Hey guys,

I have been a lurker for awhile, not really much posting, on this forum atleast.

Anyway, You all seem like a pretty knowledgable bunch, so I thought I would ask for some of your input..

Some questions for ya. I'm looking to go SWAT eventually. In my second year in college as a finance major. Definitely lost my interest, so I'm thinking of switching to criminal justice, which I think I would be much more interested in, with a minor in espanol. What are the preferred majors? Criminal Justice, obviously, but I have also heard that they like psych majors.

Also, I plan on going military when I get out of college. Too much? Or will the additional training help...? It's something I have always wanted to do. What branch might you all suggest for a career in law enforcement? And what MOS? Should I go MP or something a little more aggressive?

Thanks

Josh

 

Get you commission and go infantry. From there you'll get Ranger School and several other cool schools.

 

Stay finance and go to the FBI or major in Spanish and go to the FBI.

When you're a sophomore apply to the FBI. Do you see a pattern here.

 

This guy said it best!
Right now the fbi is hurting for agents with an accounting style degree. If you got this and a good background, man your a shoe in.

Dont go local, pay sucks. Trust me.

 

I was Military and then a Deputy Sheriff first so I did it the hard way. And yes local pay is terrible for what you do.

RamRod, you are so correct on background. You have to practically be a saint. But the reward is immeasurable.

 

If you join the military, Get your commission! Then after all of the cool Army schools and a few active duty years, you can join the reserves or guard. You will NOT regret the military. And then go FBI, or police, or whatever... Good Luck!

 

Check out Corrections. You'll get to see all kinds of interestins things if you want to. Only thing is you need to stay away from PRIVATE run facilities. Their pay, training and benefits suck. Federal, state or municipal systems are the way to go. AK D.O.C. starting wage in about $18.00 to start and that dosen't count shift differential or OT. Also we work 7 days on 7days off. That's like a little vacation every other week.

 

I would agree that pay sux as it relates to small police departments and County Sheriff's deputies. Corrections too, in most places.

However, big cities and suburbs pay quite well now, depending on what part of the country you are in and the demand for quality recruits.

I say complete your degree and then go straight to a Larger Police Agency or FBI. I think the military is a great alternative if you didn't already know what you wanted, but remember you need to get started with your LEO career to start building pension credit/benefits and career experience to move over to SWAT, if that is your goal. Going into the military will just delay your years of service with the LEO agency. I am not knocking the military at all, but it doesn't really help you as it relates to a LEO career.

 

Get your finance degree, join the Marine Corps as a commissioned officer. Go Infantry- It is hard to get an Infantry spot. Get out after your 6 yrs, go to the FBI.

 

Go K9. SWAT needs a hero, too.

 

I like that Jack . Seriously all the above are good ideas. Which ever way you decide to go with your law enforcment career, remember this: TRAINING. The more you have the more your worth, and don't stop once you have the job you want. Get as much training as your agency is willing to send you to, even if you have no interest in the training and think you'll never use it, you never know when it may come in handy. I spend 10-14 weeks a year in training, and there are guys in my agency that do much more. Never stop growing your knowledge base and you will be a very valuable asset to any agency.

 

hello, the Border Patrol is hiring in the THOUSANDS, cant go wrong there. You can also move to another job after you get leo experience with the border patrol, especially if you have a degree, doesnt matter which one (bachelor) or above.

rest assured you will be sent to the southern border most likely sunny arizona.

 

Just a suggestion, the Coast Guard has very a good law enforcement training program that you can take from doing recreational boardings (mom & pop boardings), all the way up to high risk boardings through SRT. The SRT teams receive training from "various" military schools, swat teams, & "federal" training schools. We have an officer corps that a bachelors degree would sure help out getting accepted into the service. If you want information send me a PM and I will provide some information for you. The CG is a whole lot more then a helicopter flying around David Hasselhoff! We do a lot of homeland security operations.

 

I have a degree in law enforcement, and now have experience from the other side of the table of oral boards.

At least here (Oregon) a degree, any degree, will help you obtain more advanced certificates, allowing you to advance in pay faster, and be eligible for promotion earlier. Some of the larger agencies require a degree.

Obtaining a degree is a good idea, and being able to show that you have made personal investment in preparing yourself for a law enforcement career is also important, but that doesn’t mean that your degree needs to be in law enforcement.

If you get a degree in something other than law enforcement, I’d suggest either a minor in law enforcement, time as a Reserve Officer, or military police experience… something to show that you didn’t get up this morning and decide that applying for a police job would be a lark…

If I had it to do over again, I think I would have went with a computer science degree, perhaps with an associate degree or minor in law enforcement. Advanced computer skills would make a candidate attractive to any local or federal law enforcement agency, and it would give you other options if you decided to choose another path.

In the 15 years I’ve been working, only about half the people I have seen leave the law enforcement field left for retirement, so having a degree that would still benefit you if the law enforcement career didn’t work would be a wise move.

Anyhow, some of the federal jobs are pretty nice, but they aren’t for everyone.

The first thing I would suggest is that you look into civilian ride alongs, if they are offered in your area, to get a glimpse of what the jobs out there are really like.

 

Military can help, but with a degree and good grades you won't necessarily need it. If you target a larger agency with an academy, you may not need the minor in law to get in, especially knowing spanish. After a few years on the road, the finance will help you get into the detective bureau of the agency. You'll need to be on the road a bit before you get on any swat/emergency team.