Hi Everyone,
I’m new to posting on these boards, but I’ve been lurking for quite a while, and it seems like an interesting, opinionated kinda group. Or something.
Anyway, I’m considering a career in Law Enforcement or, I wanna be a cop. Or, I’m thinking about being a cop. Anyone out there with experience and opinions? Positives, negatives, that kind of thing?
Thanks!
I’ve been a cop for 16 years, and I love my job as much today as the day I started. Maybe even more.
I’m fortunate to work in a department that fits my personality. I work for a small agency (12 commissioned officers) that is very focused on service and community oriented policing. My job is all about helping people, not heavy-handed enforcement. Most of my career has been in street patrol, but I’ve worked the last four years as detective.
Different communities and different types of departments make the job very different. If you want to be happy in the job, find a department that fits your idea of what police work is all about.
The best way to get your foot in the door is become a reserve officer if possible. These are usually unpaid positions, and many require you to buy most of your own equipment. But if you can do it, it is the best way to go. You will get great experience that will count for a lot when you test for a full position. You will also find out if this career is really right for you. This is not a job you can survive if you aren’t really happy.
Good luck to you!
Thanks a lot! I actually hadn’t thought of the reserves, but I’ll check into it. My ideal is a city or county that’s just big enough to be interesting, but not mammoth.
I spent my first 5 years out of college as a patrolman for a small town. I quit when I realized I could make much more money as a business/security consultant. Today, even though cops get paid better than they used to, some of my friends who are veteren officers still make 12-15k less a year than I do as a consultant.
Don’t let anyone fool you: Money matters! 20 years from now, when you’re married, have kids, a mortgage, etc., will you regret using a college degree to get a job that pays ok, yet far less than other professions?
On the other hand, for some people, no money in the world can replace having a job you truely love. And law enforcement is a government job, so the benefits can be outstanding. So do some heavy soul searching. You need to ask yourself some tough questions.
How tough are you? How thick is your skin? You understand that you’re probably going to miss holidays with your family and work lots of weekends? Can you handle extremely stressfull situations? You realize you’re putting your life on the line every time you put that uniform on, right? Police work can be 95% boring and 5% absolute terror!
A few years after leaving my full time patrol job, I found that I couldn’t totally give up the badge, so for the last 13 years I’ve been working part-time for a local department. It’s a part-time gig, not reserves. I get paid, I’m sworn, and yes, I do carry a gun and arrest people. (Believe it folks! 6 days a month pkbites is a cop!:eek: ) You would not believe some of the stories I could tell you! There isn’t another job in the world like it!
All this sounds contradictory, doesn’t it? Well…it is.
My absolute best advice is this: If you want to do it, do it! But if you find you don’t like it, get out early like I did. Regardless of what your reason is. I know too many guys who stayed cops even though they hated it, then found themselves too old to change careers. Don’t ever stay in a job you hate, and don’t let anyone else tell you what to be. Good luck!
Well, if you’re already making out, and she gives you her permission, then provided you’re not worried about her parents coming downstairs I’d say that…
…err, we’re talking about something else, aren’t we? Carry on, then.
I’ve known a few policemen and as a civilian these are my observations.
Being a big city cop is more like being a garbage-man than being Any Griffith. You are there to keep a lid on things, not to see justice done or to help people. In the larger sense you help a lot, but you rarely help the people you meet. This is a terrible strain if you joined up with high ideals as most cops do. You have to reconcile yourself to the people you’re policing hating you, yet not hating them back, and the people you’re serving rarely showing any appreciation, yet not being resentful. It’s easy in these circumstances to fall into all sorts of bad mind-sets and whenever I hear a story of police misconduct I am reminded of how amazing it is that there is so little. A policeman has to be more than human to fulfill society’s expectations nowadays.
How about becoming a military policeman for a few years? The traning is well-respected and if you don’t like it, get out and do something else.