Questions about SFOs and joining the police

[nvdmm]

Hi guys! i'll finish my college soon. i've heard from some people that if i go to university and study somethin like criminalogy or law, when i join the force, i can become sergeant straight away! is that true?!!
secondly, my aim is to join the greater manchester's SFCs (specialist firearms command, the ones shown in the picture below!); is it true that anyone who wants to join them, has to be in the ARV for at least 2 or 3 years?!

Cheers guys, i'de really appreciate your help

[co19]

The picture is of Met Police SFO's, you have to do a minimum of 6 months ARV then you do an assessment week, then if passed you complete about 10 weeks of further training, includinhg abseiling, rapid intervention etc etc

You might join the police and think of something different though, most poeple do, it was never my aim or ambition to go to 19.

[Shortty]

I think you'va got a good long term goal set there, but like CO19 says, there are many other options the police as a whole can offer that may well tempt you. For now, if i was you i'd think about how seriously you want to become a regular police officer. It's really not that easy to get in at the moment.

You're going to need a bit more life experience i would have thought, before you're realistically going to pass all the assessments. Chances are you'll also need to spend some time as a PCSO - this is increasingly becoming the route of entry for a lot of officers, then you've actually got to pass all the stages. Competition is high - on my intake there were 4,000 applications for about 50 spaces - an awfull lot of those spaces were filled with people who had police experience i.e. specials, PCSO's, support staff.

Then once you're in it's hard work for the first few months getting your head around everything, and it will require you to change your social habits - no drugs, no bad behaviour, no associating with criminals etc etc.

AS to can a course increase your promotion prospects - no it can't. Anything you do before starting your police training will only help in that you already have the knowledge so should perform better, but it wont be officially recognised - therefore in my opinion the best preparation you can do is to spend a lot of time interacting with people in conflict environments. I did a few years of doorwork before joining and it definately helped me when dealing with people, it is one less thing to master during probation.

All that said - i'm having second thoughts about my career - there's not a lot of excitement in the job at the street level. It really is mainly customer care, form filling, dealing with admin nitemares and "waiting your turn" to do anything remotely fun - i'm seriously considering rejoining the armed forces as RMP, as it has much more to offer in certain areas. . .

[nvdmm]

thanks for the message mate but what about that sergeant thingi? would i become sergeant straight away? its what a police officer said to my uncle!!

[Shortty]

Simply put ... no. You have to do your two years probation, then you have to pass your sgts exams, then you have to actually get a job as a sgt - there is a quick promotion scheme running (i think it's still going..?) called HPDS -but this doesn't change any of the above and getting on the scheme is decided by passing police assessment not by doing a course in civvy st. It also should be of no interest to anyone wanting to police as it's all about being a politician and businessman, not a cop !! (cynical??)

[sentinel]

Got to agree with Shortty; I've done twenty years in the job and worked hard to be where I am but would give it all up for something that payed better. The Job itself is good and your colleagues become friends, but the petty politics ruins it. The Thinkers upset the Doers. I would never dissuade someone for joining, but would urge against the idealistic notion that you can change the world and make a difference to the bigger picture. If you join, take for what it is; it pays the mortgage and the CSA. Thirty years ago, being a police officer was a vocation. Then came Edmond Davies and the huge pay increase. Twenty years ago this was a career (I always expected to do thirty). Now it's a job. Peope come in and leave within five years, because they don't like the discipline and they don't like the way the public treat them and they don't like the seedier aspects of the work.
And you don't get rank straight off. There is a process, and it makes no sense at all.
Apart from that; enjoy!

[nvdmm]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sentinel Got to agree with Shortty; I've done twenty years in the job and worked hard to be where I am but would give it all up for something that payed better. The Job itself is good and your colleagues become friends, but the petty politics ruins it. The Thinkers upset the Doers. I would never dissuade someone for joining, but would urge against the idealistic notion that you can change the world and make a difference to the bigger picture. If you join, take for what it is; it pays the mortgage and the CSA. Thirty years ago, being a police officer was a vocation. Then came Edmond Davies and the huge pay increase. Twenty years ago this was a career (I always expected to do thirty). Now it's a job. Peope come in and leave within five years, because they don't like the discipline and they don't like the way the public treat them and they don't like the seedier aspects of the work. And you don't get rank straight off. There is a process, and it makes no sense at all. Apart from that; enjoy!

thanks mate i wanted to go to university only because i thought u get paid more and become sergeant after the two year probation! so do u think its better for me to just join the force straight after college? im not really into studying u know, just wanna get to the job as soon as possible!
Cheers

[rescueme]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nvdmm thanks mate i wanted to go to university only because i thought u get paid more and become sergeant after the two year probation! so do u think its better for me to just join the force straight after college? im not really into studying u know, just wanna get to the job as soon as possible! Cheers

As already mentioned you need to get some 'life experience'; I would highly recommend that you go away and do something, that might be university and you could be a special whilst you are a student. Or you could go and work somewhere for a couple of years, what you do won't be that important as long as it customer focused (ie. shop work, customer services etc)

The chances of you being accepted at 18.5yrs are very very slim. I don't know many collegaues who were under 20 when they joined (not in the last 5yrs or so).

If money is one of your motivating factors find something else, the money is not worth all the time and abuse. And being a Sgt and joining firearms teams will be even harder than trying to get in as a PC.

As someone else mentioned, the job isn't a vocation or a career anymore for most people that join. And whilst I commend you for having some motivation and a long term objective, it will be exactly that... long term.

[sentinel]

Beyond all else, the important criteria within The Job is credibility. You have to be credible in the role, be it ranked or specialist. You will not be given this, nor will you be given respect, you must earn both. If you can do that, being young in service and years then you have done well. Further or Higher Education counts for very little when you are a constable. It means little until you get up in to the higher ranks, but it does give you a method for learning. Unfortunately, passing the exams for promotion relies more on the "learning by rote" method and the ability to answer multiple choice questions. If you want to join the Job, have a crack. As I said, I would never stop anyone joining. I am sure all those on the forum who have done will agree that it is great fun, and the money isn't so bad. You can find a niche somewhere, and you may not end up doing what you joined for. It's not as broad as the military, but most people can be accommodated. You may chose to keep taking promotion and end up as Commissioner. Or maybe not...So fill out the forms and see where it takes you.

[nvdmm]

thanks a lot mate i think u r all right. i suppose the best thing to do is to either study and be a special at the same time, or just get a job that could help me interact with people more; then join the force.