Nowadays, there are more career opportunities than ever before. Some people decide to go into sales, some go into marketing, and others go into healthcare.
Interestingly, thousands more people have decided to go the exciting route of becoming police officers over recent years, too.
Being a police officer is an excellent job to have – and there are lots of reasons why.
To make everything simple for you, this article has compiled these reasons into a ‘Top 10’ list.
So, whether you’re a young person looking for a prosperous career or an older person looking to change jobs, here are 10 exciting reasons to become a police officer.
Make a Positive Difference to Your Community
Firstly, you’ll be able to make a positive difference in your community.
Crime will be kept lower, residents will be able to rely on you, and everyone will be a lot safer. After all, in the current day and age where crime rates are high, you’ll be providing incredible service by doing your part to nullify crime rates.
If this sounds interesting to you, you should get a policing degree. This will allow you to develop your knowledge surrounding police work and will ultimately prepare you for the exciting challenges that police officers face on a day-to-day basis.
The Salary is Great
Next, let’s talk about money – specifically, police officer salaries.
Everyone wants to make good money, it’s a natural part of being human. Thankfully, if you decide to become a police officer, you’ll be able to do this.
The salary is great. In the US, the average police officer salary is $67,000, whereas in Canada is $78,178.
Therefore, you’ll be able to live comfortably without having to worry about money all of the time.
Work with Other Top Professionals
In a lot of professions, you have to work with people who aren’t up to the expected standard. However, when it comes to policing, the vast majority of officers are top professionals. They want to succeed as much as you do and always have your back. This is great, as it means you won’t have to fear being let down by your co-workers. Instead, you can have peace of mind knowing that you’re serving the public with some of the best professionals around every day of the week.
Grow Your Personal Skills
Moving on, being a police officer enables you to vastly grow your personal skills.
Most days, you will be out in public interacting with people. Over time, this will vastly develop your interpersonal ability, and you’ll soon become the ultimate people person.
This is great for a number of reasons, primarily because good personal skills are advantageous when trying to climb career ladders.
Your Friends and Family Will Be Proud
If you speak to any police officer, they’ll tell you just how proud their friends and family are of them. Every day, they go out to protect the public – sometimes in life-threatening scenarios – which is something that deserves to be applauded. So, you can rest assured that your entire personal network will be behind you all the way.
You Can Potentially Retire Early (with a Good Pension)
Here’s another exciting reason to be a police officer: you can potentially retire early. Plus, you’ll receive a great pension (usually 50% of your salary), which is very impressive.
This means that after you’ve reached the end of your service, you’ll be able to live extremely comfortably in retirement. From traveling the world to tackling different hobbies, the opportunities are endless.
There’s Big Potential for Further Career Progression
Being a police officer doesn’t mean you have to be a police officer your entire career. In this industry, there’s plenty of opportunity for career progression, which should be music to your ears if you’re an ambitious, hard-working individual.
Here are some example roles that you can progress into:
- Sergeant. This means that you will responsible for a team of other officers. If you want to grow your management skills, being a sergeant is a great goal to aim for.
- Inspector. Typically, you will oversee different constables and sergeants. Also, you will be in charge of major incidents in the specific area (or areas) that you cover.
- Superintendent. You’ve probably heard this term on TV before. As a Superintendent, you would be in charge of a Command section. It’s a high-pressure role but incredibly rewarding at the same time.
However, that’s barely scratching the surface. In reality, there are tons of different roles for you to progress into. It will all depend on your career goals and overall ambition.
The point is clear, though: if you want a career ladder, being a police officer definitely opens one up for you to climb.
Your Days Will Never Be Boring
If the thought of an office job or working in retail scares you, then you should give serious consideration to becoming a police officer. This is because the days are never boring. You’ll go to a wide variety of callouts, from robberies to hit and runs.
Even the quiet days are fun, as you’ll get to drive around and be out in public.
Generous Annual Leave
Annual leave is very generous in the policing industry. Naturally, the longer you have served, the more annual leave you get. However, even for beginner officers, it’s more than enticing.
You Can Move Across the Country to Different Departments
As your experience grows, you might suddenly get the itch to switch to a different state to further your career. This is quite easy to do as a police officer, as there are lots of different departments from state to state that you can switch to.
Conclusion
After reading this article, you should now be more knowledgeable about the benefits of becoming a police officer. If this has caught your interest, you should start preparing to enter the field, which you can do by getting your policing degree. Good luck!
