i want to become a cop

[budd333]

i am currently in 11th grade right now and deciding if i should become a police officer. i want to join the army and become an mp then a criminal investiagtion agent . both for 3 years so i will have 6 years military experience.
is this the best way to go if i want to work with law enforcement?

and if you cops had a chance to live your life over would you still want to be a cop?

also what are the pros and cons of your job?

[George]

The military would look good. Also a bacholers degree in criminal justice would look good aswell if I am not mistaken..

[budd333]

well yeah i want to go to college while in the army and serve as a military police for 3 years, once im 21 i want to upgrade my job into a "CID" crime investigator and do 3 years at that. when i get out i want to be a cop and slowly bulid my way up . but i want to know from NOW if its a good career path and if cops love what they do for a living

[George]

Alot of the police officers from my area love their job. . And I shall wish you the best of luck with your carrer path. But since I am not a police officer, I will leave this thread to them.

[ryanhj]

I am not a police officer, but like you I plan on becoming a police officer in the near future (I am also seriously considering working part time or full time in the army). I am currently 20 yrs old and a sophomore in college in Washington. I have one really, really important question for you, this is a really critical question! Police work can be very stressful, everyone can and will criticize practically everything you do and you can get sued in a second. This job can very trying, both emotionally and physically, yet there can be so many rewards to this line of work! My question is:

WHY DO YOU WANT TO BECOME A POLICE OFFICER? What exactly draws you to consider this line of work?

[marine19860222]

hey im with you all but im actually pursuing this. I leave for boot camp on 1 week today for USMC and im going to go into law enforcment after, i thought this would be a good path.

[hitnrun]

Hey marine...My buddy just got his orders and he is shipping out to Iraq as an 0321 (MOS: Force Recon) with his platoon from Camp Pendalton. He went in as an 0311 and loves every bit of it. He too plans on joing the LE community when he gets out. Good luck with boot, he always told me that the "Crucible" is a joke, so there ya have it!

[Matt28]

Are you joining the army for a stepping stone into law enforcement only?. Military does look good for you when going for the job, but it is not a requirement. You could also not join the military, and while studying criminal justice, maybe join an explorer program or do some ride alongs to understand police work better. That is what I am doing now. Studying criminal justice really gives you a better understanding of how the job really is( not a perfect understanding, but different to what I earlier thought). It is not as glamorous as it is on TV ( not all chasing bad guys, shoot em' up type job). It really takes full dedication and a strong belief in what you want to do. I understand right now you have doubts because you are still in high school but I would just look into more, maybe read some books written by officers telling a more realistic view of police work.

[P01IC3M4N]

for some reason, a lot of agencies tend to hire people who have experience as a mime. i got beat out on several applications by a bunch of mimes.

[budd333]

I want to become a police officer because It seems like a pretty good job,good benefits, and it can help me when i want to become a detective and hopefully FBI or some secret service. the reason i want to join the military is also because of its benefits and great training. im more concerned about the long term benefits of joining the military and working for law enforcement.

[Chief_Wiggum]

i
and if you cops had a chance to live your life over would you still want to be a cop?

If I had my life to live over I would want to be Bill Gates (only better looking...)

[budd333]

lol

[Dan]

Id knock out a four year degree first, Im seeing college being required more and more, plus the degree will open a lot more doors later down the road.(My plan is a 4yr degree, then some time as a Corrections Officer, then LEO)

Be aware getting into CID is pretty hard(from what Ive heard), and being a MP, you'll stand a good chance at getting sent over to the sand box. And as a MP you'll probly not have to much time to study. And most(again, from what ive seen) federal agencies require at least some college.

Being in the the military isn't an automatic shoe-in to a civilian department, neither is college. But college and military arent for everyone. My suggestion is to try and join a Police Explorer post. Take a tour of a local colege, and visit some Military recrutiers.

[corporal716]

If I were to do it over again, I would get a four year degree while serving in the military reserve, maybe even becoming an officer. Then I would start my law enforcement career. Doing both makes for a much better candidate. You would come out with the education and life experience needed for law enforecment. They can't ask for much more than that.