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Job outlook for securities in the United States
Security job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected security job growth rate is 3% from 2018-2028.
About 38,000 new jobs for securities are projected over the next decade.
Security salaries have increased 20% for securities in the last 5 years.
There are over 777,760 securities currently employed in the United States.
There are 150,586 active security job openings in the US.
The average security salary is $31,836.
Are security jobs in demand?
Security job and salary trends over time
Security jobs over time
Security job growth rate over time
Year  | # Of Jobs | % Of Population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 777,760 | 0.23% |
| 2020 | 775,774 | 0.23% |
| 2019 | 828,726 | 0.25% |
| 2018 | 819,904 | 0.25% |
| 2017 | 813,327 | 0.25% |
Average security salary over time
Security salary by year
| Year | Avg. Salary | Hourly Rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $31,836 | $15.31 | +4.6% |
| 2024 | $30,431 | $14.63 | +4.2% |
| 2023 | $29,211 | $14.04 | +5.9% |
| 2022 | $27,581 | $13.26 | +4.4% |
| 2021 | $26,422 | $12.70 | +4.6% |
Security jobs by state
Most common states for securities
| Rank | State | Population | # of Jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 937 | 135% |
| 2 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 3,012 | 36% |
| 3 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 1,988 | 29% |
| 4 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 1,410 | 25% |
| 5 | Delaware | 961,939 | 241 | 25% |
| 6 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 1,414 | 23% |
| 7 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 711 | 23% |
| 8 | Alaska | 739,795 | 168 | 23% |
| 9 | Vermont | 623,657 | 135 | 22% |
| 10 | California | 39,536,653 | 8,314 | 21% |
| 11 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 220 | 21% |
| 12 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 1,469 | 20% |
| 13 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 250 | 19% |
| 14 | Illinois | 12,802,023 | 2,344 | 18% |
| 15 | Georgia | 10,429,379 | 1,721 | 17% |
| 16 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 943 | 17% |
| 17 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 131 | 17% |
| 18 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 671 | 16% |
| 19 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 574 | 16% |
| 20 | Hawaii | 1,427,538 | 234 | 16% |
Most common cities for securities
| Rank | City | # of Jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fridley | 20 | 73% | $35,917 |
| 2 | Richfield | 20 | 56% | $35,786 |
| 3 | Roseville | 20 | 56% | $35,887 |
| 4 | Saint Louis Park | 20 | 41% | $35,823 |
| 5 | Edina | 20 | 39% | $35,787 |
| 6 | Brooklyn Park | 20 | 25% | $35,912 |
| 7 | Bloomington | 20 | 23% | $35,754 |
| 8 | Greenwood | 10 | 18% | $24,822 |
| 9 | Fishers | 11 | 14% | $25,021 |
| 10 | Carmel | 10 | 11% | $25,016 |
| 11 | Enterprise | 10 | 9% | $31,420 |
| 12 | Saint Paul | 20 | 7% | $35,851 |
| 13 | Minneapolis | 23 | 6% | $35,852 |
| 14 | Boston | 14 | 2% | $35,960 |
| 15 | Indianapolis | 12 | 1% | $24,909 |
Security job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of security experts
University of Akron
Pennsylvania State University - Harrisburg
Curry College
Jill Myers
Director of the School of Law Enforcement and Justice AdministrationWhat general advice would you give to a Security?
Jill Myers: The more skill sets you have the better prepared you will be for future advancement and salary increases. Having a solid education, a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice and a masters degree will sometimes result in increased wages. Having federal certifications and competencies will enhance your opportunities and create potential marketability for your career. It is always a great skill set to have people skills, communication in both written and oral formats. It will enhance your ability to explain yourself in court, in the warrants one prepares, and with dealing with the public in all circumstances from victims and witnesses and suspects, to legislators, the funding sources like mayors and city council and the public at large.
What will help Securities increase their earning potential?
