Need help getting foot in the door

[Sunflower2179]

I graduated from college a year ago (majored in Criminal Justice with a minor in Sociology); I'm female, 24, live in central / upstate NY. I have taken a few civil service exams for Corrections, DMV, Troopers (3/27). But I'm ranked 3,000 and some; out of how many, I have no idea, but probably a lot more then 3,000. I really don't want to be a cop, but it seems like that is the only way to get in the door. Even trying to do it that way seems too hard. I want to be an investigator (I think?), I can handle the gross stuff. I just don't know how to get in? Is the only way I can get in is by becoming a cop first? What other options do I have? For right now I need to stay in NY. And upstate NY, too, I don't have a lot of money to move.

Can anyone help me??

Thanks!!:confused:

[Delta_V]

Uhhh....investigators ARE cops. If you went through a four year criminal justice program and didn't learn this, there's a big problem with wherever you went to school.

[cleetus0219]

Well, you can also try and get into a prosecutor's office somehwere. They start out as detectives, but you'll be up against a LOT of competition from street cops that have actual investigative experience.

[archer0830]

Ever think about private investigating? I don't know a whole lot about it but just somethin that crossed my mind.

[DaveJersey]

If you want to be an investigator without being a cop, this is probably your only choice:

www.dogthebountyhunter.com

But seriously, as someone involved in a selection process currently, I'd think a little harder about what you really want to do before you go around taking tests. Saying you don't want to be a cop and taking all these tests to become one rubs me the wrong way in one respect. Many people who have a dream to be an LEO may be knocked out of the process because your test score (the score of someone who doesn't want the job) is one point higher. I'm not a cop, but I have many friends that have been eliminated from a process, and then a few guys that did pass end up dropping out because they relaized they didn't really want the job. I'm not saying that my friends would have definitely passed, but at least their chances would have increased.

Now I don't think you need to be 100% sure about a job at this early stage in job hunting, just do as much research as you can to know the pros and cons of any desired position.

[Sunflower2179]

Thanks for the helpful thoughts.

I'm not dissing cops or what they do. Do I want to be a cop, I'm not sure; do I want to be an investigator, I'm not sure. For all I know I might really enjoy being a cop. How am I suppose to know that for sure if I don't try and take the exams? I'm not really sure what I would really enjoy doing for my career in this field. I'm young and naive about a lot of things. And yes, the college I attended doesn't seem to have helped me as much as I would have hoped for. Is there a way to become some kind of investigator without becoming a cop first? Or would it be really helpful to me in the long run to be a cop and gain the street smarts? The reason why I kind of want to skip over being a cop is because I'm scared to become one in a sense. I'm a quiet person and I'm not sure if I'll be able to do a great job. But I guess that is what the training is for to get me (or others) ready to do the job and face the crap that is out there. I am just looking for some people that would or could maybe help me along in really figuring out what I would or could really enjoy and be good at. There is no one in my family to help me, unless I want to be on the wrong side of the law.

[Delta_V]

Police departments just don't go out and hire detectives who have never put their time in on the street. You have to put your time in and spend time in patrol before you can move on to investigations. If you aren't a good patrol officer, you aren't going to be a good investigator. It's as simple as that.

The only way that you can get an entry-level LE job in investigations is either going into a federal agency, a DA's office, or a state bureau of investigation (I don't know if NY has one). Competition for all of these jobs is EXTREMELY fierce and having a college degree is usually just the minimum requirement. Going up against applicants with LE or military experience, you probably don't stand much of a shot--unless you score at the top on the tests and blow them away with the interview. In Kentucky, coroners are considered LE and they do basic death investigations. That's something else you could look into, but they may do things a bit differently up in NY.

Another option is going into the military. The Army has recently opened up CID Special Agent positions to new enlistees and you can also join the Coast Guard Reserve as an investigator. The Air Force also has an entry-level program for both officer and civilian OSI Special Agents, but both programs are VERY competitive.

Your only other option if you want to get into investigations is to go into the field as a civilian. Others have mentioned private investigation, but there are also civilian positions within law enforcement agencies. For example, the FBI has two positions called investigative specialist and surveillance specialist. These are civilian jobs that consist of conducting surveillance, both electronic and regular. Insurance companies also employ investigators, but most of them are experienced when they're hired.

[Arkine]

Ok, here's the best suggestion that I can come up with...DON'T go through all the testing and RED tape and then decide that 6 months later you hate it. If you are unsure if you want to be a cop then do this, find a couple of departments that have Police Resurve Programs.

You most likely will not get paid, you need your own equipment and you probably will need some kind of academy training or something similar. However, it will mean you are not yet commited, you won't be waisting your time or theirs. You can see first hand what happens, and if you decide that you do want to be come a cop, MOST departments would rather hire from their Resurves first and then go to general public testing.

Get on a Resurve, do ride-a-longs....something that will give you an idea of what you are up against and give you a better idea of whether you can handle it and will enjoy it.

You are 24...I'm 25, but I've known for the last 9 years that I wanted to get into LE. I just got out of a 13 week basic academy and I'll tell you some of the folks in my class will not get into LE. Yea they graduated, but they just didn't have much fun with it, they didn't enjoy the hell out of it like some of us did. One of the guys has already gone back to truck driving...so make sure you get a glimps of what LE really is before you decide to go for it and then hate it. :)

That's the best suggestion I can give you, Good Luck!

[smd16nwo]

PatrickM98 has given you some really good advice and quite a few options to look into.

You should definitely decide what you want. Yes you are still young but the sooner you can get started the better. What area of investigations are you interested in? Knowing that can help point you in the right direction.