career choice help?

[pRaHjeC]

I have a question about the California Highway Patrol and how to become a CHP officer. i already talked to SDPD representatives, and they said my best bet to become an SDPD officer is to major in criminal justice, attain my associate's degree, then enter the police academy.

but i'd much rather be CHP, and i was wondering how i might go about that? could i do it the same way, IE majoring in criminal justice, then go to a CHP academy? I'm not really sure if the CHP even has an academy, or how i would go about getting into one if one exists.

any help is appreciated, thanks alot fellas.

[autobahNESSA]

ya you get a BA in criminal justice then apply for the departement you want to work for. If they hire you, they send you to police academy.

Most departments require you to be 20yrs of age before applying. Also some want you to enrol yourself into the POST academy. You can find infromation on the california website, or search google for POST infromation.

[pRaHjeC]

do you NEED to have a BA? I read the CHP requirements, you only have to have a high school diploma or GED. but you do need to be 20 to enroll in the academy, and 21 to serve as an officer. i'm only 18...looks like i'll be waiting a while.

[ThatGuy]

Even if the BA isn't a requirement, it can only help you. Since you have to wait 2-3 years anyway, why not spend that time furthering your education?

[KA24DESOneThree]

Even if the BA isn't a requirement, it can only help you. Since you have to wait 2-3 years anyway, why not spend that time furthering your education?

He makes a strong point.

[pRaHjeC]

yeah, i'm currently enrolled in college, going for an associate's degree (60 units baby) in criminal justice. i just really hate school...so i wanted to be able to do it like NOW.... But i guess these days, there's no way to avoid college and still make a good living =\

[nissantuner22]

correct. without college, you can not make it in life. (unless things are either handed to you, or you invent microsoft)

[orion::S14]

...or you invent microsoft

Or the internet...look where it got Al Gore!

On topic: Finish school, dammit! It's no fun, but a little hard work for a MUCH greater earning potential...that's a no-brainer. Plus, a week with 17-18hrs of class is nothing compared to 40-45hr in the office...you need to realize where you are and enjoy it a little.

- Brian

[Jeff240sx]

TURNCOAT!
-Jeff

[Andrew Bohan]

did you try the chp web site?
http://www.chp.ca.gov/

there's even a page on careers in the chp
http://www.chp.ca.gov/recruiting/index.html

[Mr. Badlose]

"Son, is that an SR20 motor? That's illegal, you know that right? You're going to jail, just like the rest of the ricers I pull over. Yes, your car will be impounded too."

It would be fun to be a CHP just to scare the shit out of people.

[pRaHjeC]

haha man...knowing me i'll be like...

"Pop the hood please sir."
"Okay officer."
"OH SHIT...that's a nice SR. Who swapped that for you? My friends could have done a better job...its coo though...what else you got on it? Oh yeah? That's coo...alright man have a nice day."

then i get fired when they look at my dashboard camera O_O

[mrmephistopheles]

Be a CHP officer, but be warned that you might not work where you want to work. I've got a friend who joined CHP and the sent him up to the Mt Shasta area. He had his first highspeed pursuit 1st week on!
CHP is a much better org than SDPD. If you decide you want to be a beat cop, move to LA and work for Beverly Hills PD. They've got the best-equipped and best payed force in LA, but they demand competent and qualified people to work for them.

There's always the option of US Border Patrol (Which is something I'd planned on doing till I decided against LE), but you have to speak spanish or be able to learn it.

[idlafie]

Be a CHP officer... If you decide you want to be a beat cop, move to LA and work for Beverly Hills PD. They've got the best-equipped and best payed force in LA.......


Beverly Hills PD may have the best equipped....but best paid?? Not sure about that....& unfortunately their webpage doesn't say anything about salary...
http://www.beverlyhills.org/presence/connect/CoBH/Homepage/Local+Government/Departments+and+Offices/Police+Department/LG-PD-Become_Real_Beverly_Hills_Cop

You want excitement & controversy...there's always LAPD!!! hahaha...
http://www.lacity.org/per/salary.htm
Or you can consider LA County Sheriff's...
http://la-sheriff.org/recruitment/deputy-recruit1.html

As for the CHP...
http://jobs.spb.ca.gov/openxrd.cfm?exc=4HP63
http://www.dpa.ca.gov/textdocs/specs/s8/s8446.txt

One of the things about the CHP, their entry examinations are usually more difficult than that of most of the local & county LE agencies in the state. Their written examination composes of the typical multiple choice questions along with I believe two essays in which you are heavily graded, (it's been several years since I've taken the test). Depending on how well you score on the written exam, that will place you either higher or lower on a Oral Interview Board...military experience/background gets you more points. Knowledge of a second non-native language is usually beneficial..your application will be processed faster if there is a need for that language.

