How to Become a Police Officer

Remember Steve Guttenberg in Police academy? Growing up and watching it on Comedy Central was a Saturday morning staple in my family. That was the time that I decided to become a police officer. But how do you become apolice officer? And what does a police officer do? I decided to take this path with one of the best universities online.

Standards for police officer requirements have changed considerably in the last 2 decades. It used to be that a high school graduate after police academy training was all set to join the force. Now at least some post high school work is required to make it in. 

Police Officer Prerequisites:

Perhaps the most important requirement for a person seeking a police officer job is not having a criminal record. While most other requirements can be met, this one is particularly hard to get around. People that are under 21 years of age cannot apply and must have a GED along with some college courses.

It goes without saying that there are strict guidelines of physical fitness and tests that will evaluate one's physical condition. Psychological testing is another aspect that must not be ignored during the time that you are preparing to become a police officer. Passing these basic tests will give your application a very great chance of success. 

Educational prerequisites:

While law-enforcement agencies were accepting of only a high school diploma, nowadays, a pre-requirement is that candidates possess a diploma or bachelor's degree in a relevant field. These relevant fields include criminal justice, criminology, forensics and psychology.

A thorough understanding of law and the machinations of the legal system are necessary, so while testing is helpful, an innate aptitude for the law is paramount in this profession. The slightest miscarriage of the law can lead to innocent people doing time and the guilty walking free. This can happen even with cutting-edge methods in criminalistics. Ultimately, all the science on the planet cannot replace good old police work.

While these prerequirements may seem daunting, they can easily be satisfied through online courses. For people intending to go up the law enforcement ladder, masters and PhD degrees are available in criminal justice which can expedite the entire process.

Once these degrees have been obtained, don't think for a moment that your path is clear to join the force; an application form to the police academy must be filled out and training must be completed. Do keep in mind that requirements for police officer training differ from state to state. Before you embark on this journey, make sure you have a clear picture of what your state requirements are. Also keep in mind that different law-enforcement agencies such as the prison system, the Sheriff's Department and the Highway Patrol operate independently and therefore have different prerequisites. Depending on which one of these your interest lies in, your training would have to be skewed towards that.

While becoming a police officer is a prestigious career choice, the road is often not as easy as it is made out to be in the movies. So before you go down that road, make sure you have equipped yourself with all the prerequisites that are required along with research on what your specific goals are in the future. You are now ready to take on a field that is challenging yet truly rewarding.

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