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Security Analyst 
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Security Officer 
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Social Worker 
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Victims Advocate 
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Plus Many More ++ 
 Becoming an Officer Example 
“I regularly get asked the following question: “Do I have to be a ‘real cop’- you know, a cop that drives in a 
patrol car and answers calls for service, to be a homicide detective?” I understand this question because of a lot 
of the cop, and detective television shows out there today do not accurately represent this situation. I am so glad 
the television shows are available because they work as a recruitment tool for many departments. But, I have to 
disappoint many people, when I give the honest answer…”Yes, you have to be a ‘real cop’ before you can be a 
detective.” And, I go a step further, in explaining that it can take years, or even decades, to test and promote to 
a homicide detective.” I explain that many smaller departments that do not have many homicides in a given year, 
have positions open in the detective bureau every two-five years. But, the larger departments that have hundreds to 
thousands of homicides a year, will only promote every ten-to-twenty years, because even though an officer could 
promote to the detective bureau within several years, the homicide detective is a glamorous position, therefore one 
must ‘do their time’ as a property detective, investigating vehicle burglaries, etc., before there is a retirement and 
they have proven themselves enough to take that position. 
Divisions within Each Agency: Law enforcement agencies, whether they are federal, county, state, 
or municipal/city, generally have jobs available within two major areas: 1- Commissioned 2- Civilian. 
Commissioned is a term that describes an employee that has been through police training is certified as a 
police officer and has arresting powers in the state. Civilian is a term that describes an employee who has 
not been through police training and does not have arresting powers. 
One of the fantastic parts of policing is the vast array of jobs available. Whether a person is looking in 
the commissioned or civilian arena, there are a plethora of choices. Once a candidate has gone through the 
testing process for a particular law enforcement agency and is hired after a certain number of years ‘on the 
road’ (length of time required on the road, is determined by each department) the seasoned officer can then 
test for many tantalizing individual divisions.  Every department is different as to those specialized divisions. 
For example, the Ashland Police Department (APD) in Oregon is a smaller police department and offers its 
officers a chance to engage in community policing and problem-oriented policing at a one-on-one level, 
due to its smaller size (thirty-fourty officers). 
On the other hand, because of its smaller size, the opportunities for advancement are minimal. Officers 
with the department can also promote to management. However, APD does have a few detectives but they 
ALISON S. BURKE, DAVID CARTER, BRIAN FEDOREK, TIFFANY MOREY, LORE RUTZ-BURRI, AND SHANELL
SANCHEZ
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