What GPA do i need to become a cop?
You do not need a certain GPA but if you got Honor Roll in High School or something like that it should help. But most departments just require at least a 2 year degree some 4 and some only require a high school degree! And most academies are any where from 27 weeks to 35 weeks. You have to pay for it but some town's can sponsor you and will pay for it if they really want you a police officer in their department.
Can I become a police officer and go to college at the same time?
Most large departments, nationwide, will help you pay for college courses. Smaller departments vary more. By maintaining an A average my department paid all costs for my last 12 bachelor hours needed and all of my masters. Most departments will not allow you to attend school or have a secondary job until you are off of probation (most places 6 months to 1.5 years) The question is can you become and officer? Nationwide of all those who take a first police test only 11% make it to the street past probation.
Do you need college to be a cop, and why or why not?
Every department is different. To my knowledge, the majority of local law enforcement agencies require only a high school diploma or GED with varying age requirements. The Feds (FBI, DEA) both require a bachelor’s degree and a min age (not sure what it is currently). Our state (Georgia) investigative agency, the GBI, also requires a bachelor’s degree. But, the requirements and mission of these departments are very different from an urban or rural street cop.In my opinion, a degree does not make one a better street cop, but I do think that minimum age requirements of 21 are a good idea as those few years of ‘life experience’ in any discipline are helpful as is military service. The bachelor degree requirement tends to serve as both an age limiter and experience hurdle for many departments, though it also greatly limits their applicant pool. Regardless, good writing skills are very helpful as you document everything you do and portions of your work are public record. Sometimes when testifying, defense attorneys will try and rattle you on the stand by dissecting your work. I’ve spent hours on the stand being grilled about verbiage, tense, construct etc. Makes one quickly wish they paid more attention in certain classes ;).There is no substitute for experience. Personally, I found people that had good communication and interaction skills made the best cops. Being able to relate to people in stressful situations is a far more valuable skill set than being able to kick down doors.
I wanna become a cop but i smoke weed!?
Sorry, but if you aren't mature enough to see that the statement "I smoke weed" is basically disqualifying, and the fact that you don't see a simple remedy means that you will never be able to be a police officer. If one ignores the fact the marihauna is illegal, and considers that it only exists to alter ones perception of reality, the obvious downside to its habitual use is more than obvious. If you really wanted to be a police officer (or astronaut, or brain surgeon, or concert pianist) and you saw that there is an impediment to that goal, a motivated person would work to remove that impediment. In your case, simply stop smoking weed. I did hundreds of applicant background investigations. The police will certainly know that you smoked marihauna in high school. Either through interviewing friends, relatives or neighbors or during your pre-employment polygraph, your prior drug use would be revealed. Now, lots of people experiment with drugs as teenagers. Some even can be classified as casual users in their youth. Many police departments do not consider that type of youthful experimentation with recreational drugs as disqualifying. However, some have a zero tolerance policy, and will not hire anyone who has even tried drugs. You, however, are a different case. You are talking about deliberate and habitual use of an intoxicant. Nobody would recommend you for acceptance, any more than they recommend someone who was habitually drunk throughout high school. I suppose you are at a cross rioads. I am not sure how old you are, but you are never too young to learn how to make a decision.
What college courses should i take to become a police officer?
Many people would suggest choosing a major other than criminal justice. Most police departments that require applicants to have a degree don't require that it be in any particular field of study. Choose a major that interests you, that could also be useful for police work, and that would give you something to fall back on. There are many good majors for police officers and people that want to become police officers. Accounting, communications, computer science/information systems, English, a foreign language, forensic science, law, and psychology are some good examples. Get at least a 4 year degree. Get the highest grade point average that you can. Make sure that the college or university that you attend is properly accredited. Best of luck!
How do you become a cop right out of highschool?
Yes, there are job openings for cadets out of high school. It requires among other things a "rigorous six (6) week cadet training program (both academic and physical in nature) at the Boston Police Academy." See job posting below. Most police departments prefer an Associates or Bachelors in Criminal Justice. These are normal college degrees, available at most state and community colleges.
Do you have to go through a Police Academy to become a police officer? Can a college degree work instead?
Up until the early 1980s, the State of Nevada would give you a basic POST certificate (equivalent to graduating from a police academy) if you had a four-year CJ degree. I knew a couple of people who had become cops and obtained their POST certificates that way. Without exception, they all thought it was a terrible idea.A CJ degree is education. The police academy is job training. If you’re unsure of the difference, consider this analogy: you have a 12-year-old daughter. She has to take one of two courses in school. Your choices are sex education or sex training. Which one do you send her to?A CJ degree is practically all theory, much of which doesn’t have a lot of practical application. All of the knowledge of community policing on the planet will not help you the first time you have to vault a fence while chasing a burglar. Being able to quote Edwin Sutherland on Differential Association Theory is of little use when you pull over a car for running a stop sign, and the driver tells you that you stopped them only because they’re black, and they’re not rolling down the window or getting out of the car.Some of this stuff is helpful for putting things into perspective, but the perspective won’t be evident until you have worked the street for a few years.You definitely need the police academy, and while you will be counting the hours until it is over, you will eventually come to learn that it wasn’t nearly long enough.