Really hoping to become a police officer, and working on getting my criminal justice degree. My only real concern is the polygraph, in which I did something dumb when I was like 14, which involved taking some groceries from my employer, I intend on being 100% honest with the background investigator, but Im losing motivation to proceed with my degree if there’s a chance that doesn’t work out. If they decide to “bounce” me, can I still apply to other places? Can I “Re-apply”? I really just want the truth, but I need some motivation so I don’t give up and have some shred of hope.
what are my chances?
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Change your majorrrrrrrr
Criminal justice degrees don’t matter, change your major, AND you can usually reapply, or just apply elsewhere.
Yes
So, are you still a viable candidate? Yes. Absolutely. You were 14. You’ll be fine. Just be honest and explain how you’ve learned from your mistake. Want to be a real rock star? Reach out to your old employer and pay them back for it. They won’t really care but it shows maturity and accountability.
Any version of a criminal Justice or criminology degree is widely regarded as a useless degree because it literally teaches you nothing the police won’t teach you anyhow. It’s like getting an EMT certification to get hired as a paramedic. It’s redundant and unnecessary. Will it help you get hired? Sure. ANY degree will help you get hired (unless you are thinking FBI in which case specific degrees matter – but still, none of them being in criminal Justice). Get a degree in something which give you options, should policing not work out. Injuries, or a change in your own mindset, can make 25+ years as a cop not a realistic option for some reason.