There ARE other options to pursue a career in law enforcement, however not as a sworn police officer. You can become a CIVILIAN employee and work as a Criminalist, Crime Scene Technician, Fingerprint Analyst, Police Dispatcher, Custodial Officer, Community Service Representative & so on. Some of these positions even allow you to dress in uniform, wear a police badge and conduct investigations.

Click on the following for more info:
http://www.theiai.org/jobs/
http://www.theiai.org/links.html

Some of these careers require a college degree while others only require 60 college units. A high school diploma will suffice for others. You can also be as young as 18 to apply.

If you are interested in pursuing a career in law enforcement though, getting your degree in some sort of natural science such as Biology, Chemistry, etc will get you a better footing than majoring in Criminal Justice...the natural science degree offers you more opportunities in the law enforcement field especially if you decide you want to pursue other career options...like maybe work for a federal LE agency like the FBI....
https://www.fbijobs.com/

Anyhow, if you want to pursue a career in law enforcement, best bet is to start now. Either volunteer at an agency, (to get a feel like what the work is like & to talk with the officers to get their prospective) OR get hired at an LE agency as their support staff....that's how I started out. I wanted to be a cop years ago so I decided to get hired on as a records clerk to see what it would be like. After reading all those incident & arrest reports and talking to officers on the job, I decided against it.Took the advise of a buddy of mine & started taking Fingerprint Identification Courses & got into the fingerprint field. 15 years later & now I'm a Crime Scene Tech...been doing it for the past 10 years & loving it....

Anyhow....sorry for the long post....hope this helps...
Good luck with your career goals...

IdLaFie
...PD Crime Scene Tech

[Stock-S13]

Beverly Hills PD may have the best equipped....but best paid?? Not sure about that....& unfortunately their webpage doesn't say anything about salary...
http://www.beverlyhills.org/presence/connect/CoBH/Homepage/Local+Government/Departments+and+Offices/Police+Department/LG-PD-Become_Real_Beverly_Hills_Cop

You want excitement & controversy...there's always LAPD!!! hahaha...
http://www.lacity.org/per/salary.htm
Or you can consider LA County Sheriff's...
http://la-sheriff.org/recruitment/deputy-recruit1.html

As for the CHP...
http://jobs.spb.ca.gov/openxrd.cfm?exc=4HP63
http://www.dpa.ca.gov/textdocs/specs/s8/s8446.txt

One of the things about the CHP, their entry examinations are usually more difficult than that of most of the local & county LE agencies in the state. Their written examination composes of the typical multiple choice questions along with I believe two essays in which you are heavily graded, (it's been several years since I've taken the test). Depending on how well you score on the written exam, that will place you either higher or lower on a Oral Interview Board...military experience/background gets you more points. Knowledge of a second non-native language is usually beneficial..your application will be processed faster if there is a need for that language.

There ARE other options to pursue a career in law enforcement, however not as a sworn police officer. You can become a CIVILIAN employee and work as a Criminalist, Crime Scene Technician, Fingerprint Analyst, Police Dispatcher, Custodial Officer, Community Service Representative & so on. Some of these positions even allow you to dress in uniform, wear a police badge and conduct investigations.

Click on the following for more info:
http://www.theiai.org/jobs/
http://www.theiai.org/links.html

Some of these careers require a college degree while others only require 60 college units. A high school diploma will suffice for others. You can also be as young as 18 to apply.

If you are interested in pursuing a career in law enforcement though, getting your degree in some sort of natural science such as Biology, Chemistry, etc will get you a better footing than majoring in Criminal Justice...the natural science degree offers you more opportunities in the law enforcement field especially if you decide you want to pursue other career options...like maybe work for a federal LE agency like the FBI....
https://www.fbijobs.com/

Anyhow, if you want to pursue a career in law enforcement, best bet is to start now. Either volunteer at an agency, (to get a feel like what the work is like & to talk with the officers to get their prospective) OR get hired at an LE agency as their support staff....that's how I started out. I wanted to be a cop years ago so I decided to get hired on as a records clerk to see what it would be like. After reading all those incident & arrest reports and talking to officers on the job, I decided against it.Took the advise of a buddy of mine & started taking Fingerprint Identification Courses & got into the fingerprint field. 15 years later & now I'm a Crime Scene Tech...been doing it for the past 10 years & loving it....

Anyhow....sorry for the long post....hope this helps...
Good luck with your career goals...

IdLaFie
...PD Crime Scene Tech


Intriging, would it be possible to exchange aim handles? I myself am currently enrolled at CSUSB as a Crimnalistics major. If it isn't to much trouble I would be excited to eloborate on this further.

[mrmephistopheles]

Beverly Hills PD may have the best equipped....but best paid?? Not sure about that....& unfortunately their webpage doesn't say anything about salary...
IdLaFie
...PD Crime Scene Tech

This is info I garnered while I was still an MP. Every now and then we'd get a bulletin from XYZ PD saying they needed people. I did some research on BHPD.
Also saw an ad in a LE magazine (don't remember the name though).