Cop Career Questions-NJ

Being active on this bbs will help you develop a tolerance for that.

 

I knew one family member that was a Philly cop - family said the job changed him. I never knew him when he was younger, but he was as jaded as they come in his older years. Hve another friend that is a philly cop that hates it, but is hanging in for the pension. And dated a girl who's dad was a philly detective years ago - he seemed to like it. Although his son rebelled like no other.

 

Any degree would be beneficial, don't lock yourself into CJ/AJ degree. Have you been to a CJ/AJ class? Looks like half the people should be on the other side of the cage.

Keep a clean record, stay out of trouble... including tickets, credit, ect... Practice interviews and exams. It's a long process just to get to an academy, but weeds out the ones who just want to TRY to be one.

www.officer.com

 

Yes well most of the racers on here are "professional track racers", not the typical squid going down the highway doing 120 in a 60, with a pair of sandals, swimming trunks and a tank top.

Its a mature forum,with some people having alot of great careers. Its a good place to also talk to adults about some stuff.

Anyway thanks all for the advice. Im going to talk to a few of them, and look into it some more.

 

be ready to do a lot of reports. and be in court....a lot!

dad was a career cop. retired now.

 

It may have had to do with timing, but when i got out of college, (early 90s) I took severel exams for several municipalities in my area. Always scored in the top 5% On one I scored #7 out of 1100+ testers.

I was never hired due to.

I was a white male

I had not "served" in the military
I was not a female
I was not a minority
I had nor prior experience in the field (other than a criminology degree) The Feds were (are) looking for accountants, they want white collar crime

So all of the folks that I out scored, jumped ahead of me with "bonus points"

If it comes down to all things being equal, A white man will not win a "government/civil" position vs a minority female. just my slanted .02 but just adding an eye opener for you.

If you really want to be a cop. Join the military and be a MP or SP and that will give you a leg up


Oh and one other "note"

During the phsyc test, when asked if you would/could discharge a weapon and use leathal force, don't reply "HELL YEA!!!!!"

 

ex military always get the nod. most i know now are ex military. including my father. weapons training, self defense, and the rest are already there.

 

Join the Marine Corp become an MP you can get a job easy. When I got out Orange County and LAPD were taking guys and gals right out of the Corp. Semper FI

 

I graduated from Auburn in 92 and never had a problem getting hired. Maybe get a little closer to the soap before an interview?

 

Well, it depends where he'll be applying, generally, I've seen/heard a lot of Municipal Agencies like their candidates with a degree in CJ, however, as mentioned above, if he goes Federal, they have a big push in hiring recruits with degrees in accounting, linguistics (for obvious reasons if you know Arabic you're probably a shoe in), law, etc.....

Also be aware that if you go the "Alternate Route" direction agencies like the NJSP or NY/NJ PA will not accept it and you'll have you go through their specific academy. Again as mentioned earlier, it's not the best time to pursue a LE career (in this state anyway) due to all the layoffs, there are a LOT of PTC trained personnel waiting for a job opening, a lot of veterans who'll get preference and active RICE [bill] list that will allow agencies to hire off the civil service list.

 

You started small town and then moved to the "city" with experience.

Soap wasn't the problem, It may have been my Chenille No. 5 though

 

before making this a dungeon thread...i heard racial profiling, especially as a trooper, is a necessity

 

Yeah, before I say that, mostly, you would have to sell your soul to the devil to be cop in most places, this discussion should probably move to the Dungeon...
:|

 

Good post..... A lot to think about for sure.

 

A good friend of mine is a cop in Monmouth County. He said you had to go through the training program and then you get put on a list. When LEO is needed in a town they go to the list. You dont apply to individual towns.

 

Cop Apples...

 

My father was a municipal cop in a blue color NJ town for 20+ years. Lots of perks: can't get in trouble, get huge overtime $$$, you can run redlights, never get a ticket, drive like a nut (including his son ) park where you want, EVERYONE wants to be your friend, get major discounts at local stores, and so on.

On the down side, the schedule sucks, you deal with A LOT of paperwork, court is a pain, polyester uniforms and bullet proof vests suck in the summer, people will give you lots of crap, and so on. Investigating car wrecks, domestic abuse and fires can be pretty traumatic too.

Back in his day, you needed to know someone on the force to get into the academy. That's why like 99% of the police force in the 70's was white male. I didn't see a black cop in our town (police force of 80+) until the 1980s, even though over 40% of our town was black. Now a days, it's pretty hard to get in unless you're a minority. Again, unless you have connections, which seem to trump everything when it comes to government jobs.

Despite all the stuff about danger and hassle, there's a reason why so many want in. The take home pay in NJ is insane, and it's almost impossible to get fired. Unions have some major pull in NJ; towns are cutting back double digits, yet the police force still gets raises. In this economy, that's a pretty good thing to have.

 

And from what reliable source of information did you 'hear' this?

I was going to provide some factual information to clear up most of the misconceptions you posted, but then I saw one of your reference points.

 

+1 or join the Navy and become a Master-At- Arms...

 

I,m a retired Philadelphia police officer so I know from where I speek. You first appy for the civil service test. When the test is given you will be notified of the time and place. Competition will be unbelivable. When I took the test in the seventies there were 11,600 applicants. Each person is given a number relating to there Score. I finished 172 BTW.
Philadelphia now wants only those with a collage degree. The police academy is a joke. Your real learning comes that first day on the street. I was assigned to North Phila., the worst in the city. You will become jaded and develope a sick sence of humor. (Survival mode). You will work with some of the best people you'll ever meet, and also work and deal with assholes that should also be in jail. Supervision is the worst you will ever experiance in your life. I was shot at three times (All misses) stabbed once and severely bitten by a guy on PCP.
Each shift will be 7 hours and 55 min, dotted with 5 min of sheer terror. After awhile your friends will stop comming around. Most cops have only other cops as there friends. Pay is so so. If your a white male you will be passed over for promotion by females and minorities.
I'm not trying to poo poo you idea but go into it with your eyes wide open. I could go on and on but I think I've said enough.
Retired
Mollydog