One of the most enviable professions in recent times is law enforcement. It comes with an attractive salary package, incredible benefits, and a substantial pension plan (Read How Much do a Police Officer Make).
These incentives cause many people to apply to the law enforcement agency, creating enormous competition to get hired. While some give up, others find a secret to getting easily hired, and that is by gaining a POST Certificate before applying for the position.
The Peace Officer Standards Training (POST) Certificate is an important requirement to become a police or peace officer in a country, state or community. In the past, applicants have to apply to the law enforcement agency first.
Upon approval, it gives them the enrollment in a police academy, where they receive the requisite training to gain the POST Certificate. After this, the agency will swear them as a police officer and they eventually become a police officer.
Even though this process has been successful over the years, the high number of applicants at the law enforcement agency has created enormous congestion. Because of this, some smart applicants are going to the police academy on their own to receive the POST Certificate, and then get back to apply for a job with the law enforcement agency.
This new process has proven successful for many people. But the flip side is that you can have the POST certificate, and still fail the tests required to get hired as a police officer with the agency.
When this happens, your initial investments made to enroll in the police academy could be in vain. However, a POST certificate is still worth the investment.
Why Law Enforcement Agencies Enjoy Hiring Applicants with POST Certificate
There are several reasons law enforcement agencies enjoy hiring applicants with their POST certificate. Here’re are some of them:
- Enrollment Savings: The agencies foot the bills to train qualified applicants to become a police officer. They pay their fees and also support their stay in the police academy. If you already have a POST certificate, why should the agency take you through the process again? They make huge savings on the high-cost enrollment.
- Allowance Savings: Applicants put into the police academy by the law enforcement agency needs ongoing financial support. This comes in the form of monthly allowances, which are part of their future earnings. The recruits use these monies to cater for themselves while training at the academy. When you apply with your POST certificate, the agency saves this money and they don’t have to deduct it from your pay again.
- Lost Expenses on Dropout Recruits: The fact is that not all recruits at the police academy will complete. The training is so rigorous and hectic that many applicants even quiet before the due time for graduation. When this happens, the agency loses money on those who quit. But they eliminate this risk when the applicant already has his POST Certificate.
How To Gain The Post Certificate On Your Own
If you want to acquire the POST Certificate on your own, attend the police academy. The police academy is the training centre for recruits who want to become a police officer.
There is a rigorous screening process which entails physical examination, legal training, background checks, driving skills, educational requirements, base age requirement, firearm training and equipment training.
Usually, the selection process varies based on the academy or college you are seeking the training. Many people who are seeking enrollment as a police officer. Thus, demand is always huge, leading to an intensive screening process. Some people tend not to be qualified, yet they get attracted by the compensations police work offers. However, if you follow the due process, you will get qualified.
After the initial screening, applicants who fit the requirement standards move unto the next stage of an oral interview. In this interview, a panel of officers will ask a series of questions to find out the reasons the applicants want to take the police training course and become a police officer. When their answers and posture meet the set demands, they will select them for a background investigation.
The background check includes fitness, lie detection, and drug tests. It also includes a special exam known as the Polygraph and Psychological Exam. The applicants who pass this final stage are those who eventually get admission into the police academy. The training program might take between twelve (12) to fourteen (14) weeks to complete. It combines coursework and extensive fieldwork.
Costs of the Police Academy Training
When you gain a POST certificate on your own, then you will bear ongoing tuition expenses yourself. The cost of enrollment can be around $ 3,000 to $ 5,000 (read what is the police academy like).
Also, included is paying the fees to gain your police training equipment such as a firearm. These fees can be a burden if you don’t have enough financial muscles to contain the costs. But there is a sigh of relief, some police departments reimburse part of the training fees to recruits after hiring them for work.
How a POST Certification Makes Police Job Search Easy
Gaining a POST certificate can be a hectic process. But, once you have gained it, you will be behind your peers in the job search process. These days, most law enforcement agencies post job opportunities with a POST certificate requirement.
In these applications, the preferred applicant will need to include a POST certificate. If you have gone through the process to gain your POST certificate, this will be your shining moment, and you will get hired faster.
Conclusion
While you can still follow the old process to get hired with the police enforcement agency, you will gain a competitive edge if you have a POST certificate. Getting the POST certificate on your own will require initial time, money, and effort commitment.
Also, before you will finally get sworn as a police officer, the law enforcement agency might provide some additional training and tests. But if you’ve learnt well at the academy, you will easily pass them. When you get recruited to work as a police officer in the shortest time of application, you’ll realize that the journey was long but worth it.
