Hard Time Attracting Applicants

[dcruzer15]

I Just Wanted To Throw This Out There, But Does Anyone Have A List Of Police Departments That Have An Extremely Hard Time Attracting Applicants For Whatever Reason ??? Preferably In California....

[ask80]

well... probably every single large agency in CA is having a tough time. SF, oakland down to LAPD,LASO, to SDSO, SDPD

[Up_On_Base]

well... probably every single large agency in CA is having a tough time. SF, oakland down to LAPD,LASO, to SDSO, SDPD

Same w/ CHP if you want to work a ton of traffic. The process moves quickly so be prepared.

[dcruzer15]

I kind of thought the bigger departments would have a harder time finding applicants, but because they are so big, they have so many applicants, it seems like they can cherry pick.

[imallset2]

i know of many local/county/state LE agencies that have many vacancies but because of budget reasons are being extremely selective.

in my area (DC metro) many agencies are having smaller academy classes and hiring just enough to keep place with attrition. which is problematic in the DC area as many agencies are preparing for a mass exodus of senior officers and command staff in the next 5 years.

so as far as in the dc area...almost everyone is hiring....but you have to be a good candidate with college or significant military exp (i am not talking MP i am talking about being an officer) and other advantages that make you attractive.

[highroadheaven]

i know of many local/county/state LE agencies that have many vacancies but because of budget reasons are being extremely selective.

in my area (DC metro) many agencies are having smaller academy classes and hiring just enough to keep place with attrition. which is problematic in the DC area as many agencies are preparing for a mass exodus of senior officers and command staff in the next 5 years.

so as far as in the dc area...almost everyone is hiring....but you have to be a good candidate with college or significant military exp (i am not talking MP i am talking about being an officer) and other advantages that make you attractive.


Well the part about being a good candidate with college or significant military experience kind of makes the military experience null and void, since you have to have a college education to be an officer in the military...

[jcioccke]

Same w/ CHP if you want to work a ton of traffic. The process moves quickly so be prepared.
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From many of the Forums, I was under the impression they moved slow.
Is that correct Up On Base?

I am testing with them on the 31st of May

[imallset2]

but significant military exp i was trying to say that a 2 or 4 year tour ending as a sgt as an MP will not appear to most agencies (that i have dealt for of course) as any better then at best a 4 year degree.

i am referring to positions that indicate a high level of responsiblility or supervising groups of people/money/equipment. many enlisted specialities, NCO's, and officers general. so the college is not required....however virtually every agency i have had contact with, will strongly prefer a 4 year degree over a 2 year stint in infantry.

you have to remember what police work has become. well written reports are expected, along with an ability to communicate with people all many different backgrounds effectively. in addition being able to live and operate in uncertain situations without a supervisor always availbile.

the only reason i am writing this is because i have seen many people who have been MP or infantry for a few years think they are a sure thing to get the LE job because of their military and training. i am not sure where this belief comes from however i assume it is suggested in the recruitment phase. i just wanted to indicate to anyone trying to chose an MOS or decide college vs military that right now college is the preference (at least in Northern VA, MD, DC, state, and federal that i have dealt with)

[pappy1981]

Then why do they take MP's as lateral hires? I just got hired by the MPD and I don't have college but I have 4 years of MP experience. Also working as an MP I have written many reports and have learned how to articulate in my report writing and when it comes to actually doing police work I have. I have been to domestics and have done traffic stops as well as pulled people over for DUI's. I did not just read about it in a book or listen to a professor tell me about it. Also MP's do have responsibilities just like leo's. But just my .2

[pappy1981]

Also most departments in northern VA offer MP's the chance to lateral move and allow them to use there gi bill to get more money a month while you are in the academy.

[jonm0303]

pappy 1981, You also know how to capitalize the "I" in your sentences and start each new sentence/paragraph with a capital letter, which is more than the man who recommends college over military.

[Helo_Leo]

i know of many local/county/state LE agencies that have many vacancies but because of budget reasons are being extremely selective.

in my area (DC metro) many agencies are having smaller academy classes and hiring just enough to keep place with attrition. which is problematic in the DC area as many agencies are preparing for a mass exodus of senior officers and command staff in the next 5 years.

so as far as in the dc area...almost everyone is hiring....but you have to be a good candidate with college or significant military exp (i am not talking MP i am talking about being an officer) and other advantages that make you attractive.

