Hey there! So, you'd like to join the Paranormal Investigators & Research Association. Well, there's a bit of a process to becoming a member of our team... so before you decide to contact us, be sure you're really serious about it. I say this only because we are a group of very serious-minded people. We know how to have fun, and poke fun at each other...but when it comes to "the job", it's all business. When we hold an open membership drive, we'll post an announcement in on the Home Page.

        I'll explain the process below, then include the PIRA Application at the end. But, before the "Process",
we need to go over the Requirements.
So, here it goes!

1- You must be at least 21 years of age.

2- You must have your own transportation.

3- You must live within easy driving distance to Philadelphia, Pa.

4- You must be serious about this hobby.

5- You must supply your own personal equipment for investigations.
(i.e. Cameras, audio recorders, tripods, video cameras, etc.)

Application Review 

Once we receive your application, the core members of the team will review the information. There are specific questions we focus on, to determine whether or not your philosophy would blend with our own. Although we respect that there are a number of different beliefs concerning the paranormal, we want to ensure that our team members can work together smoothly by sharing similar ideals. 

Meeting the PIRA Gang

The second stage is attending a meeting. This gives you and us a chance to know each other, ask questions and gain some insight into whether this would work out for the both of us. This may sound a little harsh, but in order to keep a professional, serious team going, we need to focus on people that will really contribute to the overall knowledge of the team.

Obtaining A Mentor

We run a Mentor program for our "Newbies". This means that for a short time, you'll be under the guidance of one of our full time members. We won't be teaching you the "Truths Of Ghosts", since no one knows what the Truths are. What we will teach you is how we do things. Your Mentor will be there to run you through how we do an investigation, research a site, and all the other things our groups does. Please note that this does not result in any type of certification. Certifications from individual teams mean nothing to other individual teams (who would have to train you by their standards anyway). 

The "Employee" Handbook

Yes, we have a handbook. This book includes a great deal of information about what we do, how we do it and why we do it. It also covers many other areas of this hobby, to give you a good start. It will be the responsibility of your Mentor to go over everything in the handbook with you. Your Mentor will actually sign off on each chapter. This is to be sure you understand what we understand...so we're all on the same page.

The Apprenticeship

This stage can take anywhere from a few weeks to over a year. While you're going over the Handbook, you'll be required to attend at least three investigations with your Mentor.  The "At Least Three" part means that the minimum we ask you to attend is three. If we determine that it's not enough, then we'll go with four or five. This is to be sure you are comfortable with our methods and you are comfortable with how we operate. If, for some unseen event, your Mentor cannot attend an investigation, but you can...we'll work it out. As long as there's a Core Member present that can keep an eye on you, then you're good to go. When we do investigations, there is a lot that must be kept "by the book". Mentors keep you from getting the boss frustrated! All Newbies are the responsibility of their Mentors. Translation- If you screw up, we slap your Mentor over the head!

A Vote

Yup, after all of that, we still have to vote as to whether this would be a good union. By this time, most of us will have a pretty good idea of how you'll fit in to our organization. Most likely, there won't be any problems...but sometimes there may be some issues. These have to be resolved before we give you the go-ahead.

         Yes, this may seem like a lot...or even a bit "picky", but it's all to keep our team strong. I take great pride in making sure our team is professional and serious about what we do. Hopefully, you'll understand that it's worth it. So, below is the link to download the application. It's a Word document. Fill it out and send it back to us through e-mail. OH, and we also need a recent photograph of you. This is identification purposes only. Couples that are applying can do so on one application (No need to fill out separate ones). When you have all of that...send it to Application@Parainvestigator.org

PIRA Application for Membership

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