What do have to do to become a police officer

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Acquire a degree or academy training The requirements for this step will vary substantially depending on the state in which you plan on becoming a police officer.

Generally speaking, the training process for aspiring police officers follows two routes: Completing training by earning a two- or four-year degree in Criminal Justice or similar field from a Peace Officer Standings and Training POST -certified college or university , or Completing training through a government-approved police academy or training program. Undergo psychological evaluation Prior to becoming a police officer, law enforcement agencies will likely evaluate recruits for psychological stability and mental fitness.

Continuing education and career advancement Once you have completed all of these steps to becoming a police officer, you will still have plenty to learn. Is becoming a police officer in your future?

Request More Information. There are over 18, police agencies within the USA. There are very few police agencies that have full time civilian CSI's working for them, most are sworn officers that do multiple jobs.

Those few police agencies that do hire civilian CSI's usually require a college degree and some knowledge of processing crime scenes, but not all agencies have that requirement.

To become a CSI you need to be hired by a police agency. The hard part is finding what their requirements are for that position. They are not all the same. To find the best answer for you, our suggestion is to contact your local police department, your sheriff's department and the state police to find out what THEIR requirements are to be hired as a CSI. Education is always required.

Some agencies just require a two year degree in almost anything, other agencies may require specific degrees, such as a Master Of Science Degree in Biology or Chemistry or Forensic Science. You will need to contact the agencies in your geographic area to find out what they require to be hired. The best advice we can give is to get an education that allows you to not only get that job now, but also prepares you for the future. Crime Scene work is very demanding, most CSI's do not process crime scenes all their careers.

They will at some point "burn out" and change their career to perhaps working in the crime lab as a forensic scientist. So plan now for not only the current job you are looking for but also getting a well rounded education that will allow you to expand into other possibilities. Before I begin I must tell you the following is my opinion based on over 30 years in this field and even though I am retired from law enforcement I still teach crime scene investigation, write articles, write chapters in forensic publications, speak professionally and publicly and have trained literally thousands of CSI's in basic crime scene processing, not to mention being the Director of ICSIA and on editorial and advisory boards, all related to crime scene work.

Unfortunately it is not like on TV, as you all know. And the job market just isn't there like the Universities, colleges and on-line courses want you to believe.

When I started in law enforcement many years ago the academic criteria was a high school degree or a GED. The preference was for a male, 6 foot tall and had military service with an honorable discharge. Law enforcement was a quasi-military unit. Almost all of the "CSI's" were sworn officers, there was exceptions but very rare ones.

There were other names applied but everyone needs to understand the names were only job titles. These titles were created by the agency and some had nothing to do with what the person actually did. The same applied to "Forensic Scientist", most were not forensic scientists in the crime labs but that is another story and best told by others. For the sake of this forum I will refer to all people involved in processing crime scenes as a "CSI" even thought they had other job titles.

Only the largest of police agencies had full time CSI's. And they were pretty much all sworn officers, again there was an exception, but rare. Because they were almost all sworn officers they had met the requirements of that agency to become a police officer. That was the standard for years. The CSI's received what amounted to maybe a 40 hour course on how to collect and package evidence and take some photos of the scene.

They had two kits, one was camera equipment and the other was fingerprint powder, maybe a couple of other items but not much more then that. The CSI's then were sworn officers who in most agencies did more then one job.

In some agencies the detectives did the processing while in other agencies the patrolman did the processing. If a "major" crime occurred then the agency could request help from the crime lab, or from a large police agency that had full time CSI's like Chicago PD. The crime lab would send out a selection of their people to process the crime scene, a latent print person, a biologist maybe and someone from the photography section.

Even though the people from the crime lab were called forensic scientists, most were not true scientists. All the training was done "in-house", as it was for most CSI's. You can also bring your own number 2 pencils for the exam. We take candidates based on the list created by the state.

If you're selected as a potential candidate, the City of Boston's Human Resources Division will contact you by email. Human Resources will contact you through the same email address you used to register for the exam. At this point, you may receive a conditional offer to continue with the process. You'll need to complete medical and psychological exams.

The state's website has more information on the physical test. The test includes:. Applicants would have to pass the fitness standard set within a range according to their age AND gender. For more information, contact MPTC. You may then receive:.

How can you train for the physical challenges? We suggest using the Massachusetts Police Training Committee's standard for fitness as a benchmark. Physical Training Exercises. Take courses from professionals with decades of real-world experience in criminology, policy making, case law, and more.

Become a leader in criminal justice today. Here are some questions to ask before diving into training to become a police officer. For those wanting to work as a police officer, there is no clear-cut answer to the question of how long training and education will take.

It really depends on your long-term career goals, as well as which path you choose to get there. Here are some of the most common timelines you might encounter when looking at becoming a police officer. There was a time when becoming a police officer was as simple as graduating high school or earning your GED, then attending a short training academy before diving into on-the-job training. And though those opportunities do still exist, especially in smaller departments, most departments have raised their standards of education to at least two years of post-secondary work.

This means pursing an associate degree in law enforcement — or a related field, such as criminal justice, criminology, or police science — should be the first option to consider. However, other routes to the profession do exist. In addition to the on-the-job training after completing academy training, there is also the military option.

Those who work as military police or in a similar capacity while serving their country can be perfectly suited to move into a police force after their military time is up. For police officer positions that require a college education, this is one of the most popular degree paths, and for good reason.

It provides a college degree and teaches not only subject matter in law enforcement, but also requires general education courses to create a well-rounded curriculum.

However, highly competitive positions will likely go to those who have earned a four-year degree. Best for? Those who want to stand out against the competition, or need a basic college degree to apply for a particular job opening. At the less popular or smaller departments or agencies, a four year degree can provide a noticeable advantage for competitive positions, especially in specialized units or divisions.

At the federal or more elite positions, a four year degree will be required to meet basic eligibility standards. A disadvantage is that it does take four years, and the cost can be rather high for some. Those who have the time and financial resources to earn a four-year degree, want to work in federal law enforcement, or anticipate future professional advancement.

This graduate degree provides an opportunity to specialize in a particular area of knowledge. This can be helpful when trying to move into a specialized unit or take on a leadership role.

The disadvantage is the time requirement; many students at this level have work, family, and community obligations that can be tough to juggle while pursing the degree. A law enforcement professional who wants to earn a promotion or gain skills useful to specialize in a particular type of law enforcement. Servicemen and women receive in-depth training and experience with weapons, combat, discipline, working in extreme conditions, maintaining top physical fitness, and following the chain of command.

Serving the country can have certain advantages, such as when applying for certain jobs after duty is done. The disadvantages include unpredictability in work, having to move quite often, sometimes living in grave danger and relatively low monetary pay compared to the private sector.

Those who wish to serve their country while also gaining valuable practical experience and skills and have the flexibility to handle the unpredictable nature of military service. No matter which academic path you take, you will almost always need to complete a police training academy. The exact length will vary, but approximately six months is the norm. Remember, if you ever want to change careers or move into the private sector, you might have to go back to school to get a degree.

Those who know a career as a police officer is what they want to do and want to start working as quickly as possible. There are many schools that exist to help you move into the law enforcement career of your choice.