Police Officer Preparation & Law Enforcement Resource - Archive

I've been trying to assemble a resume. It's going pretty well but I'm having a hard time filling some space. I found a good resume booster I thought you all might like.

FEMA offers free online courses in things like disaster management, hazmat ect. You take a final examination online and you get a certificate of completion in the mail a few weeks later.

http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/crslist.asp

Good Luck

Ya, that's nice. I think that if you complete all the online courses they will make you director of FEMA...

I think most of us can see through the fluff. I put more than one resume in file thirteen for typos, fluff, or getting my name wrong if you tried sending it to me.

Do your homework or don't send it in. So many others to choose from.

I think most of us can see through the fluff.

I agree with Ken on this. There's nothing wrong with doing this sort of online training (as any additional training is good), but don't make it out to be something it's not. The online training courses FEMA offers are awareness courses, but hell, awareness can be gained by reading the newspaper. I took an online awareness course from saferesponse.com last week during a slow work day (it was CJ-related, so it counted as Professional Development!), and while I got some good info, it's not like it certifies one to do something that any other applicant or untrained person can't do.

If you want to complete some of these courses and list them on a resume, just be sure it's not the bulk of what you have, as too much "fluff" isn't going to help you stand out above other applicants.

I think most of us can see through the fluff. I put more than one resume in file thirteen for typos, fluff, or getting my name wrong if you tried sending it to me.

Do your homework or don't send it in. So many others to choose from.

The classes are not meant to be fluff. It shows that you have taken the time to read, and stay up to date with some very important information. By all means correct me, but I was under the impression that learning about subjects such as Hazardous Materials, Effective Communication, and Principles of Emergency are all relevant to LE.

Regardless, It's better than having a blank space on your resume.

I agree with Ken on this. There's nothing wrong with doing this sort of online training (as any additional training is good), but don't make it out to be something it's not. The online training courses FEMA offers are awareness courses, but hell, awareness can be gained by reading the newspaper. I took an online awareness course from saferesponse.com last week during a slow work day (it was CJ-related, so it counted as Professional Development!), and while I got some good info, it's not like it certifies one to do something that any other applicant or untrained person can't do.

If you want to complete some of these courses and list them on a resume, just be sure it's not the bulk of what you have, as too much "fluff" isn't going to help you stand out above other applicants.

I agree. The courses are just something to accompany larger accomplishments. I posted the link under the impression that when people put it on their resumes, they would also have a degree.

...I was under the impression that learning about subjects such as Hazardous Materials, Effective Communication, and Principles of Emergency are all relevant to LE.

Regardless, It's better than having a blank space on your resume.

Like I said in my previous post, it's not bad information to gain, it's just that it's at the awareness level. That means you don't get hands-on training that would be more useful in a LEO position. Is it bad information to gain? Certainly not. Is it a bad idea to list it on your resume over having a blank space? No, but if you're resume is full of fluff (having a little fluff is okay if balanced with other credentials that are needed/desired), you'll be looked over for more qualified applicants.

It's the same thing as taking a CJ class in Terrorism. It won't qualify you to be hired as a Special Agent with the FBI under their Counter-intelligence/Counter-terrorism Critical Skill.

I agree. The courses are just something to accompany larger accomplishments. I posted the link under the impression that when people put it on their resumes, they would also have a degree.

Well if you had two equal applicants, except one had a bachelor's degree and the other had an associate's degree and a few FEMA online certificates, my bet is the bachelor's degree student will be seen as more qualified. ;)

It's fluff...if you had a certificate from classroom and practical work, and used this as CEU's, that's one thing. But for the real thing... pardon me but not quite the same thing.

I have taken on line refreshers/updates but had certifications to begin with.

Having hired at least 30 investigators, what do I know?

And I saw nothing in the original post assuming anyone had a degree. It came across as resume building...something I call embellishment.

It's fluff...if you had a certificate from classroom and practical work, and used this as CEU's, that's one thing. But for the real thing... pardon me but not quite the same thing.

I have taken on line refreshers/updates but had certifications to begin with.

Having hired at least 30 investigators, what do I know?

And I saw nothing in the original post assuming anyone had a degree. It came across as resume building...something I call embellishment.


This section is titled "Criminal Justice Programs". That is somewhat of a hint that most of the readers would have, or are working on a degree.

This horse is about beat to death. It was just a tip. It's just something you can add that someone else might not have. For those applying, use it if you want, if you don't want to....well then don't use it. It is resume building and like I originally said, It's better than a blank space. I'm pretty much tired of talking about it.

If you have the time or the money to spare. I would recommend doing an internship with the agency that you would like to work for. I am doing one right now. I have met a lot of good people and learned a lot. It will look good on the resume.

During training, we all have to take the FEMA courses that the department deems as helpful. It's actually a common thing for departments to require officers to take these courses, and I believe that certain ones like NIMS may even be required if the department is going to be given federal funding.

So in essence, nobody is really going to care if an applicant has these courses or not. A 'course' that anyone can take by getting online and going through a slide show is pretty much worthless as a resume booster.

Ive taken about 25 of them because I needed the credits. They were easy enough that I got one or two done a week when I had free time. Then I paid 60 dollars a credit to have my transcript sent to my school. So cost wise I saved alot of money completeing my 60 credit requirement. I think it was good reading and like I saw it stated earlier its not getting you ready to handle a major disaster but I definitly know alot more now than I did before I took those learning modules. I recomend them to anyone who has the time and needs the credits.

Ive taken about 25 of them because I needed the credits. They were easy enough that I got one or two done a week when I had free time. Then I paid 60 dollars a credit to have my transcript sent to my school. So cost wise I saved alot of money completeing my 60 credit requirement. I think it was good reading and like I saw it stated earlier its not getting you ready to handle a major disaster but I definitly know alot more now than I did before I took those learning modules. I recomend them to anyone who has the time and needs the credits.

http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/crslist.asp

On the link provided, is "one credit" refering to one semester credit hour?