Posted: 4/21/2009 9:54:36 AM EDT
|
Did/does your department or agency require a college degree? I know many offer additional pay for those with a degree but I'm asking about initial entry or required within a certain time after hire.
If they do or did require it, how did you obtain it assuming you didn't attend college after high school? Night school at the local community college? Online through a local college? Or online through an "online college"? Just curious- Thanks! ETA- What's your degree in? |
| Associates degree or better in any field. The year I got highered it was a bachelors degree in Criminal Justice. Not many applicants. Then they went to associates degree in criminal justice and then to the current policy. I never served in the military but it pisses me off that we exclude veterans if they don't have military. I guess they don't want mean and nasty people with military training. It might scare our precious citizens. |
|
We require 60 hours.
I got mine out of high school before LEO career. We do have a pay incentive for a Bachelor degree. $100 extra per month. College = over rated in my book. As a GENERAL rule, the best cops I have worked with have a ton of common sense, may have had some military experience, or at least been out in the world for a while. Some of the worst cops I have seen came straight from college and have no idea about the world. For the record, I have a degree and I value education, it's just way over rated for LEO. A degree in street survival or ghetto slang will get you further and keep you alive longer. |
we require 60 hours of college (not an actual degree though ) I believe that the State requires 60 hours by the time you graduate from the academy. We get no extra money or incentives to have or attain a degree.
I have a Bachelors in CJ and likely will be going back here shortly for a BS in Nursing or a Certificate (essentially an Associates) in Gas Turbine/power generation technology. I know thats a HUGE difference but they are both fields that 1) Interest me alot 2) are growing leaps and bounds and 3) have very good earning potential and stability. I got the bulk of my BS in CJ out of highschool (was pre-med 3 years before switching to CJ, MAN IF I KNEW THEN WHAT I KNOW NOW!!!!) and finished my last 20 credits while working full time. If I had to do it again I would have finished prior getting hired. Those last 20 credits were hard while working shift work. My next degree will either be going part time when ever I can fit class in or will neccesitate retiring at 15years and going to school full time and getting a BS part time job while my wife goes back full time (shes worked part time the last 7 years raising our kids etc). J- |
|
Most places around here don't require anything, but the ones that do usually require Associates degree in any field or two years of military experience (interchangeable).
I came into LE with a BA in History and 7 years in the national guard with 1 combat deployment. I quickly learned that college doesn't mean shit, aside from critical thinking and communication skills. I desperately floundered until I learned some slang and how to talk to folks. I didn't know anything about the Ghetto (a 'whip' was something Indiana Jones used) and I'd never been lied to in my life. So the first few months were a crash course for me. But I endured! |
|
Quoted:
Required if you want to make any sort of rank in the future. Completely understood. So where do you guys get your degrees? Community colleges, online study? I'm looking for the most efficient (notice, I didn't say easiest or cheapest) method to obtaining a degree. |
| Mandatory college for police (in the form of a hiring requisite) is utterly ridiculous. The whole idea––is that the job is going to "pay you back" for your trouble. For what most cops make, it's a losing proposition. I mean if you think about it...how much does four years of college (or even two years) cost? Could that in any way justify the $$$ you're going to spend just to get a public safety job that doesn't pay anything anyway? Sure...if you've got a good department, you're going to get educational incentives in the form of money or plusses come promotion time...but for most cops, it simply doesn't pay. |
|
Quoted:
Mandatory college for police (in the form of a hiring requisite) is utterly ridiculous. The whole idea––is that the job is going to "pay you back" for your trouble. For what most cops make, it's a losing proposition. I mean if you think about it...how much does four years of college (or even two years) cost? Could that in any way justify the $$$ you're going to spend just to get a public safety job that doesn't pay anything anyway? Sure...if you've got a good department, you're going to get educational incentives in the form of money or plusses come promotion time...but for most cops, it simply doesn't pay. I tend to agree from a hiring standpoint. Public safety is such training-oriented fields that the only benefit a college education might give you, other than being promotable, is decent study habits. Smart is smart and dumb is dumb and a degree isn't going to change that. Quality training, on the other hand, will make everybody who works at it into good officers. |
Win a FREE Membership!
Sign up for the ARFCOM weekly newsletter and be entered to win a free ARFCOM membership. One new winner* is announced every week!
You will receive an email every Friday morning featuring the latest chatter from the hottest topics, breaking news surrounding legislation, as well as exclusive deals only available to ARFCOM email subscribers.