Police Officer?

by **TX-Sn0w** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 1:01 am

Hey, i was curious and maybe some of you may know or are currently/formerly a Police Officer, I just graduated high school and am now looking into a career and ive always been interested in becoming a Police Officer but have NO clue where to even begin.. I have been told that i need to attend a police acadamy and i have been told that all i need to do is pass a physical/lie/drug/police test and i would become a recruit and work my way up the ranks? Any information would be helpfull because i believe this is a career i would really love to do and suceed in.

- Sn0w

by **cavalierlwt** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 1:08 am

I had a buddy who became a Police Officer, but he started out as a Military Police. He actually moved up to Detective in like 4 years time, and wound up moving to San Diego, so it worked out pretty good for him (Detectives make decent money)
If you have a tough time getting in through the normal route, you can always join the military, and I know they are desperate for Military Police. Of course it's 90% likely you will wind up in Iraq, but that's one way to get your foot in the door.

by **TX-Sn0w** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 1:20 am

because of several personal reasons and ive been told that i could not join the military because im an only child and that im the only one that can continue the family name i can not join a branch of the military.. so im looking about going straight into police work..

by **CodeRed68** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 1:52 am

my best friend became a police officer after 10 years as an insurance agent. He moved to the Phoenix, AZ area and has been a police officer there for a number of years now. He is actually off the street and started up his own community relations position and gets to wear civilian clothes. The pay is ok, not huge, but ok but he will get a good pension when he retires. Also, they can retire real early which is a major plus.
I know the police academy was real hard and they try to break you mentally and physically. He was never a real physically fit dude, not fat either, just not like a jock or anything. Anyway, he managed to graduate the training near the top.
I have been on "ride alongs" with him and that in addition to just talking with him over the years I can tell you that 95% of his job is dealing with the lowlife part of society and domestic disputes. People who generally cannot take care of themselves and cannot live normally in society. Contrary to what you see on t.v. that is mostly the job.
You have to be an a**hole to people and boss them around otherwise they will try to take advantage of you. You have to put them in thier place and gain thier respect and that you are in control. At least that is the impression i got. I am sure there is a lot more to it.

by **A.M. Foxtrot** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 2:50 am

Where in TX do you live? I know some of the smaller towns and cities, you need to have TCLEOSE certification before you can be hired. The larger Cities I believe have their own academies and you would get your training there. However, you will most likely need to take an entrance exam to get on a list that the department works off of when they begin their hiring process. Now, I'm not exactly sure how it completely works in TX, though I was a Firefighter in NY for 11 yrs. beforehand and the processes for most civil service jobs follow the same overall process. hope this helps some

by **Rand0m** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 3:18 am

Im actually starting college this Wednesday for this. Im going for my bachelors in Criminal Justice. And then I'll try getting in at one of the Police Academies around here. I know you said you don't want to join the military. Heres the thing. Im 99.99% sure you will go to Iraq if you join up. But theres also a plus if you do go to Iraq as an MP. When you get back there are a lot more opportunities for you in becomming a Police Officer. Someone like myself will have to score a 100 on the entrance exam to even get accepted, but even then if theres someone with military background who scores say a 90, they will pick that person over me. It also helps to know people in tthe Police Department. You didn't mention college, and your not joining the military. I would highly reconsider going to college and getting a degree in something. The guys getting out of the military will have a much bigger for in then you, especially since they've been to war. I also think there is an age before you can take the exam/get accepted to the Academy. So you'll be waiting sometime if this is true, but Im not completely sure.

You have to get to know people in the department or when you get out they'll be having you do grunt work at the office before you even see a cop car, or the streets. Luckily for me I have family in the department so that helps.

As for the Academy being hard, well....yes and no. Its not Marine bootcamp. Nothing is comparable to Marine bootcamp, except Navy Seals but that takes years to even do. As long as you can run, do push ups, chin ups, sit ups, etc you should be fine as far as that goes. You also get mace (sp?) sprayed in your eyes, haha.

I wouldn't try going straight into it. Go to college man, its your best bet. If money is an issue, go to a community college for 2 years threw financial aid and then finish the next 2 years at a decent state college to get your bachelors degree in Criminal Justice. Thats what Im doing.

