How To Become A Patrol Officer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a patrol officer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted Expert

Dr. Durmus Alper CAMLIBEL Ph.D.

Patrol officers maintain order and protect the community by enforcing laws. They have numerous responsibilities including protecting life and property through the enforcement of laws and regulations, proactively patrolling assigned areas, responding to calls for police service, and conducting preliminary and follow-up criminal and traffic investigations.

They conduct reviews, prepare written reports and field notes of investigations and patrol activities, arrest and process crimininals, and testify in court. They perform emergency duties during adverse weather conditions, exercise judgement in determining when to use force and to what degree, and operate a law enforcement vehicle day and night.

A patrol officer has humanity, respect for human life and displays dignity and compassion to everyone, professionalism, integrity, courage, training and certification in firearms, and knowledge of first aid and CPR. They have knowledge of defensive and arrest tactics, federal, state and city laws and ordinances, as well as modern policing principles.

A high school diploma is the basic requirement in terms of education. They earn a salary of $25,735 a year or $12.37 an hour. This career's growth is at 5% and will produce 37,500 new job opportunities by 2028.

What general advice would you give to a Patrol Officer?

Dr. Durmus Alper CAMLIBEL Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh

They need to avoid being overzealous officers. They should not put their career at the center of their life. They need to spend quality time with their family. In law enforcement, good relations with the public and colleagues are essential. They need to develop good relationships with the people and their colleagues and expand their professional network. They always try to be a "problem solver officer" rather than a "problem creator officer." If someone asks for help from them, they should treat this person with dignity and respect. They should avoid being arrogant in their interaction with the public. Because arrogance is the worst plague, and Humility is the greatest virtue.

ScorePatrol OfficerUS Average

Salary

2.8

Avg. Salary $35,621

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

10.0

Growth Rate 3%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.05%

Asian 3.46%

Black or African American 12.54%

Hispanic or Latino 18.49%

Unknown 4.61%

White 59.85%

Gender

female 17.12%

male 82.88%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress Level

10.0

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

9.0

Complexity Level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

6.0

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a patrol officer

Explore patrol officer education requirements

Most common patrol officer degrees

Bachelor's

42.9 %

Associate

26.0 %

High School Diploma

17.2 %

Start to develop specific patrol officer skills

Skills	Percentages
Patrol	47.68%
Customer Service	8.49%
Public Safety	6.81%
Law Enforcement Agencies	5.12%
Emergency Situations	5.03%

Complete relevant patrol officer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New patrol officers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a patrol officer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real patrol officer resumes.

Research patrol officer duties and responsibilities

Manage surveillance of DUI traffic offenders in Jacksonville
Report and investigate suspicious persons and situations, safety hazards, and unusual or illegal activity in patrol area.
Enforce NYS racing guidelines state, rules and regulations.
Protect life and property at the largest regional aviation facility in NYS.

Prepare your patrol officer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your patrol officer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a patrol officer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Patrol Officer Resume templates

Build a professional Patrol Officer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Patrol Officer resume.

Apply for patrol officer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a patrol officer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do patrol officers rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

Patrol Officer reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2022

Cons

The pay is not worth what you have to do sometimes

A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2020

Pros

I enjoy the freedom I’m allowed.