Captainwilko

This thread is more of an opinion seeking exercise.

I have noticed recently some american forces have changed the wording on their recruitment criteria from being an "american citizen" to "residing in the country legally".

This is a massive change in policy for the americans. Could this open the door for eventual overseas recruitment in america like we see in aus or canada. Perhaps not, but its a step in the right direction.

It would also indicate that forces accross the globe are having recruitment problems.

Your thoughts please.

Sue

Can't help with that I'm afraid as I don't know anything about the police force, but wanted to pop by and say hi and welcome you to the community.

You might also want to post that question in the USA forum as I've seen this topic come up in that section before.

dreadsoc

Hi there CaptainWilko

Just noticed you are new to the forum and just wanted to say welcome to the forum and BE.
I guess you are in good company with others who are wanting to escape the uncertainties and horrors of what UK policing is seemingly becoming in the future

All the best to you - it may be worth checking with one of the US police forces to see if this change of wording is relevant - if you do find something useful please come back onto here and let us know

Dread - x

flbrit59

Hardly ! It may be a change for the two or three dept's that you've come across that may have changed their policy,due to some local difficulties with recruiting but most still require US citizenship. A handful will accept you if you have lawful permanent residency. Most of the big depts,such as NYPD,LAPD,LASD require citizenship (or you must have applied for it,in some cases) . Dallas is having problems hiring locally and travel to surrounding states to recruit but they still require their applicants to be US citizens

I think,historically,Aus and Canada have recruited in the UK due to their close links with the UK/Commonwealth,and that a few ex chief constables have become chiefs in those countries,but the US have no such ties generally,except the so called "special relationship" ,which counts for nothing ! I can't imagine that US police depts would ever need to try and hire from the UK..just my two penneth for what it's worth

Captainwilko

Thanks for the welcome dread and sue. I am looking to escape the uk at some point. Windsor 2 will be the big one.

Dread/sue, aside from your welcomes I've had a fair few snotty replies and some that are borderline abusive. Is this normal for simply asking a question.

dreadsoc

Hi Captainwilko

Sorry to hear you have received replies like that - every forum has a few dxckheads, but don;t let them put you off - just ignore them and concentrate on the people who make the effort to be nice because there are more of them than the sarcastic idiot types.
If you have received replies which are abusive or obnoxious that is not acceptable on here and breaches the site rules - in these cases go to the actual post concerned and there are 3 little buttons on the bottom left corner - click the right hand of the three (the one that says report when you put your mouse over it) - this will automatically report the post to the moderator who will deal with it - don;t worry you won;t get any hassle or grief for reporting a post as it is confidential and only known by the moderators.
When you press the report button there is a little box for you to write in why you have reported the post.
If you have any difficulty with that option then send me a pm with the title of the thread together with the post number(s) which you will find on the top right corner of each post and I will pass it through to the right people.

Back to the subject of UK policing, I feel sorry for every serving officer with Winsor Part 2 coming in and now Winsor heading up the HMIC - had I not recently retired, I would be joining you guys in looking to go abroad too.

I wish all of you the very best and hope you all see some international transfer opportunities soon.

Dread - x

Sue

If someone has directed abusive at you, please hit the report button so a moderator can take a look. We certainly don't condone abusive behaviour on BE and I apologise if any such posts have been directed at you.

Elvatoloko

Hi everyone.

I will confirm that US police departments typically require US Citizenship in order to apply for sworn positions. Probably 99% of US police departments require US Citizenship. ALL federal jobs require citizenship, may they be law enforcement related or not.

Unless you have an independent way of getting a green card such as family or employment sponsorship, your chances of landing a police job in the United States are nil. No police department sponsors anyone from abroad to be a police officer in the U.S. It is still possible to become a police officer in the U.S. even if its difficult for a foreign born individual. It took me 12 years in the U.S. to obtain my green card and become a citizen to be able to apply for a police job, which I eventually got. The good part was that I came to the U.S. when I was 18 as a student and later obtained my green card through employment sponsorship.

If you do become a U.S. Citizen, you then have a good chance of getting the job, especially if you fit in more than one of the categories below:

1) Have a college degree
2) Speak a language other than English (in addition to English of course).
3) Have military experience
4) Have previous police experience
5) Are a member of a minority
6) Have a stable employment history
7) Are physically fit
8) Have no criminal record
9) Have a good driving record
10) Can pass a polygraph and background investigation.

I know many foreign born officers in my department and all of the others in the Washington DC area. There is no preferential treatment given to 'native' US citizens over naturalized citizens in the hiring process. I would even say that most foreigners have a leg up over native applicants because they usually speak a language other than English, especially if they speak Spanish, Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese, Amharic, Arabic, Urdu or any other language heavily represented in the area where they will work. I speak Spanish and French and use Spanish daily in my work.

Most of the foreign born officers that I know were not police officers outside the U.S. Most either came to the U.S. with their parents or married a U.S. Citizen and came to the U.S. A few got their green cards through employment sponsorship in a different job and later became cops. Some got their green cards through the DV lottery program, which is not open to UK citizens natives of Britain. I know a few British officers and all of them got their green cards initially through marriage. This allowed them to become citizens after three years and then apply to a police department. Of those, most had been in the UK armed forces.

