AI exposure, so treat the exact number loosely.

🐂 Bulls say
  • +Low AI exposure — resilient (41% of tasks exposed).
🐻 Bears say
  • Its softest spot: pay is mid-pack ($58,610).
Was this rating fair?
Projected growth
+2.7%
Median pay
$58,610
AI exposure
41/100
share of tasks exposed to AI — not job loss

Education & ROI — how to get here

Real outcomes for the college majors that feed this occupation, across 1,368 bachelor’s programs.

Median earnings
$34,046
1 year after graduating
Typical debt
$26,000
median federal debt
Pay-to-debt
1.3×
first-year pay ÷ debt
Feeder majors
Security and Loss Prevention ServicesGeospatial IntelligenceTerrorism and Counterterrorism Operations
Selective schools offering these majors
Northeastern University
MA · 5% admit rate
$84,641/yr
$92,538 grad pay
University of Southern California
CA · 10% admit rate
$90,300/yr
$92,498 grad pay
Boston University
MA · 11% admit rate
$86,285/yr
$83,238 grad pay
College of the Ozarks
MO · 12% admit rate
$33,734/yr
$41,592 grad pay
Tulane University of Louisiana
LA · 14% admit rate
$87,004/yr
$63,268 grad pay
Boston College
MA · 16% admit rate
$89,493/yr
$103,937 grad pay

Earnings & debt from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard; majors mapped to this occupation via the NCES CIP→SOC crosswalk. A grounded ROI snapshot, not a guarantee — pay varies widely by school and specialty.

What this work involves

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