Engineer thinking about joining LE

[usui]

Dear Calguns.net readers and LEO,

I am a mechanical engineer, with my California PE license. I have 6 years of engineering design under my belt. I just turned 30. I have 8 close friends who are law enforcement officers, and I have the itch to change careers.

Is there a field in law enforcement that would benefit from my background, say crash forensics, or ballistic investigation?

Is now a good time to join? I heard CHP is frozen.

I'm in the Davis, CA area, and I don't want to leave. Is this a possible desire to fulfill if I join LE?

Is this crazy, and I should be content that some are meant to be engineers, some to be doctors, some to be law enforcement, ect?

Thanks for your thoughts.

[Realist2011]

The market it tough. If you are really interested you should put yourself through an academy at one of the Junior colleges NOT a trade school. Obviously anything that can make you more marketable would be great but you need to understand that when you start you are a grunt. Your writing skills are important, if you have problems take a class at a local JC. There are two types of academies the intensive and the extended. The intensive is of short duration and the extended usually takes a year to complete. The extended is designed for those people who have to work and raise a family while attending. Check with your local JC for info. There should be one in the Sacramento area. If you don't have any luck check Napa or Santa Rosa JC.

Finances have to be in order if you have bad credit it may eliminate you. Obviously you need to have a clean record. It may sound obvious but there a bunch of convicted felons out there that think they can become a cop. Drugs are another one that will get you eliminated. You need to understand that the field is real crowded so if they can eliminate you from the pack they will pick someone else that does not have any baggage. Good luck

[003]

If you are seriously interested in getting into a law enforcement career, don’t let the current job market discourage you. Do your research and then decide exactly what aspect of law enforcement interests you the most. Given that you have several close friends in law enforcement you should talk to them and then chart your course for the agency you want to join. Keep in mind that even in the best of times, the hiring process takes well over one year in most cases.

While all California law enforcement officers are trained to a common standard, there is a big difference in the kinds of things that different Law Enforcement agencies do. I spend over 35 years on the job, and never worked in a jail or courtroom, very few sheriff deputies escape either one. Likewise, does working in a rural county interest you, or are you more interested in working in a core inner city area. Think Mono County vs. Oakland, there is something to say for both, it all depends on what interests you the most.

With your engineering background, you may want to take a serious look at the CHP. The reason I say that is because in addition to the basic accident investigation training that all CHP officers receive, that have what they call their MAIT (multidisciplinary accident investigation team). This team is staffed by a cross section of senior sworn officers with extensive experience, and professional engineers trained in a variety of fields, ie, mechanical, automotive, traffic, metallurgy etc.

MAIT is called in to assist in the investigation and reconstruction of major accidents throughout the state, and is available to come in and assist local agencies with major issues.

My last assignment prior to retirement was running the traffic unit of a medium size police department in southern California. While 99+% of the time we handled the complete investigation of accidents in our jurisdiction, we did call them in on occasion to review our findings and help out in major, multiple death or extremely complex accidents. They were great in dealing with complex mechanical issues, (think run away/unexplained acceleration, etc).

Given your age, you still have several years to make a change. If it is what you really want don’t get discouraged.

[mixicus]

Nothing wrong with looking into and/or making a left turn into another career. My fulltime high stress academy had about 20% of the graduates over the age of 35.

The job market right now is weak. Departments tend to be hiring people to keep minimum staffing levels. To give you a feeling, a 250 officer department may let their numbers drop to the low 200's before hiring and even then just hiring enough to keep around 200 officers. Eventually it will get better. That means you have some time to prep yourself. Maybe attend an extended academy and become a reserve officer. Reserve is a great way to find out if LE is for you.

With an engineering background, collison reconstruction is the most obvious cross over. The major accident recon teams tend to be housed at larger agencies or in a regional team which is where engineering skills would be most vauable. These teams deals with commercial accidents, fatals or complex collisions. Keep in mind, you have to work your way onto the team. That means time in patrol after FTO and probation, then waiting for an opening in the traffic division and finally an opening on MART. The path depends on the department and could take years.

Outside of collision reconstruction, the harder science and engineering aspects tend to be handled by civilian employees at major departments and agencies which maybe an option for you. Think forensics at the county crime labs, FBI, BATFE, Treasury,etc. Though some local agencies have slots for computer science. About the only other area, I can think of for engineering is post blast reconstruction and that is handled by the bomb squads (so if you want to do that...).

[Notorious]

Don't expect to get in a sworn position and get into a specialty gig right away. You gotta pay your dues in Patrol, where it all starts. You can get into police specialist or other non-sworn civilian jobs in the department where you can ply your trade. That's the short and sweet version.

You can always look into a federal job and that will get you into specialties which can benefit from your background a bit more. Try FBI or ATF and maybe even the DSS.

[1911su16b870]

Go to a part time or reserve academy. You can keep your job and get your POST credentials at the same time. Apply for a reserve position as you get near graduation. Good luck...it is a fun ride!

[usui]

Thank you everyone for your input and advice. I didn’t expect the response that I got. I got several personal messages, and these comments above, very candid, and all actually encouraging. I thought I would hear more, “Don’t do it, the market is terrible, you have a good job already, and you need to get in before you are 31.”
Since that is not what I am hearing, it makes my decision even harder, cause the decision is still on the plate for me to make. I will think and pray on these things, as this would be a major change for me and my family. It’s just something inside of me doesn’t like my current job, and I like the idea of helping others the way LE do. I have a friend who is a retired gunsmith for the CHP, and he has been encouraging me to get into MAIT.
Thanks again for your ideas! Now… will I and should I do this, and how am I actually going to make it work if I do?