What to do if I am interested in a career in Law Enforcement?

[karnzach]

I'm in currently in highschool and I wanted to know what do I need to do if I am interested in a career in Law Enforcement?

 

[reesek8]

If your local PD offers an explorer program you should join it. You will get a good feeling about police work, some experience around officers and get you some training. While in school you should get good grades, stay away from drugs and alcohol. Make sure you stay physically fit.

 

[rachel]

What types of tests are required to acquire a job in law enforcement? What kind of psychological evaluation can I expect? How rigorous are any physical fitness tests? Are any traffic violations allowed in the background test?

 

[cpefley]

It depends what field you are interested in. Police, sheriff, highway patrol, state trooper? Generally there is a psychological evaluation for any law enforcement field, as well as a physical fitness exam, and a fitness test (obstacle course). They do background checks, but traffic violations shouldn't be a problem. They are looking for felonies.

 

[sokolskik]

Ride-alongs. Go to your local police department, tell them you are interested in pursuing a career in law enforcement, and that if they offer ride-alongs, you are interested in going on one. They usually set you up with a senior officer or Sergeant and you "ride along" with them and they tell you their daily duties and how they do radar details and such. It's a great experience to learn about the job and you get a very hands on experience as opposed to reading about it online.

 

[jperd21]

Great information. I didn't know you could just request to do a ride along. I will definitely be contacting my local PD on how I can take part in a ride-along. I thought you had to be enrolled in a program. Thanks!