Homeschooling provides some amazing opportunities to introduce our children to various careers. We can give them knowledge and experience with a variety of jobs as we prepare them to be self-sufficient adults. Tailoring our children’s education to their interests, especially throughout high school can dovetail into career options.
Our first goal is to help them figure out not only who God made them to be but also what God created them to do. Our second goal is to help them discover how their skills and talents and passions can all mesh together into an occupation that they love.
We are continuing our series that covers different careers in order to provide assistance as you and your child think through options. The exploratory questions and suggestions we cover here will, hopefully, guide you through innumerable opportunities of discovery.
In this post, we’re covering law enforcement: officers who uphold public safety. If you think your child has any interest in the field of law enforcement or if you want to expose them to this career field, here are some ideas and questions that might be helpful to you and your child.
Possible Jobs
- City or State Police Officer, County Sheriff, Sheriff’s Deputy: We typically think of police officers or sheriffs when we think of law enforcement, but an officer’s responsibility could take many different forms, such as patrolling (driving through) neighborhoods, preventing crime, responding to emergencies which may involve mediating disputes or protecting people or property, providing testimony in court cases, educating the community, filing incident reports, and even conducting investigations including interviewing witnesses and documenting their observations. Let’s not forget the responsibility you’ve probably seen the most—enforcing traffic laws, including pulling over drivers who they suspect are not compliant. Additionally, the County Sheriff is typically an elected official.
- K-9 Officer: A police officer may have a trained and highly skilled dog as a partner.
- Detective: A detective’s primary goal is to solve crimes, gathering enough evidence to support the legal proceedings against the alleged perpetrator. They analyze crime scenes, gather forensic evidence, and interview witnesses. How to Become a Police Detective | PoliceOfficer.org
- Dispatch: Police dispatchers receive emergency calls from the public and then send out the appropriate response teams.
- Academy Instructor: Instructors prepare and teach classes at an academy for aspiring law enforcement officers and typically have a law enforcement background.
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Agent: FBI Agents are law enforcement officers at the federal level, enforcing federal laws as well as other responsibilities such as executing warrants, providing testimony, and meeting with sources. You can read here about joining the FBI: Eligibility and Hiring | FBIJOBS
- United States Secret Service: When we think of the Secret Service, we typically think of the special law enforcement officers who guard the President of the United States. But the Secret Service also protects other top U.S. officials and their families as well as visiting foreign officials. Additionally, they investigate financial crimes. You can read here about joining the Secret Service: Careers
- United States Customs and Border Patrol: “CBP (Customs Border Patrol) operates in all 50 states, in over 50 countries, and at 328 ports of entry to protect the American people, safeguard our borders, and enhance the national’s economic prosperity.” You can read more about U.S. Customs and Border Protection here: CBP Careers
- Indiana Department of Natural Resources Conservation Officer: The DNR is a state agency, and their conservation officers protect the natural heritage of our state by enforcing state laws as they relate to fishing, wildlife, and protecting the environment. They also provide outdoor education as well as search and recovery response units anywhere in the state. All states have similar agencies, but you can read more about Indiana’s here: Law Enforcement: About Us – DNR
- Correctional Officer: More commonly known as prison guards, these officers manage inmates and maintain order in a correctional facility.
Skills or Interests Needed
- Physical fitness and excellent eyesight.
- Minimum high school education or GED. Many positions prefer or require a two- or four-year degree in a relevant major such as criminal justice, police science, cybersecurity, or psychology. Some officers have military experience though this is not required.
- Passing score on the agency’s particular law enforcement exam. This exam typically involves both written and oral sections but varies based on the organization.
- Clean driving record. Clean criminal record. Clean tax record.
- Passing score on a psychological evaluation.
- Graduation from the appropriate law enforcement academy. This can include several months of both classroom education (learning the laws, investigation methods, communication skills, negotiation, etc.) and training in the field (using a firearm, operating a police vehicle, proper use of force, decision-making skills).
How to Become a Police Officer | Indeed.com
How to Encourage a Curious Child
- Find people to talk to in your homeschool community or church. This could be turned into a vocation paper for a school project. Is there a law enforcement officer within your circles? Most likely there is! With their consent, make an appointment for your student to conduct an interview. Questions could be prepared ahead of time and include inquiries such as what is your education, what do you like/not like about your job, and what are three characteristics needed to do your job.
- Some agencies may allow for job shadowing, which is a terrific way to see up close what the job entails. (Use your own discretion in whether or not your child is ready for a ride-along.) Then, have your student write a reflective essay about the experience.
- Watch videos such as the ones in this article that show interviews as well as a demonstration of the NYPD physical fitness test. How to become a police officer: A cop’s guide
A law enforcement position can be a challenging and fulfilling career of serving the public. Career choices are big decisions, so explore the possibilities and pray for and with your child as he seeks to discover what God has in store for him.