I want to make myself the best candidate possible

[HckyBez33 Forum Member Find all posts View Profile Close HckyBez33]

You can get my background by looking up my old posts but I wanted to get advice from current LEOs about how I can make myself the best candidate possible for LEO.

Currently I am in my senior year of college and will graduate in May with a BA in business administration. I am not working right now and am open to any job that will give me experience that an agency will value. I keep myself in good physical shape and have scored very well in the PT tests I have taken for the departments I have applied to. I have taken firearms training and am becoming proficient in handgun safety, laws, and use. I want to do ride alongs with every department that I am interested in before applying. I am looking at agencies in LA, Orange, and San Diego counties both sheriff and police departments.

Any advice you can give me would be very appreciated.

Thank you!

[Kieth M. When do I grow up? Find all posts View Profile Close Kieth M.]

Que idioma segundo, su habla, Senor?

What second language do you speak?

[L-1 Find all posts View Profile Close L-1]

In California, most civil service agencies score you solely on the number of correct answers you give to questions on the written and oral exams, so other than to study hard and prepare for the testing process, there is little you can do to make yourself more attractive as a candidate.

There is no objective way to score one candidate's time in the rangers, versus another candidate's EMT certificate, or another candidate's degree in English. There are just too many experiences in life to accurately assign a point value to each one. So instead, civil service exams identify specific test questions and criteria that are clearly related to the job in question and scoring is limited to those areas alone.

Buried in the fine print of most civil service exam announcements, you will usually find an explanation of how you will be scored and what you will be tested on. For example, if you look at the exam announcement for this state investigator position http://jobs.spb.ca.gov/JOBSGEN/7IN99.PDF it tells you exactly what you will be quizzed on (and what to study for).

Check out the exam announcements for the jobs you are interested in and prepare yourself according to what they say the testing and scoring criteria will be.

[Chit2001 Midwest Nittany Lion Find all posts View Profile Close Chit2001]

Keep your nose clean.

Stay away from the alcohol.... it tends to make you do stupid stuff that you regret later.

[Ralph8119 Forum Member Find all posts View Profile Close Ralph8119]

A very big hola!

Que idioma segundo, su habla, Senor?

What second language do you speak?

Kieth are you getting Colombian on me, great on the Spanish bro!
But yes knowing a second language is a big plus in any department these days, it helped me all my life!

[exdrip Head Honcho Find all posts View Profile Close exdrip]

Keep your nose clean.

Stay away from the alcohol.... it tends to make you do stupid stuff that you regret later.

I'll second that, as I regret a thing or two from last night.

[R0WADDS Forum Member Find all posts View Profile Close R0WADDS]

1. Learn Spanish
2. Major in Socieology or Psychology (only to stick out from all the other Criminal Law majors)
3. Get any part-time experience available.
4. Leave every job on a great note.