Kids & Careers!
Who would you like to meet? • James: a firefighter engineer • Ian: a provincial police officer • Scott: a county police officer • Sean: a city planner • Dave: a senior software engineer • Kathy: a customs manager • Rosie: an international sales manager • David: a process engineer • Drew: a school department head • John: a director of computer services • Steve: a paramedic • Amy: a physical therapist Kidsnewsroom would like you to meet Scott! Below are the questions (Q.)we asked about his career and the answers (A.) he gave us! Q. How old are you? A. I'm 45. Q. In what city do you work? A. I work in Woodbridge, Virginia. Q. What type of company do you work for? A. I work for the Police Department. Q. What is your job title? A. I'm a Police Officer, technically a Lieutenant in the Police Department. Q. At what times does your work day begin and end? A. Right now I am on day work, so I start at 8 am and work until 5 pm. Q. How many days per week do you work? A. I work Monday through Friday, five days per week. Q. What is your office like? A. Right now I am assigned to an office position, so I work in a private office. In the past, I have been assigned to the street, so my office there was really my cruiser. Q. What kind of clothes do you wear to work? A. Some days I wear a suit. If I am meeting with a citizens group or working in the field (on the streets), I wear a uniform. Q. Who do you work with? A. Currently, I work mostly by myself. Q. Tell us about your education and how it has prepared you for this job. A. I have a college degree. I believe that a degree is important; for this career, public administration is the most appropriate field of study. Both the development of job knowledge and adult social skills are of value. Q. What should a kid do NOW to prepare for your kind of job in the future? A. Don't do drugs. Don't hang around those that do or who may get you involved in any criminal activity. Pay attention to your grades, and stay in good physical condition by participating in athletic activities. No smoking. Q. Do you have any other advice for kids who are thinking about having your type of career? A. Try some volunteer work for the homeless or a similar activity at a church or in your community. Doing so will give you experience in one of the most important parts of police work: helping those who are unable to help themselves. Q. What skills or subjects are important to your job? A. Verbal and written communication skills are important. Physical fitness and public speaking are also valuable. A police officer needs to have the ability to listen and a desire to help others. A good officer has a high level of maturity and works well with others in a team. Q. What are the top ten things that you normally do at work each day? A. 1. Write memorandums. 2. Read reports, studies and memorandums. 3. Interact with other officers within the police department. 4. Respond as needed to crimes in progress. 5. Interact with the public in answering questions or assisting with problems. Most of these are not police-related. 6. Talk to personnel in other police agencies to share information on important events, training, police equipment and things like that. 7. Use and test new equipment being considered for regular use within the police department. 8. Participate in group meetings. 9. Interact and deal with other government agencies. 10. Develop solutions for a variety of problems, both minor and major in nature. Thanks, Scott! It was nice getting to know you!