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Trying to get in law enforcement!

Put yourself through the police academy on your own dime. We had a few so that in the police academy and they had jobs before they graduated.
 
I've been thru the application process for a few LE agencies, hold a degree in Criminal Justice, and did an unpaid internship with a local agency. Not trying to be Mr Negative here, but you're competing against returning GI's and college graduates for any (and all) open LE positions. While the minimum requirements might be "HS diploma/GED, clean record, and 21 yrs old", those are the minimum requirements. You're going to need something to seperate you from the rest of the applicants, and two years of welding isn't going to cut it.
 
A tour in the military will better your chances.


But only if you can keep your nose clean while you're there. ;) Part of the application process is answering questions like "Have you ever committed a crime that went undetected?" If you answer yes, be prepared to give details...and don't think you can BS your way through it because your polygraph/CVSA questions are based on the answers you give in your application. If you lie, you will get caught, and every time you apply for a LE position you will be asked to list every agency you've applied to and the current status of your application. Get caught in a lie by an agency, and your odds of getting hired by any other agency are slim to none.
 
Go to college.


I would like to add to this- If you decide to go to college, get a degree in something marketable in the "real" world. Don't get a degree in Criminal Justice, like I did.

If something should happen, and you wind up not making it in LE, a CJ degree is pretty much useless. This is the voice of experience talking here.
 
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