Goal is to become a NJ State Trooper, how should I go about it?

[Quinn58]

Alright guys heres the info on me: I am a 20 year old living in Sussex County, NJ. I have lived in NJ all my life. I went for 2 years to The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY and about a year ago started thinking, becoming a chef isnt what I wanted. So I transfered to county school and I am majoring in Criminal Justice. My grandfather is a retired chief of police in another county so I have grown up around that sort of thing all my life. But for me, my goal is to become a trooper here in NJ. I understand that you need a bachelors degree to become a NJ trooper so I am working my way to that, unfortunately, after 2 years at another school I am back being a freshman so Im back down to 4 yeras of schooling to go, but in a way thats not such a bad thing. I have a clean background, no speeding tickets, just one parking ticket, I don't smoke or anything like that, I'm in shape *sorta* and played sports all throughout my younger years into high school.

So my question to all of you is; Am I on the right path? What do I need to do? And what can I do as of now to work my way there?

Thank you guys! Any other questions for me feel free to ask away!

[SCSO612]

I would start with filling out an application.

[Quinn58]

An application into the state troopers? Even tho I wouldnt start work for atleast 5 years or so?

[SCSO612]

That's the only way that I know of to start the hiring process.

[nasa808]

An application into the state troopers? Even tho I wouldnt start work for atleast 5 years or so?

Attend one of their recruitment fairs... www.njsp.org

[PhilipCal]

Attend one of their recruitment fairs... www.njsp.org

While you're on the NJSP website, measure yourself honestly in light of their hiring standards.Make certain that you meet all the criteria, and keep in mind, that these are the basic as in minimum standards an NJSP applicant must meet. Be prepared for a lengthy and often frustrating hiring process. If you feel you meet these standards, then by all means, apply.

[nonickname69]

Alright guys heres the info on me: I am a 20 year old living in Sussex County, NJ. I have lived in NJ all my life. I went for 2 years to The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY and about a year ago started thinking, becoming a chef isnt what I wanted. So I transfered to county school and I am majoring in Criminal Justice. My grandfather is a retired chief of police in another county so I have grown up around that sort of thing all my life. But for me, my goal is to become a trooper here in NJ. I understand that you need a bachelors degree to become a NJ trooper so I am working my way to that, unfortunately, after 2 years at another school I am back being a freshman so Im back down to 4 yeras of schooling to go, but in a way thats not such a bad thing. I have a clean background, no speeding tickets, just one parking ticket, I don't smoke or anything like that, I'm in shape *sorta* and played sports all throughout my younger years into high school.

So my question to all of you is; Am I on the right path? What do I need to do? And what can I do as of now to work my way there?

Thank you guys! Any other questions for me feel free to ask away!

Sounds like you have a plan. Since you NEED a degree you might consider another agency to get yourself in the field. Find out if you really, really, want to do this.

Do some ride alongs with the troopers too. See what they do first hand and seize the opportunity to get an active trooper's opinion about the ups and downs of the job.

If you don't want to work as full time LE while you're in school find a reserve unit or an agency that will take you on part-time. Usually smaller departments will have part-timers and bigger ones will have reserve units.

[stormz5192]

#1. You should post this question in the NJ section.
#2. The NJSP loosened the education requirement a few years ago. You can
have an associates degree and a combination of several other things to
meet the requirement.
#3. Good luck.

[Quinn58]

Awesome! Thank you guys! Ill be sure to keep you all posted. Any more tips or advice keep it coming!

[mikeymedic]

Get into great shape, read these forums, go on ridealongs, stay out of trouble an consider the military.

[troopernflight]

State police agencies are big on physical fitness. Be prepared to run 1.5 miles in 12 minutes or less, and be able to do at least 50 pushups and 60 situps in a minute. Buy yourself a state police exam prep book from your local book store so you will know what type of questions to expect on the entrance exam. Do not do anything stupid like getting a DUI or getting a bunch of speeding tickets. I would recommend staying away from any venues in which you could get into a fight, or anything else that might get you in trouble. In other words, keep your nose clean. A bachelor's degree will probably be needed in order to be competative against other applicants. Just go ahead and apply (unless you don't yet meet minimum criteria). It can't hurt to enter the hiring process and get an idea of what's involved, even when you are not ready to get in quite yet. Like others said, do some ride alongs if they offer it. You may find that it is not for you when you actually see what they do first hand. Keep in mind that this can be very dangerous work. If you are scared of the dark, then you need to persue another profession. Chances are that you will enjoy state police work. It can be very challenging and rewarding, but also has it's down points. Good Luck.

[Quinn58]

Thank you. I have been working on push ups and that sort of thing at home. Right now I do about 20 every 20 seconds or so. I have to work on lasting the entire minute haha. Endurance. But running I'm not bad. I have always been fit my entire life I've just gotta work on the endurance part. But I will be sure to keep my nose clean and stay away from trouble if it arises. Thank you for your input. I appreciate it greatly.

[Eagles]

The NJ state police are a good agency with a lot of good troopers. A lot of troopers end up working primarily highways for a while, but there are more "full service" places to be assigned, so at some point in your career you can be running calls. After some time, there are a lot of great task forces and specialized units you can be assigned to work.

As was already said, work really hard on your physical fitness... Sea Girt (the academy) has a reputation of being one of the toughest police academies in the country, and a lot of that is because of the tough PT requirements.

[Quinn58]

See I don't mind the idea of being on highway patrol for a while. I was thinking that I would get the lousy hours out of the way so by the time I'm ready to settle down and start a family I can have more "normal" hours. But I'm about 4 years away from the academy so I'm going to start working on my fitness now.

[DetDep]

You know, if you did get hired, and make it all the way to the top, you could have your troops lovingly refer to you as the Chef of Police.

Yeah, it's a bad pun. Sue me.