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Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers

Maintain order and protect life and property by enforcing local, tribal, state, or federal laws and ordinances. Perform a combination of the following duties: patrol a specific area; direct traffic; issue traffic summonses; investigate accidents; apprehend and arrest suspects, or serve legal processes of courts. Includes police officers working at educational institutions.

What you’d do

  • Provide for public safety by maintaining order, responding to emergencies, protecting people and property, enforcing motor vehicle and criminal laws, and promoting good community relations.
  • Identify, pursue, and arrest suspects and perpetrators of criminal acts.
  • Verify that the proper legal charges have been made against law offenders.
  • Render aid to accident survivors and other persons requiring first aid for physical injuries.
  • Record facts to prepare reports that document incidents and activities.
  • Review facts of incidents to determine if criminal act or statute violations were involved.
  • Investigate illegal or suspicious activities.
  • Drive vehicles or patrol specific areas to detect law violators, issue citations, and make arrests.

Skills that matter

  • Active Listening
  • Social Perceptiveness
  • Active Learning
  • Critical Thinking
  • Speaking
  • Judgment and Decision Making

How to get there

Medium preparation: usually vocational school, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree

Also called

  • Deputy Sheriff
  • Patrol Officer
  • Police Officer
  • State Trooper
  • K-9 Handler (Canine Handler)
  • Law Enforcement Officer

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