US Probation Officer

[awaser]

Hello! I'm currently trying to get into the the eastern district as well. I have the assessment scheduled this week. Could you offer any suggestions or tips on passing the written portion? Thank you!!

[awaser]

Hello! I have been trying to get into the Eastern District of North Carolina for about 2 years now. I'm currently a specialized probation officer for county in Illinois. I am scheduled for the written assessment again this week and wondering if anyone can offer insight? Is is based more on my writing skills and ability or the content you include? Last time the assessment was based on writing a bond report with only relevant information. Any help or suggestions for this district would be appreciated

[brownj21]

One interview question that came up was, what is the role of the probation office, not the officer? I would think the office and officer are the same, are they not?

Well, keep in mind, the probation office contains presentence investigation work, field supervision work, and some/most also have pretrial officers in house. So, as far as the probation officer, it would depend on their exact role or unit that they work in.

[brownj21]

Hey all. I am back at it and expanding my application parameters. Does anyone have any knowledge of any of the north Carolina courts, more specifically Charlotte? Thanks in advance.

Charlotte is very pro-active is what I have heard.

[mattydub]

One interview question that came up was, what is the role of the probation office, not the officer? I would think the office and officer are the same, are they not?

[Hoppyandiknowit]

Hey all. I am back at it and expanding my application parameters. Does anyone have any knowledge of any of the north Carolina courts, more specifically Charlotte? Thanks in advance.

[Serenity16]

Hi Does anyone have any info on the NJ district? I have an interview scheduled. Thanks!

[brownj21]

I’ve interviewed for a number of districts and the biggest factor they are looking for imo is experience. Every interview (that I’m aware of) will be a panel, some will have multiple interviews. I’ve had to submit a writing sample more then once. One of the districts, El Paso, seemed very unprofessional and even after I stretched out my answers it only took about 30 minutes. Another district included a role playing exercise as part of the interview. When I followed up with one district they told me they were still conducting interviews, in other words my interview wasn’t sufficient.

After speaking to people who have actually gone to federal probation a lot of them regret it. The money is usually better but you’re much more limited in your duties in most districts. You're tied to a desk most days and you’re a glorified social worker. I’m sure there are some districts that aren’t but it seems most are,

As I always state in these discussions, so much depends on your district. Pay, flexibility, telework, freedom, and so on vary greatly from district to district and sometimes even position to position.

[mattydub]

I’ve interviewed for a number of districts and the biggest factor they are looking for imo is experience. Every interview (that I’m aware of) will be a panel, some will have multiple interviews. I’ve had to submit a writing sample more then once. One of the districts, El Paso, seemed very unprofessional and even after I stretched out my answers it only took about 30 minutes. Another district included a role playing exercise as part of the interview. When I followed up with one district they told me they were still conducting interviews, in other words my interview wasn’t sufficient.

After speaking to people who have actually gone to federal probation a lot of them regret it. The money is usually better but you’re much more limited in your duties in most districts. You're tied to a desk most days and you’re a glorified social worker. I’m sure there are some districts that aren’t but it seems most are,

[holycrikey]

I read nearly every post in this thread but still had a couple questions.

1) Do you think I'm competitive as an attorney? I have been a lawyer for seven years, with half of that as a defense attorney and the most recent few years as a county prosecutor. My most relevant criminal experience relates to making bond/release recommendations to the court, and handling post-conviction review hearings occasionally. I spent about two years doing civil commitment cases, where I'd have to interview family members and mental health experts, before making a release recommendation in court. I have no experience as a probation or parole officer though.

Competitive? Possible. Depending on the district. I've come across several USPOs in other districts who had a J.D. The in-depth knowledge of the law is a great asset. I will say that my district has hired about four different attorney's within the past five years and not a single one of them last over about a year. They end up moving back to law because it's more lucrative. Can't say I blame them, but our district has been somewhat burned by them.

Someone suggested a book on evidence based practices, which I'll be buying soon. Any other things I should do to make up for my lack of direct supervision experience?

Read up on the Federal Probation Journal. Not many applicants are even aware of it's existence. It's free and goes over a ton of what we're doing at the national and district level. Access it here: https://www.uscourts.gov/statistics-...bation-journal

[Winter_Patriot]

Will keep the income tax in mind. You're right that WA has no income tax for most people.

Thanks to everyone who replied to my post or sent me a PM.

Someone suggested a book on evidence based practices, which I'll be buying soon. Any other things I should do to make up for my lack of direct supervision experience? Generally I was interacting with case managers, social workers, and the hospital, but rrely had direct contact with the patient/defendant/offender. I would consider all that info and then make my argument to the court, so it was a bit indirect.

I am open to doing local probation for a year or two to gain better experience, but I just don't know if I can afford to do it very long, because Washington apparently pays 20% less than most states.

Any tips about the interview or test would also be helpful, although I know every district will be different.

[9L81]

Don't know about the development range. Also don't forget about CA state income tax, IIRC WA doesn't have any.

[Winter_Patriot]

Feds in general want to get out of the Bay Area due to the outrageous cost of living among other Bay area issues. If you already live here then you know, if not then you will fully appreciate it soon enough. Recruiting for fed jobs in the Bay is quite difficult. LA has similar problems. Don't know much about the current work life balance but my supervisor at a previous federal job was a USPO in SF and I don't recall any issues with that. But he left that office nearly 20 years ago. There are many attorneys who work in federal LE but I have not known any who became PO's.

Thanks for the update. I would normally not be able to make the salary work in SF as someone with a lot of debt. I work in Seattle now, which is a bit overpriced already. I'd be taking about a 20-35% pay cut to work as a USPO, but I also have free housing in SF, so I think I could get by. Do you know how long the development range is in that office?

[9L81]

Feds in general want to get out of the Bay Area due to the outrageous cost of living among other Bay area issues. If you already live here then you know, if not then you will fully appreciate it soon enough. Recruiting for fed jobs in the Bay is quite difficult. LA has similar problems. Don't know much about the current work life balance but my supervisor at a previous federal job was a USPO in SF and I don't recall any issues with that. But he left that office nearly 20 years ago. There are many attorneys who work in federal LE but I have not known any who became PO's.

[Winter_Patriot]

I read nearly every post in this thread but still had a couple questions.

1) Do you think I'm competitive as an attorney? I have been a lawyer for seven years, with half of that as a defense attorney and the most recent few years as a county prosecutor. My most relevant criminal experience relates to making bond/release recommendations to the court, and handling post-conviction review hearings occasionally. I spent about two years doing civil commitment cases, where I'd have to interview family members and mental health experts, before making a release recommendation in court. I have no experience as a probation or parole officer though.

2) What are the San Francisco and LA offices like in terms of work-life balance? Do they tend to be more social work or law enforcement oriented? I've applied to both but have heard that people often want to transfer out after a couple years, and that there is high turnover. I'm trying to decide if I would want to give up my current job to work in one of those offices (if offered), or if I should be more patient and wait.