Getting Hired in Florida

[upandcomming]

In the state of Florida, the laws only require one to be 19 in order to become certifiable. That being said I plan to start working at my local sheriffs dept at 19. Im just worried that I will not be taken seriously or given a equal opportunity as some other applicants who may be older. I have been a police explorer with the agency for five years. Attaching to the back of my application will be a letter of recommendation from a sitting county judge, a captain from the agency and two sgts from the agency. In my references I have the same captain and sgts plus two addition sgts who i did not ask for a letter.

Does anyone think my age will be a huge turn off for the agency and them not seriously consider me for sworn LEO employment?

[HotSoup]

Yes it will...that's great you have all those references but you have no life experience at all

[upandcomming]

Yes it will...that's great you have all those references but you have no life experience at all

Well I have been working non stop from the day I turned 16, and i have 40 credit hours of college under my belt. I wouldn't exactly say that i am a recent high school graduate who simply skated by and now wants to run off and be super cop. I began college my junior year of highschool. In addition to that I already have an excellent credit score which shows responsibility

[Iowa #1603]

Does anyone think my age will be a huge turn off for the agency and them not seriously consider me for sworn LEO employment?

Remember------------------YOU asked this question

Seriously -------------the chances of being hired at 19 as a police officer in this day and time is NEARLY non-existent.

Did I say IMPOSSIBLE.................No, but your age will be a mark against you for the VAST MAJORITY of agencies.

Those are my thoughts

[kermit315]

Even as an explorer, your chances of getting picked up by an agency without already being certified are slim and none. Too many laterals, people that put themselves through an academy and got certified, and people with life experience (for the rare agencies that are sponsoring people right now).

Don't take this as me telling you to give up. But don't get discouraged when it doesn't happen the way you think it will.

[upandcomming]

Even as an explorer, your chances of getting picked up by an agency without already being certified are slim and none. Too many laterals, people that put themselves through an academy and got certified, and people with life experience (for the rare agencies that are sponsoring people right now).

Don't take this as me telling you to give up. But don't get discouraged when it doesn't happen the way you think it will.

Well I have already been accepted into the police academy and I am going to be getting hired in officially post academy. The higher ups are working on pushing my app through so that I have a conditional offer going into the academy. So the agency wouldn't be sponsoring me.

[SmallCityCop]

I will second the age thing... 19 year olds typically have 0 life experience. Agencies will be taking a huge chance with a 19yr old... but doesn't mean they won't try. My first police job I went in at 20 as a cadet, I got bumped to the academy because I would have been 21 by the time I graduated. I was 23 or 24 when I started my second job that I currently have.

We are giving you honest answers based on years of experience. Don't take offense to it.

Best of luck in the academy, just remember, an agency has to pick you up so your certification doesn't expire, because if it does, you'll have to do the academy again.

[Iowa #1603]

Well I have already been accepted into the police academy and I am going to be getting hired in officially post academy. The higher ups are working on pushing my app through so that I have a conditional offer going into the academy. So the agency wouldn't be sponsoring me.

Ok, if this happens and you do get hired-----------------don't expect to be accepted with open arms by the troops. To the experienced officers you are going to be a kid.

A "wet behind the ears kid" You are going to be "schooled" at an academy but you are still going to be sitting there with ZERO life experience and potentially going to be their back up in life threatening situations.

But more importantly you are STILL going to be a teenager. Teenagers are notorious for not making good decisions j. EVEN THE BEST teenagers make crappy decisions at times----just because of the lack of life experience.

Obviously the "higher ups" have at least some confidence in you or they wouldn't be considering hiring you...............just don't expect the troops to be as happy.


Oh yea----------------just to tell you where I come from-------------------I started working as a Correctional Officer in a maximum security prison when I was 20 yrs old. I thought I was S H I T! I had ALSO been working since I was 14 so I knew how to be an employee.

I quickly found out I didn't have a clue about dealing with adults-----------especially convicted adult felons. I had no business being in the business at that point in time.

