Detective
(Male, Age 28) from Graham, NC
This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Male aged 28 who works as a Detective in Graham, NC. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.
At a Glance
Current Job
Basic data on your current job
| Job Title | Detective |
|---|---|
| Salary | $36,500 |
| Other Compensation | None Set |
| Hours/Week | 44 |
| Company Size | (not answered) |
| Location | Graham, NC |
| Years Experience | 3 years |
Career Ratings
Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)
| Years in Career | 0 |
|---|---|
| Education | (not answered) |
| Income Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Interest Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Work-Life Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Fulfilment Rating | 0 / 10 |
Current job Q&A
Describe the type of organization you work for.
Sheriff’s Office composed of approximately 120 sworn deputies and 160 detention officers
Describe your job role and responsibilities.
Enforce state law and local ordinance, specifically assigned to investigate crimes of domestic violence and juvenile crimes.
Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
2 weeks vacation, 9 days sick leave, state retirement plan, law enforcement officer’s retirement supplement, 5% to 401k, full coverage health insurance
Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
undercompensated
Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
My job consists almost entirely of working with others on a daily basis. I enjoy working with others or wouldn’t have chosen this vocation.
Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes
Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes
Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
Our unit works well together most of the time and must for us to perform our jobs.
Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 4
Benefits: 6
Hours: 5
Co-Workers: 3
Supervisors: 2
Job Title: 7
Level of Responsibility: 8
The Actual Work: 1
A day in the life of…
Please describe a typical workday for you in your current job:
| 5am to 6am | |
| 6am to 7am | |
| 7am to 8am | Woke up, got dressed for work, got in my agency-provided unmarked police car at 8:57am, used the police radio to notify dispatchers that I’m “on-duty.” |
| 8am to 9am | Drove to a nearby neighborhood searching for a suspect’s vehicle that I was looking for in connection to a domestic violence related breaking and entering, larceny and assault on a female. Located the suspect’s vehicle, went to the house and banged on the door until he woke up. Questioned the suspect about the crime. Left his house and went to pick up some fast-food breakfast. Arrived at the office at around 9. |
| 9am to 10am | Picked up restraining orders to attempt to serve on plaintiffs throughout the day. Went to my office. Learned from a sticky note on my computer that an individual I had a restraining order to serve also had an outstanding arrest warrant and was due in court at 9am on other matters. Ate part of my breakfast. Located warrant for his arrest and met with a warrant squad officer to pick up warrant. |
| 10am to 11am | Went to the courthouse to attempt to locate a suspect. Met a bailiff in a hallway and obtained assistance in locating suspect. Arrested suspect in the courtroom and took him to the jail for processing. Completed arrest paperwork and presented the arrestee to the local magistrate. Inventoried the arrestee’s personal items. Turned arestee over to the jail. |
| 11am to 12pm | Returned to office to turn in paperwork from arrest. Found food upstairs near the secretaries’ offices and camped out for a while scavenging snacks. Returned to my office and completed supplemental reports on current investigations while eating the other half of my breakfast. Updated monthly paperwork including grant-related statistics and timesheets. Received a telephone call from a parent notifying me that he was enroute to meet with me concerning an interview I needed to do with his children. |
| 12pm to 1pm | Wandered around the office hunting for snacks that other workers often leave out for everyone to share. Prepared props to be used in an interview to assist in eliciting information from suspects during interview. Interviewed juveniles whose parent brought them in to be questioned as suspects or witnesses in an arson investigation. |
| 1pm to 2pm | Filed notes from interview. Filed paperwork which had been cluttering my desk. Played with remote controlled helicopter and irritated co-workers in a neighboring office. Went to lunch with supervisor and co-workers. |
| 2pm to 3pm | Still at lunch with co-workers. Returned to office and completed follow-up telephone interviews with suspects and victims of domestic violence crimes. Organized and filed notes taken during phone calls. |
| 3pm to 4pm | Completed more supplementary reports on current investigations. Made calls attempting to locate an individual I had a felony warrant on. |
| 4pm to 5pm | Discussed status of recent cases with supervisor. Spoke with a child sex abuse witness by telephone. Located an address on a suspect with a felony warrant by using telephone and internet resources. Contacted another agency to arrange an attempt to arrest the suspect. |
| 5pm to 6pm | Faxed paperwork to the other agency, who was attempting to arrest my suspect. Sat around office with co-workers playing with remote controlled helicopter. Went home. Off-duty. Supper at home with the family. |
