Hi All. First off, congrats on a very informative forum.
I am 26, female, and currently work mall security. Believe it or not, i really love my job - its the first time in my life that i've ever gotten that "rewarding" feeling and gotten paid for it at the same time. I've worked there for almost 2 years now, but unfortunately one cannot raise a family on $10 an hour so i am forced to continue on in my career quest. I have a high school degree.
To be honest, before i took this job i had never once in my entire life considered a position anywhere related to law enforcement. i grew up in a household with a lot of disrespect for the police, and i was always told that "only uneducated, power-hungry idiots" worked in the field. As i have worked closely with our local PD these past 2 years, i have learned rather quickly that that is just not the case. I have an enormous amount of respect for the guys i work with, and after many hours of thought on the subject - i've come to the conclusion that this is a profession that i couldn't be more honored to get into, and think i would succeed in. But then the typical i suppose occurs - i take a step back, examine my background - and wonder if i have a chance in hell of getting hired on anywhere.
Like i said, i never even considered the field of Law Enforcement until 2 years ago. Obviously there are things i have done in the past which i would have thought more carefully about if i had known the career path i would be taking down the road. I wonder if life experience counts for anything vs. your typical 22 year old applicant who has wanted to be an officer his entire life, and has an AAS in Criminal Justice. Obviously, i will have more blemished on my record than he will.
Here goes:
1.) I have worked 6 completely different jobs in the past 7 years, 3 being transitional month-long retail stints out of financial desperation. I have had some bad experiences, but every position i have worked i have rapidly advanced and my work ethic has never come into question. Also, there is a 2 year gap in employment directly before my current employment where i got married and started a family. But you're not supposed to put those things in an application, are you? How would you suggest i address this issue? Do you think the fact that i have a young child will weigh negatively against me?
2.) I have lived in 7 different places in 7 years. My financial situation has been pretty terrible. Off and on public aid at some points. I've never been evicted though, and with the exception of one bad year i have paid the rent on time.
3.) One particularly bad year 3 years ago, i ended up getting a string of "no city sticker" tickets on my vehicle that i chose not to pay/could not pay at the time. My vehicle eventually ended up being booted, and i borrowed the money to pay the fines. I've paid that off.
4.) During that same period of time, i was on unemployment after having been laid off, and literally just barely scraping by. Part of it was ignorance, but i know that is really no excuse. I took a job at a video store which i could tell imeediately wasn't going to last very long. I was right, i only worked there 3 months. But i was under the impression that if i discontinued my unemployment insurance i would not be able to get back on it, and i needed it in order just to pay the rent until i could find a stable job. So i continued to file unemployment claims while i worked at the video store (i figured the govt. would just bill me and i would pay it back, no big deal). I ended up being fired from the video store job due to customer complaints which were 100% related to poor store policy (long story). I don't mean to sound flippant but there honestly was nothing i could have done to avoid the complaints, and the store had a "3 strikes you're out" no-questions-asked policy. Some time later i ended up getting a letter in the mail saying that it appeared IDES overpaid me by roughly $2800 in unemployment compensation. I have never heard another word from IDES, and never gotten a bill.. so it was just easy for me to forget about it. It hasn't been repaid, and i'm not even sure how much it is.
5.) I tried marijuana TWICE, out of pure curiosity around 4 years ago. My fiancee's coworker at the time was a big pothead, and he and my fiancee got into a discussion about it one day where he told him that he had never tried it, but was curious to know what the big deal was all about. So the coworker gave him a tiny amount, and he brought it home and we tried it together. Didn't do anything at all for me, but i didn't throw out the remainder. At some point roughly a year later i found it and figured i'd give it one more try rather then just throw it out. Again, it didn't do anything for me. That was it. Additionally, a year ago i was hanging out with some friends who are professional j*** musicians (who smoke pot occasionally). One of them offered me a hit and i thought about it for a second and then i realized that it was a really stupid idea so i just gave it back to him. I know that polygraph questions ask you about recent marijuana use - and even though i didn't actually smoke any, i wonder if the fact of my anxiety over that i considered it would cause me to flub that answer on the test.