Jill Myers: I believe that knowledge of the legal limits of technology usage will increase dramatically over the next few years and decades. There are few crimes that do not involve investigations impacted by technological and cyber transactions. The ability to conduct cyber investigations, not computer programing or computer systems security per se, will increase the success of an investigation. Additionally, as disasters are increasing more frequently than ever before, both natural disasters (tornadoes, floods, fires, biological like COVID) and human made ones (mass shootings, war, terrorism), all of public safety must understand emergency management protocols, NIMS, hazmat responses, search and rescue, etc.
Dr. Stacey Nofziger
Associate Professor; Director of Undergraduate Studies in SociologyUniversity of Akron
Department of Sociology
What hard/technical skills are most important for Securities?
Dr. Stacey Nofziger: This is somewhat different depending on what type of career the student is pursuing. Some careers, such as policing, security, and federal agents, require specific standards of physical fitness.
In nearly every criminology-related career, students need computer skills such as familiarity with using databases and using the internet to find credible information. Many of these careers require advanced skills with data analysis, crime mapping software, and other specific software.
Another skill that students often forget is foreign language proficiency. Some of the most highly sought-after positions, such as Federal Agents, require proficiency in very specific languages.
Jennifer Gibbs Ph.D.
Associate ProfessorPennsylvania State University - Harrisburg
School of Public Affairs, Criminal Justice Program
What skills stand out on Security resumes?
Jennifer Gibbs Ph.D.: Police officers need many skills to be successful on the job. The most important are written and oral communication skills and the ability to make ethical decisions with limited information quickly. Written communications skills are crucial. If a police report is poorly worded or incomplete, it can derail a criminal case. Police officers also need to talk to people of all ages from all walks of life in any circumstance. Often, police meet people on what may be the worst day of their lives when emotions are running high. Police need to be able to help calm a person while gathering information. Police need to be able to use their words and body language to empathize with someone who has been victimized, and they need to project authority, so people making poor decisions obey their commands.
This may be common sense, but research has demonstrated that communication and ethical decision-making skills are important for police officers. (See the research article published in 2017 in the Journal of Criminal Justice Education, entitled "An assessment of the relative importance of criminal justice learning objectives," by Baker and colleagues.) Baker and colleagues asked students, professionals, and college professors to rate the skills of hypothetical job applicants. These participants rated the following as the most important characteristics for criminal justice applicants (including law enforcement officers):
Ethics
Oral communication
Critical thinking
Sensitivity to diversity
Written communication skills
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Securities?
Jennifer Balboni: Yes! Without question, over the last year, the pandemic has impacted nearly every occupation around the globe. These effects were felt most keenly in the medical field, but the impact in the criminal justice field has been incredibly steep as well, and the changes for police, courts, and corrections promise to be around even once this pandemic is more under control. First, it's important to note that police professionals are currently managing twin crises: the pandemic and public tumult stemming from a series of well-publicized needless deaths of young African Americans at the hands of police. It's nearly impossible to disentangle the impact of the pandemic from the impact of the crisis of legitimacy in policing, as these are happening simultaneously. This means that, in addition to the stressors of the job related to the pandemic, policing right now is fundamentally more stressful. As the public demands reform, organizations are shifting their priorities in response. New graduates who wish to pursue law enforcement would be wise to identify agencies that share their value system and commitment to justice so that they are part of this field's positive evolution.
In the fields of corrections and the courts, the implications of the pandemic are equally important-- although much less discussed in the media. Courts are currently facing significant backlogs (few juries have been convened during the last year-leaving a logjam of many open criminal cases). Correctional institutions have used the pandemic as the impetus to de-carcerate, which shifts responsibilities from institutional to community corrections, as those released are often in need of support services in order to be successful. Analysts predict that the reduction in the incarcerated population could bring some savings to local and state budgets, and this may provide some pressure to make the efforts to de-carcerate more permanent. Both of these fields are adapting and it is likely that the pandemic's impact will be long-lasting.
While new graduates certainly will be facing unprecedented challenges in their new professional roles, it's important to consider that this stress can also bring significant opportunity. If necessity is the mother of invention, then creative and energetic graduates may have more opportunity to implement innovative responses they've learned about in college in these fields in the near future.