Police Officer Qualifications

Video Transcript

"As far as education in Utah as a police officer, in the state of Utah you need to have a high school diploma or a GED and to get into the police academy. Before you get into the police academy you need to take a pre-entrance exam and if you can't pass that pre-entrance exam you are not allowed into the academy. The exam consists of your basic math, english, reading comprehension, things like that. And you have to pass with a certain percentage in order to get in. And so once you are in, you pass that then you can get into the police academy, there is a waiting list on getting in there, it's something that you just don't jump in and go. It's a process. You need to get in then there'll be checks on you as far as a background check, make sure that you're ok to be in the police academy cause you can't just sign up or check in there and then they have you go in this, they do intense background check on you on that. Some of the skills you need to know is a listening comprehension, as you take a report you need to listen to what they are saying and then be able to put it on paper afterwards as in your report. And so to be able to listen is a huge thing and if you have a hard time listening and then putting it on paper then that makes it tough. If you've been in school and your in, taken a criminal justice class or get a bachelor's degree in criminal justice or anything like that, that's a plus on getting hired on at an agency cause they will look at that, so that's a big plus. Also a second language in Utah there is quite a bit of Spanish out there, the Spanish background, so if you have a second language as Spanish that's always a plus on getting hired on. Depending on where you live, what state you live, there might be a second language maybe, depending whether it's Japanese, whatever it might be in the area you live in."