6.) 9 years ago, i had just gotten my driver's license and decided to take a cross-country road trip with my then-bf. I ended up getting either a Reckless Driving or a Careless Driving citation (i dont recall the name, and it has since been expunged from my records). It was a $380 ticket, and the only way i could contest it (and i would have won had i contested it) was by being present at court. Basically, the officer accused me of trying to run him off the road. He said i crossed the yellow line (which i did, to avoid his cruiser striking me!). He was going probably twice the speed limit up a rural mountain highway without his lightbar on to a call, and he nearly caused me to hit another vehicle as he flew around me. He didn't even pull me over until 20-30 miles further down the road. Obviously, i was 3000 miles away from home and could not stay in some random state for a month just to make a court date. I went home and paid it, and forgot about it completely traumatized by the experience. But i've read that even though it's been expunged by now, a background check will still show it... so i'm worried.
Those are the things i'm worried about. I've been through a lot of difficult situations in my life and i've overcome all of them... and i'm still working at it. But i'm just kept up at night by the thought that i have *finally* found what i was meant to do with my life, but that i might never get the chance due to things in my past.
Also - one last question. As far as traffic citations go - i even went so far as to get an abstract of my record printed from the DMV. I know i had several tickets after i got my driver's license 9 years ago, but i seriously don't remember any details about them at all, other than my first ticket. They're older than 7 years so i cant view the state records anymore. How am i supposed to list "ALL" of my citations when i genuinely don't remember them and i cant look them up? Will it be held against me if i write "Possible additional citations between 1998-1999, but do not recall any details." ? Same goes for employment details - some older jobs i don't recall the exact starting/ending dates, or what i was paid. Is it okay to just put a question mark next to what i think they were, or should i go through the trouble of calling up all of my old employers for exact verification? Please keep in mind that 2 of my older jobs are no longer in business.
Thanks all. I will be happy to clarify anything i happenned to leave out.
ALSO - any suggestions on what i could do to make myself more employable? I have a friend who works in the County Jail and says they'd hire me in a minute. Would working corrections help? How about an online degree? Or should i simply just try to keep the same job for more than 2 years at a time? I welcome ALL suggestions. Thank you.
I am 26, female, and currently work mall security. Believe it or not, i really love my job - its the first time in my life that i've ever gotten that "rewarding" feeling and gotten paid for it at the same time. I've worked there for almost 2 years now, but unfortunately one cannot raise a family on $10 an hour so i am forced to continue on in my career quest. I have a high school degree.
To be honest, before i took this job i had never once in my entire life considered a position anywhere related to law enforcement. i grew up in a household with a lot of disrespect for the police, and i was always told that "only uneducated, power-hungry idiots" worked in the field. As i have worked closely with our local PD these past 2 years, i have learned rather quickly that that is just not the case. I have an enormous amount of respect for the guys i work with, and after many hours of thought on the subject - i've come to the conclusion that this is a profession that i couldn't be more honored to get into, and think i would succeed in. But then the typical i suppose occurs - i take a step back, examine my background - and wonder if i have a chance in hell of getting hired on anywhere.
Like i said, i never even considered the field of Law Enforcement until 2 years ago. Obviously there are things i have done in the past which i would have thought more carefully about if i had known the career path i would be taking down the road. I wonder if life experience counts for anything vs. your typical 22 year old applicant who has wanted to be an officer his entire life, and has an AAS in Criminal Justice. Obviously, i will have more blemished on my record than he will.
Here goes:
1.) I have worked 6 completely different jobs in the past 7 years, 3 being transitional month-long retail stints out of financial desperation. I have had some bad experiences, but every position i have worked i have rapidly advanced and my work ethic has never come into question. Also, there is a 2 year gap in employment directly before my current employment where i got married and started a family. But you're not supposed to put those things in an application, are you? How would you suggest i address this issue? Do you think the fact that i have a young child will weigh negatively against me?
2.) I have lived in 7 different places in 7 years. My financial situation has been pretty terrible. Off and on public aid at some points. I've never been evicted though, and with the exception of one bad year i have paid the rent on time.
3.) One particularly bad year 3 years ago, i ended up getting a string of "no city sticker" tickets on my vehicle that i chose not to pay/could not pay at the time. My vehicle eventually ended up being booted, and i borrowed the money to pay the fines. I've paid that off.
