What to Do Before Becoming a Police Officer
Working as a police officer can be a highly rewarding career that involves making a very hands-on contribution to the community. Yet, like any line of work, it carries its own set of unique challenges that need to be overcome, including confronting difficult characters, working long shifts, spending tedious hours filing paperwork, and facing plenty of competition from fellow colleagues.
With all that in mind, here are some steps that should be taken before embarking on a career in the police force to ensure that you are fully prepared for the challenges ahead.
Get the right training
It is essential that you are fully qualified, including understanding the law inside out, before becoming an officer with the police. When you are out on the field, you will need to be aware of your own rights, as well as those of the people you will be stopping, to avoid getting into difficulties further down the line.
Although there are a variety of ways to prepare for this career, including military service and traditional university study, studying for a bachelor of policing online is now a possibility for those who need the flexibility online study provides. Not only does it cover all the skills you will need on a day-to-day basis, like leadership, ethics and policy accountability, it also tackles the issues raised by modern technology, such as cybercrime.
Keep fit
Having a good level of physical fitness is as important as having the correct qualifications when working in law enforcement. The ability to perform the basic functions of being a police officer – such as apprehending suspects – demands a certain degree of fitness that may not be as essential in other lines of work.
Officers who are physically fit will be able to carry out the duties of their role to a far higher standard, recover more quickly and be better prepared for the unexpected than those who are not.
Understand your responsibilities
Police officers are authority figures whose principal role is as a protector of the community. However, their responsibilities extend far beyond that of simply arresting criminals. Controlling traffic, patrolling neighborhoods, delivering warrants, interviewing suspects, taking statements and writing crime reports all come under the duties expected of a police officer and must be respected accordingly.
As a carer of the community, the public looks toward police officers as the voice of reason in a number of different situations and, therefore, they must behave in such a manner that exudes this quality. Joining the police may involve sacrificing certain freedoms, as well as always being aware of their responsibilities, even when off-duty.
Talk to people
Getting advice from the people around you and those who already have experience working in law enforcement is undoubtedly one of the best ways of gaining an idea of whether it will be the right career for you.
It is often much more useful to hear the opinion of someone directly, rather than simply reading about it from the internet or a book, and will allow you to weigh up whether it is something you would like to do.
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