Paranormal Investigator Certification??
I
was recently asked about obtaining a degree to become a paranormal investigator and what I thought about it.
Honestly...I had never heard of these courses until recently to be honest. So I
did a little research. These
courses range anywhere from $45.00 to $500.00 for certification. Let
me say... there are no... (I repeat) THERE ARE NO certifications for
paranormal investigators. It's like throwing money away in my
opinion. Here are the reasons why. Feel free to disagree with me if
you like. But I was asked MY thoughts.
1.
The word Paranormal means - beyond our scientific understanding,
defies scientific definitions/can not be defined in scientific means.
That is to say... with the paranormal, these are things OUTSIDE of
the normal.
Let me give you a "for Example": Science
can come up with proof of certain medicines working for certain
disorders/diseases/injuries... for example: If you have bacterial
pneumonia... most doctors KNOW a certain anti-biotic will help fight
the infection. They will also include a steroid inhaler to help open
the airway in the lungs to make it easier to breathe. Unless you're
part of a free clinical trial, a doctor is not about to test an
unproven medicine on you when you are ill. I have never been told
yet, "hmm... you have double pneumonia. It's pretty bad. Let me
give you an experimental drug that has never been tested and is not
scientifically proven to take care of the issue you're
having."
However... that's what we do with the paranormal.
If someone had the answers to what the paranormal is, how it occurs,
how it's treated, and had tried and scientifically proven methods
that work on each case, every time without fail... they'd be
millionaires, the paranormal would be a science and reputable
colleges would have actual courses on ghost hunting and 'ghost
busting'. However that is not the case. We are still learning about
the field. there are so many nooks and crannies we still haven't
explored in the paranormal field, we're not even CLOSE to making the
paranormal a scientific normal. So we don't go to someone's house
with paranormal issues and say, "we can without a shadow of a
doubt say you have A.B. and C. happening to you and you can do X.Y.
and Z. to take care of the issue.
When
we go into a home, we say, "after research and investigating, we
BELIEVE you have A.B. and C. happening." and unless you are
TRAINED (years of training from all different sources) in cleansings,
blessings or exorcisms... you can offer them places they can turn for
such things. You will say, "You can try asking the spirit to
leave, and if that doesn't work, have a priest come to the house and
do a cleansing of spirits and blessing in the name of God. Most
entities will leave at that point. If you have issues even after
that, we'll be happy to come back and see what else we can find on
another investigation."
it's
not like if a doctor says, "you have cancer... let us try
radiation/chemotherapy".
There is scientific studies that prove
those treatments for certain cancers are successful. Are they 100%
successful? No. However there is science to back up the use of such a
treatment plan. Is a blessing of a home 100% successful? No. and
there is no science to back up the use of such a plan of action. It
is mostly faith based.
See
where I'm going with this?
2.
Because the paranormal can not be scientifically measured... we are
still learning ourselves as to what Ghosts are, about the types of
hauntings, what causes a haunting, and how to handle each case of a
haunting. We are learning more by what we call - trial and error. We
take new technology and try it out in the field to see what works and
what doesn't. If it works, it stays. If it doesn't, it's tossed.
That's called common sense. If you need to pay $500 to be certified
in common sense... this field may not be the right one for you.
3.
More than likely you will not see back what you pay into the
programs. 90+% of reputable paranormal groups do not charge for their
services. They accept donations/tips from those they help if offered,
but they don't usually go in with the direct idea to charge a person
they're trying to help. The reason this is, is because those we are
trying to help, we're not only there to help... but we're there to
use them as part of our case studies to further the paranormal
research field. So they're helping us as much as we're helping them.
With
all the groups that are not charging... a client will usually pass
over the ones charging fees unless they have been proven as reputable
in the field... and it takes a lot of time to build reputation.
Also... most places investigators really want to get into charge the
investigators to visit. For example: You don't just walk into the
historic mounds theater in MN, there is a fee they charge that they
put towards the upkeep of the historic site. Some places charge
ridiculous fees just because they're greedy, but that's another
story.
So
basically, you're paying for certification you will use to either
help people for free, or pay others to be allowed to investigate.
4.
While science has hotly debated theories... there are still many
places where they have common beliefs and agreements. The paranormal
field has more hotly debated theories than they do common ground.
There
are many different theories on why ghosts are here, what they really
are, how many types of hauntings there are, how they occur and what
to do about them.
