Police OfficerBy: Mauricio Cabrera

Going up the ladder in justice (levels of patrol)Levels of career paths

Start at: Patrol Man Experienced Police

Officer Sergeant Lieutenant Captain

Level 1 Police Officer

LEVEL  1 Police Officer EARNINGS $30,000 to $45,000 a year REQUIREMENTS Reach basic recruit requirements, including

passing physical and written test High school degree Some areas require that you have a college

education RESPONSIBILITIES Enforcing laws of city and state; paperwork;

patrolling by car and/or walking

Level 2 Experienced Police Officer LEVEL  2 Experienced Police Officer EARNINGS $45,000 to $65,000 a year REQUIREMENTS At least 2 years of experience as a police officer RESPONSIBILITIES Enforcing laws of city and state; paperwork;

patrolling by car and/ or walking; training incoming new officers

LEVEL  3 SergeantEARNINGS $60,000 to $70,000 a yearREQUIREMENTS At least 3 years of experience as a experienced

police officer Pass promotion testRESPONSIBILITIES Watching police officers’ administrative work and

fieldwork; possibly watching a specialized unit.

Level 3 Sergeant this is where it gets serious and difficult

Level 4 Lieutenant

LEVEL  4 LieutenantEARNINGS $65,000 to $75,000 a yearREQUIREMENTS Experience as a sergeant Pass promotion testRESPONSIBILITIES Watching sergeants as they take care of police

officers in the field or at their desks.

Level 5 Captain LEVEL  5 Captain EARNINGS $70,000 to $85,000 a year REQUIREMENTS Experience as a lieutenant Pass promotion test RESPONSIBILITIES Watching and overseeing the entire district;

assigning police officers to cars; supervising all employees.

Now that you know the levels now its time you learn about the education needed for the job requirements.

Such as Education, Skills, Daily tasks, Working Conditions, Related careers, career paths, Advantages, Disadvantages.

Education One of the requirements you need to be a patrol

man is you need at least a High School education and a high school diploma.

You also need an education in Law & Criminal Justice.

Some schools you can attend in Illinois are:Elgin Community College-2 yearsSt. Xavier Univerity-4 yearsWestwood College in Chicago Du Page-4 yearsWestwood College in Chicago O’hare-2 years Many areas now REQUIRE a college diploma of 2 years.

Skills That are Needed to be a Police Officer You have to be able to multi-task, Active

listener, Public Speaking, Social Perspectives, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, and one of the most important Negotiation.

Daily Tasks What is a typical day in a Police Officer’s life

No day is the same but if you are not specific a typical day is:Is to be on patrol for their assigned

hoursAlso to answer to emergency calls

and roll callsDo paperwork Monitor schools, malls, government

buildingsDepending on what level your at you

need to train new coming officers You have to check your patrol car

before going on duty

Daily Tasks ContinuedAlso you need to go to the daily

meeting in the beginning of your shiftIf the lights go out in the area they

have to patrol the streets where the traffic lights go out because they have to maintain the organization of the streets

Depending on your level you have to assign patrol cars to police officers

Also document all the files in the office

Working Conditions Your working conditions vary by level and

the WEATHER Whatever the weather you still have to go

on patrol The way that weather affects your working

conditions is that studies show that if the weather is calm and fair it can trigger criminals to attack due the weather they do crimes therefore you have a busier day than normal but in the bad weather times and the winter times the crime rate goes down and your days are more calm

Benefits

You get Medicare for all the family You also get a pension Another benefit is that you get

retirement benefits

Related Careers

Security guards Federal agent Detective Criminal Investigator Fire inspectors Dispatchers

Advantages

Some advantages of being a police officer is that you can get early retirement.

You also get benefits as explained in Benefits slide before

Another advantage is that you can work overtime to get more hours in your payroll

Disadvantages One disadvantage is that you sometimes

have to work on holidays Another disadvantage is that in certain

places the patrol roll in a police’s life can be sometimes dangerous

Also an disadvantage is that you have to work the hours that are assigned to you no matter what time areas are

The End