Advice from any LEO

[Dagostino480]

I am interested in following my fathers footsteps and becoming a LEO. My dad is currently a deputy in Maricopa County, AZ of 35 plus years but I am located in Huntington Beach, CA. I am 21 years old and have a clean record, clean driving record, and a high school diploma. I am currently a personal trainer and am on the starting squad for a mens rugby league, so fitness assesments wont be an issue. GPA throughout high school was 3.2 and scored 97 on my asvab.


Is it nessesary to take additional school to become a police officer? Should I aim to become a city police officer or should I look on joining the FBI, CIA, or another department?

What are the pros and cons of the different departments?

As a LEO, would you have gone about apply differently now that you are currently in the field?

Thanks in advance! Stay safe!

[StraightShot04]

More education can't hurt you in this field. Many agencies want those who have a minimum of an AA/AS or 60 units. Plus, many agencies have education incentive pay so you have the potential of making more than the next guy right off the bat.

And NO, you don't need to major in Criminal Justice. Pretty much anything will work. I suggest you pick something you are really interested in and can fall back on if becoming a LEO doesn't work out.

Keeping your nose clean, staying out of trouble, furthering your education while maintaining a strong work history is extremely important.

Oh and STAY AWAY FROM DRUGS.

[RickD427]

More education can't hurt you in this field. Many agencies want those who have a minimum of an AA/AS or 60 units. Plus, many agencies have education incentive pay so you have the potential of making more than the next guy right off the bat.

And NO, you don't need to major in Criminal Justice. Pretty much anything will work. I suggest you pick something you are really interested in and can fall back on if becoming a LEO doesn't work out.

Keeping your nose clean, staying out of trouble, furthering your education while maintaining a strong work history is extremely important.

Oh and STAY AWAY FROM DRUGS.

Very good advise above.

The type of agency really depends on what you like to do.

As a general rule, I would recommend a large agency. Small ones get real old, real fast. You really need new experiences and new challenges to get you through a 35 year career.

The federal agencies offer a lot if you're heart is in doing investigative work. The FBI has the widest range of responsibilities. The DEA is also good if you're into dope. Most of the other federal outfits get a little narrow in their scope of work. I went through the criminal investigator course at FLETC in 1980. I had a class advisor who was a Secret Service agent. He had just finished several years on the Bess Truman protective detail. That's doing "Hard Time." I would look cautiously at the Secret Service. The other advantage/disadvantage (depending on how you view it) is that you'll be moving around a lot. It seems like right after you just bought a house in Bayonne, they move you to Des Moines.

I most liked the human contact and the excitement of being a first responder. That led me to settle into a large Sheriff's Department after spending three years in a small PD and three years in federal service. The work was always interesting and I got to stay in the same house for more than 20 years.

The biggest thing is to stay out of trouble. It's just too easy to become disqualified for the career. The next most important things are to stay fit, and keep working on your education.

Good luck.

[Dagostino480]

Thanks guys!

[KD714]

If you are interested in the variety of calls, action and bizarre situations that come with being a first responder definitely go with a PD or sheriffs department. Keep in mind that the sheriff option comes with years of custody work.

I would recommend that you go on several ride alongs with various departments in order to get a taste of what it is like. Once you've narrowed it down to a few agencies go on more than one ride along because no two nights are the same and you want to be sure of your choice.

Keep in mind that the Feds will require a four year degree.

[mixicus]

Is it nessesary to take additional school to become a police officer?
For CA POST, a high school diploma (or equivalent) is the required education at entry level. However, individual departments may have additional requirements or preferences for higher education. College units or degrees will help you get your intermediate and advanced POST certs sooner. Many departments do give additional pay (~+ 5-10%) for POST certs and/or degrees. It is becoming common for depts to require some level of college education for promotions.

Should you get an AA or BA before applying???
It depends but it is likely easier to finish a degree now than when you are on the job (shift work can be challenging) and maybe have a family. Many things you have done or can do will aid you in the hiring process. Military service, foreign languages, college degrees, etc. You may also consider your age and life experience in the equation. Getting a degree would mean you are a 23 or 25 year old candidate not a 21 year old. A few more years may be significant depending on your background and what departments you are applying at.

Should I aim to become a city police officer or should I look on joining the FBI, CIA, or another department?
Do you want to be a first responder or an investigator? Officers and deputies are first responders rolling to calls as they occur and going after street crime at a grass roots level in a localized area. There are opportunities to get into investigations as well as other assignments. Federal agencies have a more strategic per view on crime. They do make arrests but it typically evolves after a longer period of investigation compared to a street cop. Feds tend to focus on specific areas of enforcement (i.e. DEA with drugs) as opposed to a bit of everything in local LE. Feds have the opportunity to take assignments all over the country and even overseas. Remember, many federal agencies require a college degree (see the respective websites).

