Job Responsibilities
I was a police officer/Deputy Sheriff working patrol duties for
8 years. Daily duties included traffic enforcement, accident
response and investigation, responding to domestic violence
situations, general calls for assistance, drug interdiction, and
general community service. Due to the priority of responding to
emergencies, the amount of time spent on any one activity varied
from day to day. However, when not assigned to a call, I spent
the majority of my work shift on drug interdiction by contacting
people in residential/apartment areas and performing traffic
stops.
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Job Requirements
Obtaining a law enforcement position in northern Illinois is
very difficult and can take approximately two years. Educational
requirements vary by department, with the minimum of a high
school diploma or equivalent. However, a trend had started about
ten years ago to require a bachelor degree. This is usually only
required in the mid-size cities/departments because those cities
can afford to pay officers more and also desire to put forth the
image of a highly professional police department. I am not sure
about Chicago PD, but I do not believe you need a BS degree.
This would be so because of the large number of officers to be
employed. Many departments that do not require a BS degree will
give a bonus if you have one, or have a Master's or Doctorate
degree.
The police academy is approximately 14 weeks long, and provides
the basic theories of law enforcement. This education is
followed up by a Field Training Program usually lasting 12 weeks
or so. During this phase, the new recruit is in uniform working
with a veteran officer from whom the new recruit is to learn how
to apply the academy theory to real life.
Career path depends on the size of the department you work for,
with the larger departments allowing for greater specialization.
Generally, in order to advance upwards you have to specialize.
The warning is to do well, but not so well that the Command
officers do not want to lose your ability from that specialized
field. In that case you become irreplaceable and stuck there.
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Uppers
The best part is the nature of being a "beat cop." The variety of calls you
respond to keep the job fresh. Also, being in a squad car allows it to become
your personal "office" that is not readily accessible by your supervisor. There
is more freedom.
The downside is that you don't know what you are walking in to when you answer a
call for assistance. This raises the danger to you and your partner (if you have
one). Also, your office/squad car is out in the open for the public to see. It is
hard to hide from the public to take a break, because there is always someone
around.
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Downers
The worst part is the bureaucratic office politics. This is
present in all jobs, but it is worse in law enforcement because
there is no "lateral transfers." Lateral transfers is when you
leave your current employer for a new job somewhere else in the
same field of work. When you are a salesmen, for example, your
next job will hire you at the same or probably higher salary/pay
rate. However, in law enforcement, when you switch departments,
the new department starts you off at the beginning of the pay
scale (even if you had ten years at the first department). Also,
everybody gets the same raise/rate of pay depending on their
number of years at the department. So, everyone with 5 years on
will be paid the same, even if you are the hardest worker. Your
hard work MAY pay off by a promotion or an assignment to a
specialized group such as vice, burglary, robbery, homicide, etc.
If you think you may want to switch to another department, do it
within your first 2 years working, otherwise it probably won't
be worth it. Also, keep in mind that getting that other job may
take 1 - 2 years even though you are already a cop. Investigate
the department you are thinking of joining and compare it to
others.
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Lifestyle
Different departments have different rules. Some have permanent shifts and days
off. Others rotate these every three months or so. Being on a permanent shift is
preferrable because it allows greater predictability.
The big downside is that you do not get holidays or weekends off unless they
happen to fall on your normal day off.
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Compensation
Compensation varies by department. The wealthier a city is, the
wealthier its citizens are, the better you will get paid. Mid-
size cities in northern Illinois such as Naperville, Aurora,
Westmont, DeKalb, Bolingbrook, etc. have starting salaries
around $44,000 a year. The top salary rung after 5 years is
about $70,000. Although it is a salry type position, overtime is
overtime. This is how you can almost double you salary. This is
dependent on overtime being offered, but most cities have it
available.
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Advice to Jobseekers
If you are in college, start testing at the end of your
sophomore year. In the event that they want to hire you before
you graduate, see about finishing college in night school or
part-time. You probably will not get an offer quickly, so if one
does come during college, it will probably come towards the end
of senior year, and you may be able to delay the hire date a
couple months to allow for graduation.
Test for all departments that might possibly work. Being picky
will prevent you from getting any job. Testing will also make
you a better test taker and interviewer so that when you
test/interview for the city you really want, you will do better.
Also, try to do a "ride-along" with different police
departments. Not all of them allow this, but many do. You ride
with an officer for 4 - 8 hours to see what the job is actually
like. You do not get out of the car on traffic stops or calls,
but you hear the radio traffic, see what the officer does, and
can get his/her take on the job and department. Especially ask
for advice on the interview, what the hiring officers ask about
or what type of answers they are looking for.
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