| 6pm to 7pm | Called other agency with department-issued cell phone to check to see if my suspect had been arrested. He had not. Requested for continued attempts and a return call to my cell when he was arrested. Played with the kids and dog. |
| 7pm to 8pm | More time with the kids and dog. Received a return call notifying me that the warrant had been served on my suspect. Called my supervisor at home and let him know. Called the jail to arrange extradition and transport to our county. |
| 8pm to 9pm | Played with the kids again. Put the kids to bed. |
| 9pm to 10pm | Time with the wife in front of the TV. |
| 10pm to 11pm | Time with the wife in front of the TV. |
| 11pm to 12am | Cell phone call received from domestic violence victim whom I had given my number to if she needed help at any time. Threw on some jeans and a decent-looking shirt, badge, gun and handcuffs and drove to my office to meet with victim, find a safe place for her to go, obtained paperwork from the magistrate, chatted with other officers about domestic violence incidents and questions on their shift. (all off the clock and uncompensated time continuing into the next day) |
Table of Contents
How you got your job
How did you get your current job?
Cold calling
What was the application process?
Paper application was filed
Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
My interview consisted of an impromptu meeting with the Sheriff and two members of his administration who happened to be in the office when I came in to request to ride along with a deputy. The Sheriff asked some personal questions and explained what he expected of his deputies. He excused me from the office for a couple of minutes and then let me back in. There was a badge, gun and a box of bullets lying on the desk. The Sheriff said he’d like me to come work for him if I wanted to. I agreed and was sworn in.
If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
Can you tell me a little about yourself? What about your family? Do you think you could shoot somebody if you had to? Are you honest?
Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes. My agency head provides more training than other agencies in our region
Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
Yes. To enter my field, I had to complete a 4 month state-mandated law enforcement training program. Keeping my position requires mandatory update training and firearms qualifications. Advancing from an entry level into my current position required specialized training.
Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
While not specifically undertaken to prepare me for a job in law enforcement, my liberal arts education prepared me well to adapt to the challenges of my job.
If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
Not applicable
If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Prepare early by gaining experience interacting with people from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds. Law enforcement agencies are increasingly demanding the completion of higher education from their applicants. I would recommend a minimum of an associates degree and preferably a bachelor’s degree for an applicant.
What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
Law enforcement provides a broad range of opportunities utilizing diverse skills. The ability to process information quickly and make decisions is essential to being an effective officer.
Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Training is required
What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
Job satisfaction in law enforcement is very much dependent on being comfortable and content with your environment and coworkers.
Long-term career plans
Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
It was not, but has become an essential part of my career plan. I never planned to enter law enforcement, but took the job out of financial necessity. The job has provided opportunities for training and experiences that I am now using as advantages in redirecting my career back onto the path I was on before taking the job.
What are your current career goals?
Entering pastoral ministry. Working at least part-time as adjunct faculty at the collegiate level. Publishing books, magazine and journal articles. Teaching and providing consultant services in crisis intervention.
Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
Law enforcement can be a wonderful career or a terrible career, both within the same day.
Prior work history
Please list your most recent jobs prior to this current job:
| Title | Length | Salary | Description | |
| Prior Job 1 | Detective | 3 | 36500 | Investigate crimes involving domestic violence and crimes against children |
| Prior Job 2 | Instructor | 2 | 20000 part time | Law enforcement officer assigned full-time to a public high school |
Educational background
Please list your educational background:
High School GPA:2.5
| GPA | School | Degree | |
| College (Undergraduate) or Technical/Vocational |
2.85 | University of North Carolina at Greensboro | History & Political Science B.A. |
| Graduate or Professional (Masters or Doctorate) |
3.6 | Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary | Master of Divinity in Counseling |
Ask a Question of this Mentor
This mentor has opted to receive questions from people interested in this career or job position. Please be respectful of their time and willingness to help. Include some basic relevant background so they can intelligently answer your question.