Police Officer Jobs & Careers
Learn How to Become a Police Officer

Want a law enforcement career? Discover the best police officer jobs, read descriptions of various police officer careers & learn how to become a cop

There are far more police officer careers available in the law enforcement field than you might believe.

Because of popular televisions shows that portray the fictional inner workings of police departments, many people think that there are really only three jobs out there: detective, sergeant, and coroner.

Everyone else in the shows does the work of several employees at once and you never get a genuine idea of how such departments work in real life.

In truth there is a complete hierarchy of positions in law enforcement, with many branches that reach into various specialties and professions.

If you want to work in law enforcement but don't know exactly what you want your focus to be, keep on reading about our police officer job description rundowns. There's no doubt that you'll find some focus that will grab your attention.

Various Police Officer Jobs & Careers

So, in what capacity would you like to work with the police department?

Do you want to be out on the streets or in the office? Would you like to work with people or documents? Would you like to be in charge of a group of employees or take your orders from a supervisor?

These are questions you should ask yourself if you're thinking about picking up one of the many police officer jobs out there. Some people are lucky enough to know exactly what they want from a career. But most of us have only a spark of passion that leads us in a general direction.

If your spark takes you toward a career in law enforcement, you'd be wise to do as much research as possible on your options.

In all honesty, the list of police officer jobs is a long one. Here's just a sampling:

Trooper
Police Lieutenant
Police Sergeant
Police Chief
Detective
Detention Officer
Police Corporal
Director of Security
Investigator
Trainer
Technician
Corrections Officer

And the list goes on. According to your working preferences, or the police officer salary you want to shoot for, you can have your pick of dozens of different careers in law enforcement.

How to Become a Police Officer

The requirements to become a police officer in the U.S. really aren't that extreme. You have to:

Be over twenty years of age
Be a United States citizen
Have a high school diploma or GED
Pass a number of written and physical exams

And that's really all you need to do. But if you want to climb the bureaucratic ladder and find the highest form of success you can within a department, you'll need a bit more.

The extra education you'll need to become the best cop you can be can come in many forms: seminars, training sessions, classes, workshops, or degrees in criminal justice or similar subjects.

If you want to go the extra mile and get a degree in criminal justice, one of the easiest and quickest ways to reach that goal is by taking your classes from an online college.

Universities and colleges that are Internet-based afford you many benefits, including:

Creating your own schedule
Keeping your day job
Staying close to your family
Spending less money on tuition, transportation, and other school fees

Find a School!

Think a career in criminology is for you?

Then start here & find a school for you!

It's fairly easy to get your hands on one of the many police officer jobs out there. But if you want to be a true success, you'll have to make the effort.