My chances at getting hired

[nic1986]

Reading this forum has answered many questions I had about becoming a cop, however there is one question I haven't been able to find an answer to. Being a cop is more important to me then anything and I'm just worried about a mistake I made three years ago giving me a hard time getting hired. First off I have never committed a crime and never done drugs. I don't even have any traffic violations on my record.

The mistake I made was with the military. When I graduated high school I was your typical kid and didn't want to wait until I was 21 to become a cop so I joined the Air Force so I could be one right away. The mistake I made was lying about a previous knee injury I had. I tore my ACL and had a full recovery to point where I have no problems what so ever with it. However my recruiter said that none of that made a difference and that they wouldn't take me in, so he told me to just not say anything about it. So after enlisting and going to basic I realized it was wrong to base my career on a lie so I came clean with them. And to make a long story short they discharged me and classified it as an entry level separation because I wasn't in long enough to be considered permanent party. So my discharge wasn't considered honorable or dishonorable it was just classified as an ELS. It does however say on my discharge papers that the reason was for fraudulent enlistment.

Now I feel as if I have ruined my dream, I didn't just decide to be a cop recently, ever since I was a little boy it has been my dream. Well I'm 20 now almost 21 and soon will be able to apply at my local PD. My question is do you officers think I stand a chance at getting hired? By the time I apply it will be about three years since my Air Force mistake and since then I have done a lot of hard work to better my chances at getting hired. I'm in top physical shape, I work out six days a week, my cardio is extremely good, I take classes in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu three days a week and am considered by my teacher to be an advanced student, and on top of all that I take college classes at my local college and currently have a 3.8 GPA. (4.0 is the highest you can have at my college). I just really need some advice or pointers to give me a better chance at getting hired. But I also want to know if you guys think I'm wasting my time even trying. I don't want to give up on my dream but I feel as if I screwed myself with my mistake. The PD I want to work at is just a small town with a population of about 25,000 people.

Any responses would be greatly appreciated.


Thank you all for your time.

And I also apologize for any grammar mistakes I'm on my break at work and don't have a lot of time to double check for mistakes.

[mcsap]

Of course you have a chance but the " small black cloud labeled fraudulent enlistment" will be following you around. Fully admit what you have done , indicate everything that you have done since then to get yourself in decent shape . possibly a letter from a doctor stating that your knee is completely fit to perform the duties of a LEO.

Make sure your background/work history/references/education and appearance are all top notch as you will need a little extra to overcome this hurdle.

[Big_Montana]

i had one entry level separation from the reserves and one Honorable from the National guard, my ELS was pretty messy and the lawyers are still sorting that out 4 years latter, i can't say it wasn't a hurdle.
impress them with your interview and they'll overlook the minor problems in the past. the interviewers realize everyone has things in their past, yours just happen to be documented.

in an interviewers position this whole story may look like you lacked the physical stamina or mental tenacity to complete basic so you used the injury as an excuse to wash out, you may want to INDIRECTLY address this issue by propperly phrasing some of the responses to questions the interviewers ask...don't directly bring it up because that would look defensive, but don't be afraid to brag on your mental tenacity and physical stamina.

-RJ