Police Officer Preparation & Law Enforcement Resource - Archive

I've been thinking about my fed LE career options recently, and one agency seems to be overlooked: USSS Uniformed Division. I've researched the division on this and many other web sites, and I'd love to get your opinions about the following things:

1 - Is it really just a glorified “security guard” position, or is that just a misconception? And comparing the security role of the UD to the role of, say, USMS in courtroom security (standing around listening to attorneys and judges waffle on about all kinds of tedious stuff for weeks on end), USSS in protective work (standing outside a back door for 12 hours every day for a month), and the piles of paperwork that I’m sure the FBI, DEA and ATF have to put up with, is it really that different in terms of general levels of boredom?

2 – I hear that overtime is not just common, but an almost-daily occurrence. How accurate is this? And is it a welcome boost to paychecks, or a complete pain in the ***?

3 – Not that I wouldn’t be interested in a fairly long-term commitment to any agency I join, but is UD a good stepping stone into special agent positions? (It does “stop the clock” for 1811 hiring, doesn’t it?)

4 - How hard is it for officers to move into something like counter sniper work or any of the other special units? How many years of regular uniformed work would generally be required?

5 - Do you get to take the Sig P229 home with you at the end of every shift?

Thanks.

I was UD for about 4 years, 4 years ago so some of my info may be dated...

The level of boredom associated with the different agencies really depends on what yur looking for in the job. I don't think you can really compare UD with the FBI, ATF or USMS. The jobs are just on different levels.

With that in mind the training you get for UD is top notch or at least was when I went through... I heard some rumblings that the standards dropped a bit.

In terms of boredom when you come out of the academy depending on if you go to the White House or the VP house your going to be standing post for 8 hrs. If you end up at the FM branch you will be patrolling for 8 hrs.

Overtime comes and goes in waves when its bad its really bad 12 hrs a day everyday including your days off. Which is during the election or heavy travel times. It was a welcome boost to my paycheck. But at times you just really want that day off. Then overtime will disappear and people are begging for it.

A lot of people tend to use it as a stepping stone to 1811 gigs... the majority of my class is now in 1811 either as Secret Service or other agencies.


When I was there it was 18 months to move into either a counter sniper spot or ERT(there version of SWAT). It very high speed training.

Yep, you are allowed to take home your weapon everyday.

I will leave you with this.. I loved working UD. I stood post for maybe 2 months at the White House the I did counter surveillance for the rest of my time. I got to make some arrests, traveled at lot, was there for an election and met a lot of good people... then I moved on. Its a good steeping stone.

Hopefully this helps

Thanks kaylee - that was a perfect answer. I appreciate the time you took to pass that info on.

One more question. What shifts do officers normally work? I'd love to get something whereby I could miss the DC rush hour (like a 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. shift, or a 4:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m.) Are the second and third shifts sought after, or would an officer be guaranteed the night shift if he wanted it?

I think it was 630am- 3pm, 230pm- 11pm and 1030pm-7am.. Atleast it was something around those times. Traffic wasn't that bad coming in around those times.

When I was there straight midnights wasn't to hard to get and the other shifts where one week of mornings the next you worked afternoons... it wasn't that bad once you got used to it.

Thanks again, Kaylee.

Just out of interest, do USSS-UD officers carry less stuff on their duty belts than regular police officers, or are they similarly laden with all kinds of equipment/junk? And do UD officers have to carry a backup handgun, or is that something that is more of a local/state cop thing because they are likely to be without immediate backup? And I guess UD wear body armor?

Feel free to ignore those questions if officer safety might be compromized. I'm just trying to get a feel for the daily life of UD guys.

I'm not, nor have I ever been, a USSS UD officer, but have a buddy who was. USSS has a motto: "Stay in your lane." This means that you need to understand and live by the mindset that your job is protection, period. Even if in patrol, as a USSS UD officer, your there for protection. If you go into the job expecting it to be like being a street cop for a local PD, you'll be sorely disappointed (as my buddy was, which is why he now works for a local PD). Personally, having been on a protection detail before, I'd be bored to tears with it, but some people love it, so if its for you and protection truly interests you, go for it.

. . . which is exactly why I don't want to carry around a bunch of crap like five sets of handcuffs, three guns, tazers, sprays, flashlights, batons, pens, notepads, first aid equipment and all that other stuff - I want to do something more in line with protection, and I don't really want to be stuck with a bunch of guys who are more interested in dressing up like cops to try and look cool for the tourists. From speaking to a number of local cops, carrying around too much junk is uncomfortable and awkward, and I'd rather carry as little as possible and still effectively perform the job.