I spent 2 years working in that prison and started working as a Deputy Sheriff at 22 yrs of age----and started THAT JOB with a completely different outlook on the profession ---and experience.


MUCH LATER, I was in a position to assist in HIRING LEO's. During the 15 yrs I was supervising Law Enforcement Officers I rarely found an 18, 19, 20 yr old that had the maturity to be effective in the job.

Yes some were hired-------------but I stick by my statements.

[kermit315]

Well I have already been accepted into the police academy and I am going to be getting hired in officially post academy. The higher ups are working on pushing my app through so that I have a conditional offer going into the academy. So the agency wouldn't be sponsoring me.

Anybody can be accepted into an academy in Florida as long as you don't have a record and pay the fees. That is not a determination of your ability to actually be hired by an agency after graduating and passing the SOCE. There are constantly people that graduate from the academy and subsequently cannot get hired, for a variety of reasons. Your application is still going into a stack (I feel comfortable saying) with plenty of laterals and other academy grads that have passed the SOCE already, many of which are older, have degrees and/or life experience. It's nice that you have those letters, but unless it is a very small agency, your final app will still get weighed against the others. The goal is to make sure the best candidates are put into the positions available.

Will your app be fairly evaluated, I say yes. Does that mean you will get the outcome you want......depends on who else applies. Will the guys on the road accept you with open arms (provided you are hired)....depends on a number of factors, but you better be ready to pay your dues, earn your keep, and be accepting of the fact that even if some do accept you, others will not.

Also, it is nice that you have those letters, but I wouldn't lean on the whole cronyism thing too much if it comes up. You want to be seen as somebody that can stand on his own two feet. They are speaking to your character. They are not the 'give me a job' free card. If you play the 'I know Capt. XXXX' or 'Sgt XXXX' cards every chance you get.....it is going to hurt you for sure.

[ArmyVet]

Will you be given equal opportunity? Yes, but does that mean you have equal experience compared to other, older applicants? No. You would benefit yourself more by going to college or joining the military while you can, whichever fits your life goals better. I was managing a store at age 17. I had employees that were far older than I was and had worked there far longer than I had, and I hired and fired some of them. This was a significant and shaping life experience for me, but it was only after getting out into the world that I figured out how life works, which is important when you're dealing with people outside of the realms you're used to. You're off to a good start. If it doesn't work out this time, learn from it and go do something different for a while.

[CCCSD]

I wouldn't work with you, but I don't have to worry about that as in my state you wouldn't be hired, nor be able to purchase a firearm. You are way too young to be a Police Officer. Corrections...maybe. But you will be The Kid for years.

[Taylor13]

I'm 19 but I plan on getting some college, I also have some solid work experience, 5 years volunteering with the local S/O, hundreds of hours to be exact and I have professional references from where I've worked and also in the LEO industry and most agencies in Florida I've talked to noticed wont even talk to you til you're 21 unless you're already certified.

Question: should I start applying at 21 guys or should I just finish up some more college, keep working full time (try to get in with a civil position at a local department?) as well and wait til I'm 22/23 or so.

[CharlesInCharge23]

Not that I am much older, but I am currently in the academy in florida and going through preliminary job hunts and i can tell you that even though the HS diploma his the highest level required for certification... most agencies want you to have an AA or AS. Take your police academy (hopefully itll double as college credit) and get an AS in CJ... that's what a lot of the under 20s are doing in mine because then youre half way to the AS. Plus, you'll learn in the academy, from the first day of class you have 4 years to get hired... plenty of time, dont worry. Keep your head in the book, run some laps, you'll be good

[upandcomming]

I wouldn't work with you, but I don't have to worry about that as in my state you wouldn't be hired, nor be able to purchase a firearm. You are way too young to be a Police Officer. Corrections...maybe. But you will be The Kid for years.

