July 30th, 2009 by Kate Lehnhof
Women like to joke about the whole “man in uniform” thing but contrary to My Colleges and Careers usual style of reveling in the unimportant but interesting, we are going to take things a little deeper today. What does it mean to wear a uniform? Is there a certain power that comes with it? In a recent study participants were asked to rank 25 occupational uniforms by the feeling they elicited. Police uniforms consistently symbolized a feeling of safety to participants.
Interesting Facts about Police Uniforms (policeone.com)
In 1969, the police in Menlo Park, California dispensed with their traditional navy blue, paramilitary-style uniforms and adopted a nontraditional uniform in hopes of improving police community relations. The new, nontraditional uniform consisted of a forest green sport coat blazer worn over black slacks, a white shirt, and a black tie. The officer’’s badge was displayed on the blazer and the officer’’s weapons were concealed under the coat. Once word spread about Menlo Park’’s attempts, over 400 other police department in the United States also experimented with a blazer style uniform. In 1977, after wearing the blazer style uniform for 8 years, the Menlo Park Police Department realized that the sport coat uniform did not command respect and returned to a traditional, paramilitary-style uniform.
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Tags: criminal justice, police uniform
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July 30th, 2009 by Kate Lehnhof
Criminal justice is a hot career right now and there are actually many careers besides a police officer available in this exciting field. Sure the cops can catch bad guys, but someone has to keep track of them afterwards. My Colleges and Careers would like to introduce you to a very important person in the San Diego Sheriff’s Department: Fred Hunting.
PS. Fun Fact: Fred was once on the TV show Suddenly Susan!
- So what is your job title exactly?
SHERIFF’S LICENSING AND REGISTRATION INTERVIEWER
- What do you do on a day to day basis?
INTERVIEW AND PROCESS DRUG AND SEX OFFENDERS INTO THE STATE REGISTRATION SYSTEM. I ALSO INTERVIEW AND PROCESS MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC THROUGH THE LICENSING PROCESS FOR ANY OF 32 DIFFERENT LICENSES (EX: STATE CONCEALED WEAPONS PERMITS, TAXI, MASSAGE, ETC)
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Tags: criminal justice, criminal justice interview, fred hunting
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July 29th, 2009 by Kate Lehnhof
Cops. You either love ‘em or you hate ‘em. But has society painted them with too broad of a brush? Are all New York city cops tough-talking and all tiny town cops patriarchal heroes?A recent study by Springfield College decided it was time to put all the stereotypes to rest.
They surveyed 830 randomly selected cops using The Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire Scale to get to the bottom of things.
- The majority of those surveyed categorized themselves as a “Typical Cop” with qualities like self-discipline, social boldness, extroverted and emotionally tough.
- Traffic officers and deputies shared many characteristics such as high energy, dominance, independence, spontaneity, socially flexible and free from anxiety-related behaviors.
- Previous research has used the MMPI as a test to determine psychological characteristics of police officers, and it was suggested that the MMPI was the most commonly used psychological test of law enforcement officials and that research on psychological assessment of police officers is so mixed that it may even be questionable to advance generalizations about possible discriminating characteristics.
- A similar study found a wide variety of behaviors between police officers from different departments. The interpersonal skills of community college law enforcement officials were rated higher than major university and inner-city police officers.
- Police officers as a group tend be more homogenous than other career groups. They tend to be cheerful and outgoing with a strong interest in practical matters.
- Female participants were also found to be more likely to present a good impression of themselves, to be less depressed, to be more psychologically mature, more assertive and more aware of the needs of others as compared to the normative population data.
Does this list sound like a comprehensive rundown or you or someone you know? Check out this then.
Tags: cops, criminal justice
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July 14th, 2009 by Kate Lehnhof
A wise man once said, “perhaps the crime situation would be improved if we could get more cops off television and onto the streets.” Fictitious police officers are all the rage these days and My Colleges and Careers has compiled a list of Hollywood’s Most Wanted Officers. Some times they play good cops. Sometimes they play bad cops. Sometimes they look so good in the process we don’t really care. So scroll on enjoy our list. You have the right to remain silent.
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Tags: criminal justice, hottest cops
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July 10th, 2009 by Kate Lehnhof
What is Law Enforcement?
When someone says, “I want to be a cop,” the first thing many of us think of is some dude giving people parking tickets all day. Not the most revered and honored job in the world. However, while that does happen, and if you are into that by all means go ahead, there are SO many other areas of Law Enforcement that provide exciting and fulfilling opportunities to serve and protect American citizens.
Law enforcement individuals are responsible for apprehending criminals, maintaining public order, and preventing and detecting crimes. They basically keep society safe through many different mechanisms, and through the enforcement of local and federal laws.
Areas of Specialty Within Law Enforcement
- Security
- Animal control
- SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics)
- Highway Patrol
- Forensics
Perks
- There is one very big perk to being in law enforcement. You protect and serve people to the fullest extent of the law. Police officers are the glue that holds our society together, without them, laws wouldn’t matter.
- Your life will be full of interesting opportunities and interesting characters. Read: no cubicles.
- You stop criminals whether it be a serial killer, a rapist, a thief or a drunk driver from hurting or killing another human being.
- Many agencies pay all or part of the tuition for officers to work toward degrees in criminal justice, police science, administration of justice, or public administration and pay higher salaries to those who earn such a degree.
Law Enforcement: Show me the Money
Things to Think About
Police officers have unpredictable hours, they deal with dangerous people and dangerous situations and it is a very high-stress job.
Education and Training
Those looking to get into the law enforcement field, generally must be a U.S. citizen, usually at least 20 years old, and must meet rigorous physical and personal qualifications. A high school diploma is required and college level training varies from state to state but most of the time it is between 2-4 years of Criminal Justice studies or attending a police academy. In criminal justice classes students learn about local ordinances, state laws, crowd control, forensics, undergo physical and safety training, and are trained the use of firearms and weapons. Who doesn’t want to get paid to pack some heat? When hired onto an agency, students are required to take competitive written and practical tests.
Law Enforcement Personality Traits
To begin with, a career in law enforcement is founded upon a genuine sense of honesty, integrity and sound judgement skills. Successful police officers deal well with stress and are able to deal with emotional situations in a logical way. They are protectors and they believe in justice and are willing to bring justice to those who hurt others.
Law Enforcement: By the Numbers
- Police and detectives held about 861,000 jobs in 2006.
- Seventy-nine percent were employed by local governments.
- State police agencies employed about 11 percent, and various
- Federal agencies employed about 7 percent.
- Employment of police and detectives is expected to grow 11 percent over the 2006-16 decade
Law Enforcement Occupational Outlook
Employment of police and detectives is expected to grow 11 percent over the 2006-16 decade.
Interested?
Visit www.mycollegesandcareers.com for more information about criminal justice studies and every degree under the sun!
Tags: law enforcement
Posted in Criminal Justice | 1 Comment »
