Police Officer Preparation & Law Enforcement Resource - Archive

hey guys,

Just wondering if anybody out there could give me some insight into what the future job outlook looks like for law enforcement, is it going to be tougher? easier? careers more available and so on. I appreciate it thank you.

There is always going to be a need for law enforcement, I believe it will get tougher with a growing number of agencies requirering at least and associates degree, with many requirering a bachlors.

Law enforcement is ever changing.

I have friends in Massachusetts, which hires from a civil service list, and was told that you better have at least a two-year degree and veterans preference just to be considered a competitive applicant.

It varies from place to place, agency to agency. Try looking it up.

Last I heard in Australia they're trying to encourage more people to apply with degrees, and I heard my old department wants to make it mandatory. Dunno if that was just speculation or not, but I wouldn't be surprised.

I figure the higher the unemployment rate, and the harder times are in general, the harder it'll be to get into a policing career...

In Michigan...who knows, they might lay em all off the way things go :rolleyes:

I think the next couple of years are going to be "dry" so to speak due to the economic downturn.

Many agencies are trying to adjust to budget freezes or cuts (mine just stopped paid OT and went to comp time until the economy picks up) and staff that may have been looking at greener pastures are going to stay put having job security with seniority.

This is going to force more applicants into hiring pools which are still active… dramatically decreasing personal odds of getting hired based on a higher number of applicants.

It might work out better for places like NYPD if they already have money budgeted and specifically earmarked for staffing.

You really need to look around in the areas you are interested in and see how they are adapting to the downturn.

This is definitely not as bad as it was during the Carter years, but I have seen it before. It will eventually even out again.

That historical pendulum just keeps swinging back and forth…and we continue to fail to learn from history that it repeats itself.

I agree that it may be tougher to get hired on due to higher educational standards. The problem in my area is no one wants to work in law enforcement. Those who do apply generally do not make it through the written test and physical agility. Out of those that do, most do not make through the background investigation. Most people here work for the federal government, which pays a lot more. I think we as officers are going to have more work to do in the future with less people, especially the daily changes in society. Our job is definitely not getting any easier.