What are the pros and cons of the different departments?
Hard to say without knowing which specific departments you are comparing (size and location). LAPD will have more in common with LASD than with a small or medium size PD in OC. Generally, SD’s in SoCal will have you do several years in the jails before going to patrol. The local SD’s are large enough to allow you the opportunity to just about anything in LE and do it for a career. City PD’s vary widely but you will be on patrol from day one. The larger PD’s such as LAPD, Long Beach, and San Diego (even smaller ones like Huntington Beach, Anaheim and Santa Ana) will have similar opportunities to a SD. Smaller PD’s tend to rotate assignment (you spend 3-5 years in an assignment then move back to patrol or another assignment). You tend to find well-rounded officers at smaller depts as opposed to specialists.

As a LEO, would you have gone about apply differently now that you are currently in the field?
I have seen successful officers come in at 21 or 40+years old, with no military background or 20 years as a Marine or Ranger, with or without degrees, etc. I have also seen excellent paper candidates drop at every step of training and beyond. It's taking what you have and your drive then wrapping in blue (or green) and growing from there.

[Samuelx]

What did your dad say?

[Dagostino480]

He has been encouraging me to join now for a while. MCSO (AZ) is hiring like crazy right now. Thing is I fell in love with a girl out here in california and she isnt willing to relocate, at least not while she is still in school.

[ak_in_ca]

Riverside Sheriff is doing a ton of hiring right now and since you are only 21 that may be the only game in town. Most departments are going to tell you that you are too young and need more life experience, in which case any education you can get will only help you to achieve your goal, it will also help you in the long run as far as money, promotions and faster acquisition of your Intermediate and Advanced POST Certs.

Larger agencies will give you more latitude to move into specialized assignments, promotions, different stations etc and you will get seniority faster. You will also get more bureaucracy and lower pay with these agencies.

Smaller PD's tend to pay better and have better morale, perks and other things however; you will be bottom man for a long time and count on being just a patrol cop for a long time.

Keep your record clean, credit clean, avoid baby mama drama, watch yourself with your social media postings and continue to pursue and education while you are looking for your career. Good luck

[KD714]

LAPD and LASD are also hiring.

[IlDuche]

Get a degree in something besides criminal justice. Volunteer. Do things that make you look community oriented. That'll help in this day and age. I work for a large agency up north. Big agencies can offer you movement and spots that small agencies don't have, or that are rank restrictive (like doing plainclothes 'detective' work as a regular cop). Pay up north seems to be better than down south as far as large agencies go. But large so cal agencies are also huge, lot of diversity in locations, and kick *** weather.

[IlDuche]

In the meantime, you're young. If you like this kind of work apply for Cal Fire next season. They hire young dudes, and it'll give you background in a paramilitary environment. Looks good on a resume, fun, and if it stays dry you'll be busy and make good money. Not sure how the hiring is down south but up north hires seasonals really well.

[AdiosKali]

He has been encouraging me to join now for a while. MCSO (AZ) is hiring like crazy right now. Thing is I fell in love with a girl out here in california and she isnt willing to relocate, at least not while she is still in school.

Is she cool with all the sacrifices the "significant other" puts up with in this line of work? If not, move on and find the right one. Saw quite a few guys have issues at work because they had to seek permission at home from the supreme leader. Things like, she doesn't like me working the holidays, she doesn't like it when my supervisor calls me into work, she doesn't like me hanging with the guys after work, etc. It takes a special woman to deal with all that goes into making it work. I thank my luck stars I got a good one and we made it all the way through a career and enjoy retirement now. But she knew exactly what she was getting into from the beginning. From the 1am call outs as a detective to the days on end not being home as a narc, she dealt with it and raising kids and at times working her job. It is tough! Your mind needs to be focused on work while you are there for your own good and your fellow officers. Not the issues with the ol' lady. There is work time, there is family time, and there is you time (where you figure things out on your own and wind down such as a hobby).

Look at several departments, compare benefits and their requirements side by side. Go on ride-a-longs if they allow it to get a feel for the department.

[Dagostino480]

Further update on my LE interest:

I have been constantly thinking of this as a career the last couple of days. It has got to the point that I am watching my speed when I am driving and have placed calesthenics higher priority on my workout routine. I live a couple blocks away from Goldenwest CC and saw that they have a Law enforcement program/ academy that they offer. They also have online courses to get a degree in criminal justice. I plan on going to the Sheriffs office/ police department this week to get advice on programs and schools I should look in to.



Schools like ITT tech, Kaplan university, and University of Pheonix have an accerlated AA criminal justice degree program. Would those be adequate enogh to draw attention during the hiring process? The reason I ask is because the schools fine print states that I should ask the agency I am looking to work with if they view it as a reputable school.

[RedVines]

I would strongly advise against getting a criminal justice degree, especially for any of those for profit schools you mentioned. A criminal justice degree would not make you stand out at all in the hiring process. In fact it would probably have the opposite effect as every other applicant has a CJ degree. You will learn everything a criminal justice degree teaches you in the academy if you get hired. I will echo ilduche and say get a degree in something completely unrelated to LE in case things don't work out. Keep your record clean and gain some work/life experience, especially experience dealing with people. I was around your age when I got hired and I really had to work hard and play catch up due to my lack of life experience. Good luck.