Northern Virginia

[Who cares !]

I am currently employed in SW Virginia as a police officer and may possibly have to move to Northern Virginia for the spouses work. I was just curious if anyone could give me a little heads up on pro's and con's of departments up in that area specifically Loudon County SO and Prince William County PD. I know all about the traffic up there unfortunately. Thanks.

[D Dog]

Fairfax is an excellent dept, lots of gangs however, and pay is not adequate considering the cost of living in the area. But all in all, if money and traffic is not an issue to you it is a good area to be in.

[ValyCop]

Hey Who,
Loudoun County is looking for 70 positions to fill and they are
actively recruiting in all areas of the agency. It's one of the
fastest growing communities in Virginia and the salaries are not bad.
Prince William is a good agency according to my friends who work
for them. Fairfax and Arlington are both great places to work provided you can tolerate the traffic.
Good luck,

ValyCop

[That Guy]

You would figure Loudoun who have a website providing employment info. :rolleyes:

TGY

[Who cares !]

Originally posted by That Guy
You would figure Loudoun who have a website providing employment info. :rolleyes:

TGY

You would think, their website wasn't very informative at all though. Appreciate the input though.

[That Guy]

You would think, their website wasn't very informative at all though. Appreciate the input though.

LOL I guess I should have put some input. I pretty much grew up in VA Beach while my wife did in Stafford VA..
Stafford has cahnegd quite a bit. I remeber when it was full of back roads and small farms. Now it looks like Fairfax. When I thought about returning to VA many things made me think otherwise but I did find some decent depts.
Leesburg and Loudoun seemed like good depts and had still retain thier rural feel. Since that area is growing it would be a good time to get in since buying a house and/or other property will be a great investment. The pay will have to increase due to COL. Fairfax/Alexandria and that metro area had good depts. but you will havee to commute in order to keep your exspenses down.
Point is look at the whole picture not just pay or location.

TGY

[easy-e1]

I hear Prince William is EXTREMELY strict on previous background. Example- If you smoked marijuana even ONCE in your life you either dont remember OR you aint getting hired. I had over 7 yrs. with my department and was told after just a basic application that I dont meet therr minimum requirements. :(
They dont require college and I had the experience, I was even told I didnt even need to take the entrance test.
They pay ok but the Cost of living in North VA. is nauseating. Cheap house arond $350,000. BUT the shift alone is almosat worth it, they do 5-10hrs on, 5 OFF, 5 on 4 off. 5 on, then 4 off. Back to 5 on 5 OFF. Vacation every freakin week. :p