To become a police officer, detective or criminal investigator, individuals must be U.S. citizens, at least 21 years old and capable of effectively meeting "rigorous physical and personal qualification standards." Candidates may also face disqualification if they possessed a felony conviction or drug use. All positions for the protective services are required to obtain at least a high school diploma or equivalent. However, many federal agencies and police departments require candidates to obtain "some college coursework or a college degree" that is related to the field. State and law agencies encourage individuals to pursue a higher education after high school by either "taking [college] courses and training related to law enforcement." Federal agencies, such as the FBI and DEA, generally required a bachelor's degree and …show more content…
Candidates must be able to communicate with a variety of people daily when discussing facts about a crime and express in writing about details of an incident. Officers must also be comfortable with being surrounded in the public, "being a highly visible member of their community" who will respond to emergency situations. They need to express empathy by understanding the wide- variety of perspective of the community and a willingness to help the public by quickly determining the best solutions for a wide array of problems. Along with empathy, officers should also demonstrate perceptiveness by having the ability to recognize and read an individual's reaction and comprehend why people act a certain way. Officers must be in good physical shape in order to keep up with the daily rigorous physical demands of the job and should be able to physically apprehend criminal
There are twelve qualities that Dennis Nowicki believed that are authoritative for entry-level police officers: “Enthusiasm, Good communication skills, Good judgement, Sense of humor, Creativity, Self-motivation, Knowing the job and the system, Ego, Courage, Discretion, Tenacity, and Thirst for knowledge” (Peak, 2012, pp. 137-138). First, enthusiasm is mostly about having faith “in what one is doing and going about even routine duties with a certain vigor that is almost contagious” (Peak, 2012, pp. 137). Second, having good communication skills is “having a highly developed speaking and listening skill that helps interacting equally well with a wealthy person or someone lower on the socioeconomic ladder” (Peak, 2012, pp. 137). Third, good judgement
This book also offers a chapter on the pros and cons of becoming an officer. In general, it has information on how to become an officer. The book also sheds light on the inner world of police officers, how officers will protect their own--even if that individual is wrong. There is also a chapter on the traits an individual should have to better function as an officer. I will use this source to build on the "initial entry" of my outline. I will also be able to extract information for the "requirements" section of my
-In order to become a police officer, there is no experience required, however to move up to a detective, there is a minimum of 5-10 years working on patrol before you can be part of an investigations unit.
Have you ever asked yourself what it would be like to become a police officer. Becoming a police officer isn’t an easy take because they have to risk their life everyday to protect and serve the community. They have to go through the dangers of arresting criminals when there is a chance that they could die. However, in today’s society only a small amount of the police officers actually serves their community and protect citizens from danger. Right now, most police officers abuse their power to the point where they don’t seem to care for the safety of the community. They would usually arrest innocent people, make accusations, and even use their power as a source to show their dominance. If you think about, whenever you are stuck in traffic
In order to become a police officer, individuals have to be twenty-years of age, a United States citizen, have basic law enforcement training, mental evaluation, physical evaluation and no crimes committed. This article compares to the next article listed below because it provides background information and insight into how to become a police officer and the training they must acquire. The article helps me understand a basic component of my essay, which is the training police officers receive.
Nevertheless, there is always the need for somewhat of education and experience. For instance, an applicant can have any of the following: have a bachelor's degree, with a grade point average of 2.95 or higher, special consideration will be given to candidates with degrees in Criminal Justice/Police Science or related disciplines; Finance, Accounting or Economics; Computer Science/Information Systems; Telecommunications/Electrical/Mechanical Engineering; Political Science, Psychology; Sociology; Chemistry; and a foreign language including Spanish, French, Russian, Hebrew, Arabic, Dialects of Nigerian, Chinese/Mandarin, or Japanese. A candidate should also possess specialized professional experience conducting independent narcotics investigations of alleged or suspected violations of the law; conducting surveillance and undercover activities or operations, and apprehending, arresting persons suspected of violations; and
How you become an officer is by obtaining the Necessary Education. A high school diploma or a GED is typically the minimum level of education needed to become a police officer, Submit an Application to a Police Department, ,Graduate from a Police Academy Training Program, Actively Work to Obtain Promotions. A police officer, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the common duties of a police officer include patrolling designated areas, enforcing laws, answering calls for help, arresting individuals suspected of committing crimes, issuing citations, testifying in court and conducting traffic stops. Every Officer has to take an oath before beginning their career in law enforcement to set a good structure of what they are there to do.
