The Possible Merits of A Law Degree

[Joeyd6]

I worked two jobs while in college. After college, I worked for almost two years. During my summers, I worked internships. I think I have decent work experience for someone who just graduated.

Doesn't matter what YOU think, its what agencies and the cops in them think.

Unpaid internships are work experience, they are internships. Paid internships are work. A typical canidate here in NYC with the NYPD is:
a) 21-25
b) most have bachelors degrees or near such
c) 4-6 years of part-time work
d) volunteer experience (usually as an EMT or explorer or auxiliary cop)
e) one internship under their belt

On the fed level, I have yet to see an application make the qualified pile or called for an interview who:
a) Does not have a bachelors degree, and usually they have a masters.
b) Two internships complete
c) Volunteer experience with a public service organization (volunter firefighter, EMT or auxiliary cop of some kind)
d) 4 to 6 years part-time general work experience (grocery store, mall, movie theater, restaurant, etc..)
e) 2-4 years local law enforcement

f) Professional certfiications of some kind


If you want our opinion you drop your age and what you have done (pt or ft and how long) and we can tell you our opinions based our experiences, some of which include applicant processing and hiring boards. It also helps to know what you want to do, and what area you want to work.

[phantasm]

Doesn't matter what YOU think, its what agencies and the cops in them think.

Unpaid internships are work experience, they are internships. Paid internships are work. A typical canidate here in NYC with the NYPD is:
a) 21-25
b) most have bachelors degrees or near such
c) 4-6 years of part-time work
d) volunteer experience (usually as an EMT or explorer or auxiliary cop)
e) one internship under their belt

I fit that description, except I was a year older (26), and had 4 1/2 years of fulltime work in addition to the part time work.

[CelticSmackdown]

We have a guy who has a JD in our academy class. It hasn't really helped him in the academy (except for the legal block exam). He sits side by side with recruits who only have a high school diploma. Like the previous posters have stated, it doesn't really matter what the degree is in. They want to make sure your background is clean and that you are someone they would want to back them up on the streets.

[DeltaV]

So you scored a 96 on the civil service exam. Let's say there was a guy sitting next to you with a high school diploma who had done 6 years in the army. He got a 92 on the exam. He will probably get about 5 veteran's preference points, which means that his adjusted score is actually a 97. So technically, being in the military would help you a lot more than getting that law degree when it comes to getting hired.

As to promotions, that's a different story. Some agencies again go off of the same civil service testing procedures and promote straight down a list. Other agencies assess points based upon things like education, training, and experience and promote that way. Yet other agencies simply promote off of the chief or sheriff's whim. It all depends. Once you do get hired, the law degree may open some doors for you within the department, but it's not going to get you anything in the hiring process if they go down a scored list.

[FlyMIA]

On the fed level, I have yet to see an application make the qualified pile or called for an interview who:
a) Does not have a bachelors degree, and usually they have a masters.
b) Two internships complete
c) Volunteer experience with a public service organization (volunter firefighter, EMT or auxiliary cop of some kind)
d) 4 to 6 years part-time general work experience (grocery store, mall, movie theater, restaurant, etc..)
e) 2-4 years local law enforcement

f) Professional certfiications of some kind


If you want our opinion you drop your age and what you have done (pt or ft and how long) and we can tell you our opinions based our experiences, some of which include applicant processing and hiring boards. It also helps to know what you want to do, and what area you want to work.

For the Federal part do you mean all of those qualifications or some?
Would something like 4 year degree, JD, Various Internships and working as a prosecutor be something a FED agency would take in. Or is the volunteer and local law enforcement experience more important?

As far as the education argument in Civil Service jobs I guess this may be the case in Local Police agencies. But I know that for jobs with agencies such as the Dept of State or CIA education is key. Obviously those are much different jobs than being a Police Officer but still the same poor civil service pay.