4.) During that same period of time, i was on unemployment after having been laid off, and literally just barely scraping by. Part of it was ignorance, but i know that is really no excuse. I took a job at a video store which i could tell imeediately wasn't going to last very long. I was right, i only worked there 3 months. But i was under the impression that if i discontinued my unemployment insurance i would not be able to get back on it, and i needed it in order just to pay the rent until i could find a stable job. So i continued to file unemployment claims while i worked at the video store (i figured the govt. would just bill me and i would pay it back, no big deal). I ended up being fired from the video store job due to customer complaints which were 100% related to poor store policy (long story). I don't mean to sound flippant but there honestly was nothing i could have done to avoid the complaints, and the store had a "3 strikes you're out" no-questions-asked policy. Some time later i ended up getting a letter in the mail saying that it appeared IDES overpaid me by roughly $2800 in unemployment compensation. I have never heard another word from IDES, and never gotten a bill.. so it was just easy for me to forget about it. It hasn't been repaid, and i'm not even sure how much it is.
5.) I tried marijuana TWICE, out of pure curiosity around 4 years ago. My fiancee's coworker at the time was a big pothead, and he and my fiancee got into a discussion about it one day where he told him that he had never tried it, but was curious to know what the big deal was all about. So the coworker gave him a tiny amount, and he brought it home and we tried it together. Didn't do anything at all for me, but i didn't throw out the remainder. At some point roughly a year later i found it and figured i'd give it one more try rather then just throw it out. Again, it didn't do anything for me. That was it. Additionally, a year ago i was hanging out with some friends who are professional j*** musicians (who smoke pot occasionally). One of them offered me a hit and i thought about it for a second and then i realized that it was a really stupid idea so i just gave it back to him. I know that polygraph questions ask you about recent marijuana use - and even though i didn't actually smoke any, i wonder if the fact of my anxiety over that i considered it would cause me to flub that answer on the test.
6.) 9 years ago, i had just gotten my driver's license and decided to take a cross-country road trip with my then-bf. I ended up getting either a Reckless Driving or a Careless Driving citation (i dont recall the name, and it has since been expunged from my records). It was a $380 ticket, and the only way i could contest it (and i would have won had i contested it) was by being present at court. Basically, the officer accused me of trying to run him off the road. He said i crossed the yellow line (which i did, to avoid his cruiser striking me!). He was going probably twice the speed limit up a rural mountain highway without his lightbar on to a call, and he nearly caused me to hit another vehicle as he flew around me. He didn't even pull me over until 20-30 miles further down the road. Obviously, i was 3000 miles away from home and could not stay in some random state for a month just to make a court date. I went home and paid it, and forgot about it completely traumatized by the experience. But i've read that even though it's been expunged by now, a background check will still show it... so i'm worried.
Those are the things i'm worried about. I've been through a lot of difficult situations in my life and i've overcome all of them... and i'm still working at it. But i'm just kept up at night by the thought that i have *finally* found what i was meant to do with my life, but that i might never get the chance due to things in my past.
Also - one last question. As far as traffic citations go - i even went so far as to get an abstract of my record printed from the DMV. I know i had several tickets after i got my driver's license 9 years ago, but i seriously don't remember any details about them at all, other than my first ticket. They're older than 7 years so i cant view the state records anymore. How am i supposed to list "ALL" of my citations when i genuinely don't remember them and i cant look them up? Will it be held against me if i write "Possible additional citations between 1998-1999, but do not recall any details." ? Same goes for employment details - some older jobs i don't recall the exact starting/ending dates, or what i was paid. Is it okay to just put a question mark next to what i think they were, or should i go through the trouble of calling up all of my old employers for exact verification? Please keep in mind that 2 of my older jobs are no longer in business.
Thanks all. I will be happy to clarify anything i happenned to leave out.
ALSO - any suggestions on what i could do to make myself more employable? I have a friend who works in the County Jail and says they'd hire me in a minute. Would working corrections help? How about an online degree? Or should i simply just try to keep the same job for more than 2 years at a time? I welcome ALL suggestions. Thank you.
but I've changed since then and matured to be a better person, PROVE to them you're the same way.
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