I have very little interest in being a local police officer - to me, protecting the President/VP and their families (even in the capacity of a UD officer, which will involve lots of standing around) is far more attractive than the work a junior local police officer performs.

I'll put it to you this way, UD officer are allowed to enforce DC law as well as Federal law, so you still have to carry around the appropriate equipment to conduct your duties. But, as you stated your main function will be protection if you are at either the white house or the VP residence. Hopefully that clarifies it for you a bit.

If you are seriously considering UD as a line of work, I recomend, if you live in that area to take a trip to the White House and talk to some folks on duty and get there impression of the job and see how they dress and what their duties truely consist of.

I will take a visit soon and see if I can talk to some UD officers.

I have a question about commuting to work. Since there's countless applicants who are not in a position to sell their houses and move to DC right now because of the economy, what is the furthest distance you would be allowed to commute to DC for work until the economy improves and the housing market picks up again? I live about 60 miles north of DC. Do many officers have commutes like this, or do they all live very close to work?

I am also former UD.

Great training and people but the job is security based. Most of my classmates that stayed are still sitting post and many still don't have a lock up yet, its been 5ish years since graduation.

Getting ERT/CS is tough, you need to be in awesome shape and can shoot at high levels, many people was out of training. Its not the PT that kills them, its the shooting. Getting other special teams there is some luck involved and having a hook helps. If you are a female that will also help your chances, not sure why but many of the females at UD got picked up for special assignment before more senior people.

UD will open many doors in the G and the private sector, lots of former UD out there and we take care of our own. Standards have slipped IMO for UD, the turnover rate is still high, but if you can do 2-3 years you will see some cool stuff, travel, and have an awesome resume.

Go to DC and chat with some Officers, they are dressed just like a traditional Police Officer and not hard to find by the WH. Many will complain but if they were that unhappy they would have left, about 40% of my class quit already for other gigs.

Also, you can live almost anywhere in the metro area if you are willing to drive and be at rollcall on time.

Good luck

I am in the process of applying for the Uniformed Division. I have already submitted my application and I have to go next week and take the POST. I already passed it for the Capitol Police but the recruiter said I needed to retake it because the secret service version includes an essay. My question is how long is the hirring process supposed to take. What should I expect?

Hey mabeason,

I was scheduled to take the post in March, the recruiter said I should be offered a job come october, the only thing is that I will still be in school. That would be about 5 months. He told me to hold off and wait until the fall.

I would say 5 months but with them expect a year.

Steve

Which specialist units are the hardest to get on, and which are the "easiest" to get on? Can anyone rank them for me?

My ranking (from my research, and listed from hardest to easiest) would be:

ERT
CS
Special Ops
Canine
Crime Scene Search Ops
Motorcycle
Magnetometer

Is this fairly accurate?

And are most officers able to get on some form of specialist unit after a few years?

Which specialist units are the hardest to get on, and which are the "easiest" to get on? Can anyone rank them for me?

My ranking (from my research, and listed from hardest to easiest) would be:

ERT
CS
Special Ops
Canine
Crime Scene Search Ops
Motorcycle
Magnetometer

Is this fairly accurate?

And are most officers able to get on some form of specialist unit after a few years?

Being former UD, here is my list.

CS
ERT
Motors (not many guys, plus take home motor)
K9
Mission Liason
Crime Scene
Mags

UpOnBase2 - thanks for the insider info.

I had a couple more questions about the same subject, if you've got time:

* Would an "average" UD officer (average in terms of fitness and job performance compared to the other UD officers) be eligible to move onto a specialist team, or are only the toughest hotshots the only ones who end up doing ERT and CS?

* I wouldn't mind being a K-9 handler. Is that a hard move to make after putting in some time as a regular UD officer? Again, I never envision myself as being the most rugged of all UD officers, but I do consider myself very dependable, in good physical shape, having common sense and a good education.

* Do K-9 UD officers get a "take home" dog?

* Is getting onto a specialist team done on merit, length of service, or "who you know"? (Or a combination of all three?) I.e. how transparent is the process of getting onto a specialist team?

Some of you folks need to actually go to DC and talk to the USSS-UD guys/gals in the field.

They are very receptive if you walk up to them and ask.

Also, stand back and watch what they do. It's very, very force protection orientated and the likely hood of you arresting someone is going to be pretty slim.

Just some observations from out here in DC when I am coming/going to work as a Intel Analyst Contractor that spent 20 years in the Military.