Law enforcement jobs (Denver: military, salary, home)

[norther100]

I have reading through this site for a few months now and im interested in looking into the colorado area. I'll be 20 at the end of the spring semester with an AAS degree. I Live in southern MD and wanted to know if any of the jurisdictions in or around the Denver area would be hiring. I'm flying out to Denver in December to check out both police and fire opportunities. Any info would be greatly appreciated.
I know there are police jobs here where i am but i've been down here for all 19 years and i'm ready to see something different.

[Tom Emmerling]

In Colorado you have to be 21y/o to be a cop. If you want a good way to get your foot in the door I would apply as a deputy in a jail setting. I am not positive but I think you could be 20 and get a job there. And if you can not get a job there I would suggest getting a job as a dispatcher. I have seen several dispatchers who have become cops. Since you are fresh out of school and so young you are going to have a hard time finding a job as a cop on the street. Good Luck to you and don't get discouraged if you do not get the job you want right away. It is all about proving yourself and getting experience.

[Huckleberry3911948]

military cops needed badly, 40k sign on and gi bill for school. placemenet excellent after sevice time.

[Tom Emmerling]

Bunky39-Good suggestion. That is also another good way to get your foot in the door.

[norther100]

I am currently eyeing the air force military police and fire depts as an alternative. I do know that where i am, the local sheriff's offices encourage working in corrections then transfering to be a deputy. One of my uncles who moved to CO long ago said to look at State Patrol, Denver city, Jefferson and Adams county.
As for military cops, its in the back of my mind and i have done some research on it but i still have more to look into for it. I did look into border patro at one pointl which i will look into again.
In the mean time i'm volunteering w/ local fire dept and I'm currently looking into testing for my national EMT-B. I'm trying to set it up so that if one career path doesn't work out too well, I can fall back on another one.

I also heard texas and florida need cops badly but i've been to florida and i don't intend on going back any time soon.

[jazzlover]

There is a lot of turnover in small town police departments and sheriff's offices in rural areas of Colorado. This is primarily because the salaries they pay are pretty low. There has been a real problem with officers from those jurisdictions quitting and going to work for the Colorado Dept. of Corrections--in large part because DOC offers better pay and benefits that many smaller police and sheriff's departments can't match. All of that said, it means that there may be openings for entry level officers in some of those jurisdictions. It's just important to factor the salary against living costs in many of them--especially in the resort or mountain locations. In a lot of cases, the math just doesn't work.

[norther100]

Thanx for all the responses. I will be flying out to do some of my own homework so that willl be good too.

[ColoWeb]

I saw some ADs for jobs for Colorado State patrol and Denver. Check out GovernmentJobs.com - GovernmentJobs.com as some cities use them to list local gov jobs.

IT is great that you are coming for a visit first to see Colorado before you just move. Good luck with the visit and let us know if you have any questions.

[BigCheeze]

As some one who looked into becoming a Police officer out of the military I would whole heartedly recommend AGAINST the border patrol.

Being a LE officer is a great way to serve your country and community, and good for you at looking into it. I do also agree with the whole Military service though, it will give you a lot more real world experience and make you a much better officer in the long run.

[McGowdog]

You might consider sticking in school and getting a Criminology major and a Soc. minor or something like that and becoming a Parole or Probation Officer.

Business is booming and the pay is good.