Many
groups believe in the use of Ouija, many groups refuse to touch it.
There are those who can't stand the K-II, there are those who swear
by it, and those who use it as a tool, but hold no opinion unless
they can say there is a correlation between something else that
happened at the same time the lights lit up. There are groups who
believe the Spirit Box is a pile of bunk, while others believe it's
the bees knees. There are those who don't believe in Orbs... while
there are those you just can't break of the belief that it's not more
than dust/fibers/bugs/moisture in the air.
There
are those who are atheist and do not believe in spiritual reasons for
ghosts, nor the idea of demons in the biblical sense and believe
clergy are not necessary to rid spirits from a home. There are
religious who believe in demons, angels, blessings, and cleansings by
clergy. There are some extreme religious groups who believe all
hauntings are demonic. Some believe in provoking, some stay way from
that.
So,
in the paranormal field there is a lot of trial... a lot of error...
a lot of best guesses based on evidence we have in front of us... a
lot of common sense (do your research on the area, don't use what
doesn't work, use what does, don't make promises you can't fulfill,
don't get in over your head)... there's a lot of debate... There is
nothing really tangible which you can be certified for. My way of
investigating is a complete 180 from someone else's way of
investigating. My beliefs don't jive with a lot of the beliefs of
other investigators. So how can I certify someone for something that
they can never truly be prepared for without a little trial and error
themselves.
Talk
to local investigative groups. I, myself, offer free apprenticeships.
I let you shadow me on investigations. I have email discussions about
theories, uses of equipment, etc. I take them on the field when
they're ready and show them the ropes step by step, eventually - if I
feel they are ready - I will have them lead the investigations and
tell ME what to do to see if they got it... and then if I feel they
are ready, let them go to either start a group, do more research, or
join a group. Sometimes I even recommend shadowing multiple groups.
As I said, there are so many different theories and practices... it's
always a good idea to learn from many people. See what matches with
what you already learned, see what differs, see how you can combine
the two practices to make it work best for you and those you're
trying to help.
So
long story short (too late)... there is no certification for the
paranormal unless you're looking into things like Reiki, or becoming
clergy (priests do have to go through schooling... some even study
exorcisms). things like that. As for being a ghost hunter. No. Not
really. It's a waste of money... at least at this point.
The
only prerequisite to becoming a true paranormal investigator at this
time is a passion for the paranormal, a desire to learn and move the
research forward and help those who are plagued by paranormal issues.
That is the most important thing about being a paranormal
investigator. Passion, compassion, and objectivity. You can't get
that through a $200 certification course.
Now
this is for the newer “paranormal investigator certification”. It
should not be confused the the a field of study known as
Parapsychology. There is an actual college course that offers a
degree in Parapsychology which is defined as: the
study of mental phenomena that are excluded from or inexplicable by
orthodox scientific psychology (such as hypnosis, telepathy, etc.).
It mostly focuses on the study of unusual events associated with
human experiences. This includes telepathy, clairvoyance,
extrasensory perception, psychokinesis, near-death experiences, and
reincarnation. They have also been focusing on some paranormal
studies like spiritual hauntings. Parapsychology is
basically the application of scientific methods to the study of the
phenomenon mentioned above.
Some
colleges do not offer degrees in parapsychology, but it is out there.
However it is to be noted, many say the field is highly underfunded,
and largely ignored by the traditional science field. One college did
state: “Opportunities for making a full-time career in
parapsychology are very rare, since there are presently many more
qualified people wishing to work in the field than there are funds
for their support.” Some do like to study parapsychology to learn
the scientific method, and learn more about the other studies such as
psychic studies as well as near death and out of body experiences.
Most full courses cost $1000 and up.
However,
any investigator will tell you, you do not need a degree to become a
paranormal investigator. What you need mainly is an interest in the
field, a proper level of belief and skepticism, good people skills so
you can relate to clients, and a willingness to learn and the ability
to quickly pick up on how to use new technology.
Many
investigators, such as myself, who got into the field due to personal
experiences have apprenticed with multiple investigative groups to
learn all styles, theories and beliefs. They attend paranormal
conventions and sit in to listen to investigators who have been in
the field for a long time and what they have to say on the topic.
They ask questions, and seek answers from all sorts of sources and
then put them into practice.
The biggest thing you need to be an
investigator is integrity, and a true desire to learn more about the
mysteries of our world. Of course, there are those who will feel
differently, but these are my opinions based on my experiences.