The military has occasionally taken advantage of a special immigration program to recruit foreign individuals with special skills such as uncommon languages or healthcare personnel in short supply. This was called the MANVI program if I recall. I have never heard of such a program geared to recruit law enforcement officers of any kind in the U.S. ( You can google US Army MANVI to get all the details of this program which now defunct). The US Armed forces are still getting green cards for foreign translators and foreigners who have helped the US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The law of each state dictates who may become a law enforcement officer within that state. Most states require that all law enforcement officers be U.S. Citizens. Some do not. Even in those states, each individual department can decide to require U.S. Citizenship if they so wish.

Some departments within those few states, usually in large metropolitan areas with a diverse population, accept applicants who are permanent residents (green card holders) who have a pending application for naturalization with the US Citizenship and Immigration Services.
One of these departments is the Fairfax County Police Department:
Please see their website:
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/police/...ce-officer.htm
Another one is the San Diego Sheriff's Office:
http://agency.governmentjobs.com/sdc...FwddxPacket%3E

Some departments only require permanent residence for corrections officers whose duties are limited to a jail.

All jobs that are not of a sworn nature are typically open to permanent residents or to anyone holding an unrestricted work permit.
The state of recruitment varies widely from one department to another. Some departments are experiencing high rates of attrition due to waves of retirements, low morale, or better pay in neighboring departments. This leads to recruitment binges such as the one that took place in Washington DC with over 300 officers to be hired by next October. Some departments are laying officers off due to the dismal financial situation of the jurisdiction they belong to.

The requirements for entry into the profession are pretty standard across the country. Most departments require the equivalent of a high school diploma accompanied with some post-secondary education, military experience, or previous law enforcement experience.


The recruitment process usually goes like this:

1) Submit an application
2) Take a POST Test (Police Officer Selection Test) - Google for more info-
3) Take a PAT (Physical Ability Test) - Google for examples-
4) Submit a Personal History Statement/ Background Packet
5) Receive a Conditional offer of employment
6) Take and pass a polygraph test (80% + of police depts. require this)
7) Pass a medical examination
8) Take a psychological test and meet with a psychologist
9) Pass an interview/oral board
10) Pass a final review and selection
11) Receive a final offer of employment
12) Attend and pass a police academy (Usually 20 to 30 weeks long)
13) Pass a Field Training Period (Usually 3 months)
14) Successfully complete a probationary period (Usually six months to a year, to include the FTO period).

Eventhough you start getting paid when you attend the academy, you have not 'secured' your job until you finish all the steps and are released on your own as a 'certified officer'. That's why out of thousands of applicants, only a few dozens make the final cut.

Few departments have an age restriction. I have seen people nearing their mid-forties getting hired. The federal government has a 37 year old maximum age for entry into a Law Enforcement position with age exceptions for veterans of the armed forces and individuals already employed by the federal government in law enforcement covered position.

The physical standards vary from department to department. Some places such as the DEA have very stringent physical standards that only an accomplished athlete can meet and some have very low standards. Those usually are small departments in the middle of nowhere. Most mid-size to large departments are competitive to get into and have pretty stringent physical standards that become difficult to meet after 45 years of age for most people.

Most large departments attract hundreds, if not thousands of applicants for each vacancy. This is especially true now that the economy is at best lukewarm. In the late 1990's to mid-2000's police departments had trouble finding quality applicants due to the fact that people found much better paying jobs in the private sector. Now, police jobs are looked upon as stable jobs that offer benefits and some sense of job security which is more than what the private sector can offer to people entering the job market without advanced degrees or special skills.

Many large departments recruit continuously to make up for retirements, officers leaving for other departments and firings of inadequate officers. Generally, those hire 10 to 20 officers at a time to maintain their current levels. Many large departments have had to institute hiring freezes due to lack of funds to hire new officers. Generally, the hiring freezes never last beyond two of three years as attrition makes it difficult to maintain service levels. Generally, these departments go on hiring binges after going a few years without new hires. One of these departments will undoubtedly be Miami-Dade County Police. Their force is below 2900 for a population of over 2 million. In contrast, Washington DC has 3700 officers for half a million and is trying to bring the force to 3907 officers by the end of October.

Generally, the most competitive departments are state police agencies, large metropolitan departments and large suburban departments as well as specialty departments such as Airport Police, Port Authority Police, and Department of Natural Resources/Conservation Police.

Many of these agencies draw the best candidates due to the higher salaries and better work conditions and career prospects they offer. Many officers get their foot in the door with those agencies who do not offer very competitive salaries and move on to a better department after a few years.
Should you wish to join the fire service, a work permit is sufficient in most cases, permanent residence is accepted almost everywhere. Some places such as the FDNY and the Washington DC Fire & EMS department require U.S. Citizenship.

Do not hesitate to ask me any question you may have regarding law enforcement recruitment in the U.S. If I don't know the answer, I can find out.

Take care
JJ