Not sure where you got that from but all the depts. in the area from as far North as Baltimore city all the way down to PWC are looking for "qualified" applicants, being an officer makes no difference from being a grunt for 4 years aside that you have a degree (experience-wise that grunt thats been on the ground dealing with locals, patrolling, taking charge of his junior enlisted Marines/soldiers has the 1LT/Capt. beat hands down anyday)... Only thing thats becoming more common is the college requirement generally consisting of 60+ college credits (which can be accumulated through prior MOS schools, MCI courses, and NCO academy courses... being an MP wont exempt you from attending any agency academies which is what most former MP's expect to do, thats why its considered irrelevant...

You can get into any of the local depts (Arlington, Fairfax Co, Fairfax City, Loudoun Co, Prince William Co, Alexandria, MPDC ) and the list goes on with a combination of military service + college (4 years active duty + 2 yrs associate degree and a ideal background) Only the larger federal agencies require the 4 year degree and "significant" experience in specific areas... I turned down final offers with Fairfax, Loudoun and MPDC to work on the federal side of the house... at that time I only had 4 yrs of ENLISTED Marine Corps experience and a associate degree.... So long as you were honorably discharged...(not General/OTH/BCD etc..) you should be fine, thats what matters more so than what you did...

As far as being selective, or "extremely" selective, welcome to the hiring process, I'm glad the standards havent dropped, and I hope they get even higher... bad enough the few ****** bags that slip through the cracks currently...

[Helo_Leo]

I Just Wanted To Throw This Out There, But Does Anyone Have A List Of Police Departments That Have An Extremely Hard Time Attracting Applicants For Whatever Reason ??? Preferably In California....


Considering Cali is the largest state in the Union (population)... I can't imagine anyone out there who is 100% staffed, if you are willing to relocate- I'd shoot for the larger depts. LAPD, SF, SD and the list goes on... Departments nationwide are hurting for people incase you arent limited to Cali.

[miked6]

I Just Wanted To Throw This Out There, But Does Anyone Have A List Of Police Departments That Have An Extremely Hard Time Attracting Applicants For Whatever Reason ??? Preferably In California....

Really aiming high, huh?

[rangesgt]

Shortages in California reach across all department sizes. The large agencies have the resources to recruit across the country, smaller agencies do not.

California POST (the state-level body which governs police training and licensing) estimates that as of 2007 there are over 10,000 vacancies in the state. The state legislature has even been batting around a piece of legislation that would create a state-level "Peace Officer Recruitment and Retention Commission"; a state-level run body created for the purpose of recruiting for everyone.

Pretty interesting, no? I think it's pretty telling of how short we really are in Ca. It looks like the bill stalled last year, but just the fact that it was introduced shows that there is a serious problem to be addressed here.

Link:
http://www.assembly.ca.gov/acs/acsframeset2text.htm
Search for AB 325.

[LochRaven]

in my area (DC metro) many agencies are having smaller academy classes and hiring just enough to keep place with attrition. which is problematic in the DC area as many agencies are preparing for a mass exodus of senior officers and command staff in the next 5 years.



I've got a Bachelors degree, criminal justice honor society membership, and two years of experience working within a police department as a civilian, as well as current employment with a campus public safety agency. I even ****ed off a polygraph guy once because I told him spitting on the side walk in Baltimore was against the law, and that I've launched fireworks, and that was it. I graduated from my school last fall, and I've been job hunting ever since. I know some folks say 'everyone around here is hiring', but you'd be hard pressed to convince me of that, past the general sound bite that most places have ads out. The wall I'm running in to, more so then all my fellow classmates from C/J classes, is that I want to work for a 'smaller' department. So not only are there TONS of applicants around here, I have to worry about competing for even smaller numbers of spots.

Thats why I've been trying to find other areas in this region outside the metro corridor. I know of other folks from some of my classes taking similar routes. Applying here, but also applying in other areas of the region or country, because of how saturated this area seems to be of applicants or folks interested in law enforcement as a career.

Not to mention - I also really like a lot of areas outside of the Baltimore DC corridor as well. So that gives me the motivation when I visit some of the picturesk areas of northern / central Virginia.