In the Arlington Police Department (APD), there are certain qualifications one must meet in order to pursue a career in the APD, these qualifications include that each person must be 21 years of age or older, must have a bachelors degree, must not have any felonies or class A misdemeanors, must have a drivers license, and not have any class c misdemeanors in the last 10 years. If they meet the qualifications, then there are four stages to the hiring process that every applicant must go through to become a police officer. The first stage consists of the personal history statement, which is the application form, after completing the application; you’ll then go through a preliminary interview. The preliminary interview begins with a short essay and a questionnaire. Next, a panel consisting of three members of the APD will review your application; essay and questionnaire and then you will have a short interview. Panel members are senior officers, Field Training Officers and Sergeants. The interview will focus on the applicant's background and
If you currently are or will be considering becoming a law enforcement officer you will hopefully find the following information useful. I will be conveying to you not only the importance of professional appearance and means you can use to be more efficient at presenting such an appearance. While representing a state, city or county a less than professional image as an officer is not acceptable. As a public servant an officer’s appearance is the public’s first impression of who you are and what you represent or stand for. Not caring about your own appearance as a professional may lead some to assume you do not care about your job. We will discuss the reasons an officer should take extra pride in their appearance as well as steps to take that will assist in achieving a more professional appearance. Hopefully you will consider the advice given to you and make yourself a more professional looking officer or officer to be.
Similarities that the Weslaco Police Department and the textbook “An Introduction to Policing”, are the hiring and recruiting process. Almost every police department in the United States works the same way in that process. Many police departments require that applicants be high school graduates and with a certain number of college hours. Applicants must be at least twenty-one years of age and U.S. citizens. In some departments weight and height are not important. Since most police departments fall under the civil service regulations, all applicants must pass written tests that measure their analytical skills. Applicants must also pass a physical exam. Where they must do a
A growing number of entry-level criminal justice practitioners have college degrees. This paper will explore whether or not law enforcement agencies should require applicants to have a post secondary degree as a condition of employment and will college-educated police officers will be resistant to organizational change.
A potential police officer ought to be civil. It is important that one is kind, polite and considerate to other people’s needs without necessarily using force. The individual also
For as long as I can remember I have wanted to be a police officer. I’m sure, as a little boy, what first caught my attention were the flashing lights and sirens on the police cars. It could have also been then the facts that police officer were permitted to carry a gun and had the ability to run red lights. This is why as I grew up and played games like cops and robbers, I was always the police officer. During my teenage years, I later joined the police explorer program and really started to learn about police work. That’s when I
It is a long process when becoming a detective. In college, classes such as: English, American history, business law, government, psychology, sociology, chemistry, and physics are suggested. Before becoming a detective, one must attend a law enforcement academy, providing the officer with a foundation of education with sixteen to twenty-four college units in criminal justice or administration of criminal justice. (Morkes 677) After graduation from the law enforcement academy the officer undergoes job training with a field training officer for a period specified by the law enforcement agency and continues to work while on a probationary period, ranging from one to two years.
In the future, it is my hope to graudate from Ferris State University with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and with honors. I intend to enroll in our on campus police academy during my senior year and ultimately secure a job as an officer in a large city after graduation. To achieve these goals, I plan to remain focused on academics. This includes, utilitizing my time and resources to study and complete out of class work. The minimum grade point average to gain acceptance into he police academy is a 2.5, but it is my personal goal to always maintain a 3.5. It is recommended that you enroll in at least fifteen credit hours per semester if you intend to graduate in a timely manner, so I will make it a personal priority to do so. Additionally,