Each project arrives with its purpose, milestones and first tasks written out. Here is how the first three read.
Testing whether policing suits you
Police work is shift work, paperwork, court dates and long stretches of routine broken by moments when people are hurt, angry or frightened, and recruitment campaigns rarely show the paperwork. Spending a few weeks finding out what officers in your country actually do, before you spend money on applications and fitness coaching, gives you an honest yes or no.
First tasks
- Write down in fifteen minutes why policing appeals to you and what worries you
- Ask two officers you know, or a community liaison officer, for a short conversation
- Sit in the public gallery of a magistrates' court for one morning
- Record your decision and the reason that tipped it
Entry requirements for the service you want to join
Every police service sets its own rules on age, nationality or residency, minimum education, height in some forces, eyesight, tattoos and criminal record, and they change between recruitment rounds. Copying the current requirements from the official recruitment page into one checklist, and ticking yourself against each line, tells you whether you can apply this round or what you must fix first.
First tasks
- Find the official recruitment page or office for the service you want to join
- Copy every entry requirement into a checklist with today's date
- Phone or email the recruitment office about any requirement you are unsure of
- Set a target date beside each requirement you do not yet meet
School subjects and qualifications for police entry
Most Caribbean services ask for several CSEC passes including English A and Mathematics, and some recruit graduates or CAPE holders into faster routes. In the UK the equivalents are GCSEs and Level 3 qualifications for the degree apprenticeship, in the US a high school diploma and often college credits, and in Canada a grade 12 diploma.
First tasks
- Gather your CSEC, CAPE or other certificates into one folder
- Compare your passes against the service's academic requirement
- Ask a guidance counsellor or adult education centre about resit options
- Register for any resit or class needed before the next recruitment round