I don't take offense to that. I know the person I am and my maturity level. That being said, I come from a family of career law enforcement, ranging from municipalities, up to the federal level. I know my true character however, putting that aside I hope you don't take offense to what I say. Where I come from law enforcement officers do not choose who they want to work with. The law enforcement community I was raised it, we are taught to have each others back no matter what! Male, female, white, black, green yellow, purple, Gay, straight, old, young, it doesn't mater at the end of the night I am going home to my loved ones. I will fight to the end to make sure my partner goes home to his. It is what comes natural to me, it just common sense. But if your agency allows you to cycle partners until you find a soul mate then good! However if you feel that a 25 year old who scrapped by in highschool/college is better than a passion driven young soul then I wish you luck. Life experience is one hing sir. A drive and passion to succeed is anther.

So I pose the question to each and every one of you, would you rather have a passionate young body back you up, or someone who worked as a restaurant manager, with "life experience" and a perfect credit score?

[kermit315]

I don't take offense to that. I know the person I am and my maturity level. That being said, I come from a family of career law enforcement, ranging from municipalities, up to the federal level. I know my true character however, putting that aside I hope you don't take offense to what I say. Where I come from law enforcement officers do not choose who they want to work with. The law enforcement community I was raised it, we are taught to have each others back no matter what! Male, female, white, black, green yellow, purple, Gay, straight, old, young, it doesn't mater at the end of the night I am going home to my loved ones. I will fight to the end to make sure my partner goes home to his. It is what comes natural to me, it just common sense. But if your agency allows you to cycle partners until you find a soul mate then good! However if you feel that a 25 year old who scrapped by in highschool/college is better than a passion driven young soul then I wish you luck. Life experience is one hing sir. A drive and passion to succeed is anther.

So I pose the question to each and every one of you, would you rather have a passionate young body back you up, or someone who worked as a restaurant manager, with "life experience" and a perfect credit score?

Passion, while valuable, can often lead to hastily made, tactically poor choices in the absence of other experience to guide it. The restaurant manager has probably learned to read people (to a degree) and can see when something is going south. That being said, your question is a false dilemma and not truly answerable as written, as the two choices are not mutually exclusive. Were I to make a choice purely from the two options given, I would pick the restaurant manager. Is there a reason you assume that the restaurant manager doesn't have passion as well? I have been backed up by people that came from all walks of life, including teachers, people in the medical field, career LE, and other military members. I myself have a GED, some college (3/4 way to a bachelors FWIW), grew up as a farm boy, went on to sail in the Navy (still doing it even), put myself through an academy and got hired. Are you implying that since I never finished high school (for reasons that you do not and will not know), and you did, you are somehow better than I am, and more qualified to wear my badge?

If said restaurant manager has passion and life experience, would he not make the better backup?

I am starting to see where you are going with this whole thread. Your family is LE, so you think you are entitled to entry into LE as soon as the state minimum age is reached. Just because a minimum exists does not mean you are ready for it. You were warned in advance that even if you were hired on at that age, there would be people that would not accept you (because like it or not, you would be a liability), then you try to go tit for tat with a member of the forum about partner shopping. Once again, he is telling you like it is in the real world, just as the rest of us have.

You need to learn that there is more to being an officer than high grades in high school. The ability to make mistakes and learn from them. The ability to live on your own, manage money, hold a job, hold a schedule. The ability to interact with people (in the real world, not the halls of a high school), learn what those people are thinking and wanting to do (subliminal signs, etc). That kind of knowledge comes with life experience, hence the reason you do not have it. Are there people that make it into LE without some of that, sure. Those are the ones that take longer to train in FTO, or wash out of FTO completely, or even worse, get themselves or someone else hurt/killed. They cannot spot common warning signs on the street because they wrap themselves up in the intellectual 'book' side of things, while missing the real context of what is going on.

Book smarts have their place in LE, a very large place. Life experience has a much larger place. Book smarts will make or break cases. Life experience or lack thereof can get you killed.