Also, most people don't get into an actual department until their 23-26. I think anyways. You figure most went to college, and some were in the military for four years. So you got some time to kill.

Pay isn't the reason people become Police Officers. I dont think people enjoy their job if they are in it for the pay. Basically the pay isn't anything extraordinary. If you ask any Police Officer why they are in the field they are in none of them will say because of the pay. Also find a department with a lot of old people ready to retire so you have better chance of getting in

by **TX-Sn0w** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 2:27 pm

Well i forgot to mention going to college, i am probably going to go to college but im trying to get a clue where to even start, and by the way foxtrot i live in Waco.. so there is plenty of places for me to go to college, i am probably going to go through a community college either TSTC or MCC and if i have to on to Baylor, im not really concerned about pay because really either military or police work is what i have wanted to do since i was a kid i've always looked up to them. ill probably look into your advice a bit more rand0m, and i might join the army and become an MP? possibly reserves.. i would love to join the Marines but i know they are too tough.. i could probably do it if i really set my heart to it but theres some stuff holding me back from joining the Corps. lol and by the way i have been in tear gas, i have been mased and i have also been stun gunned.. not by an officers tazer but by one of those hand held ones that are pretty expensive? it took me off my feet... and none of that was by a cop or anything.. and my record is clean.. besides the fact that i was issued a warning in 6th grade for a fist fight, i have never had a ticket or been in any trouble with the law.

by **Rand0m** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 3:30 pm

good luck with whatever you choose to do. just remember theres a war going on, so anything with the military means you'll be seeing desert. Unless you do journalism in the military haha. But I bet your crazy ass would want to see some action if you went over there

The comradery is what makes the work in the military/police field so appealing to me. Everyones one big family, everyone has eachothers back because their life depends on it. You have to make sure at the end of the day the guy next to you will get to go home and see his family.

by **Jim0322** » Sun Sep 04, 2005 8:47 pm

I work for a large university. It has a cadet program. The students actually go to the academy during one of the summer breaks and work as police officers for the campus before they even graduate. When they graduate they have a degree, have been through the academy, and have had a couple of years work experience as a full officer. Check into the school you plan to attend to see if they have such a program.

by **Rand0m** » Mon Sep 05, 2005 2:47 am

Originally posted by Jim0322
I work for a large university. It has a cadet program. The students actually go to the academy during one of the summer breaks and work as police officers for the campus before they even graduate. When they graduate they have a degree, have been through the academy, and have had a couple of years work experience as a full officer. Check into the school you plan to attend to see if they have such a program.

That sounds awesome, Im going to look into that. Thanks Jim.

by **King** » Mon Sep 05, 2005 3:14 am

criminal justice is a great start. A good friend of mine is a cop and he had to at least get a associates degree in criminal justice. most of the time, you have to have a full degree in something applicable for your application to an academy. Its either that or go join the Army Reserves and be an MP. Either way you go there is going to be some education needed. Good luck Snow

by **Manco** » Mon Sep 05, 2005 5:51 am

From everything I have seen here is the shoe-in program to being a cop:
1. Wear a cheap suit and tie....coffee stains on tie are bonus points.
2. Marry a hot but slutty chick and divorce her...try to hook her up with the Chief of Police.
3. Carry a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun ever made.
4. Smoke a lot and don't forget coffee and chilli dogs.
5. Last but not least, have lots of cool one-liners ready to go at a moments notice ie. 'Go ahead, make my day', 'Do you feel lucky punk? Well, do ya?' and my personal favorite 'Yippeekiyay mutha-f*er'

Of course these all worked for the cops in the movies, which we all know are based in real life.

**Warning -- Joke post ahead** Doh!

by **EZC** » Wed Sep 07, 2005 4:12 pm

funny thing is i have seen cops like that.

by **DocTrebor** » Wed Sep 07, 2005 4:22 pm

I didnt bother to read much of what was written; however, I attended a criminal justice academy for high school and pretty much at this point to be an officer you need a AA first. The testing isnt hard at all.

by **Rand0m** » Wed Sep 07, 2005 4:29 pm

Originally posted by |RS|DocTrebor
I didnt bother to read much of what was written; however, I attended a criminal justice academy for high school and pretty much at this point to be an officer you need a AA first. The testing isnt hard at all.

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