NCJ Number
127943
Journal
Law and Order Volume: 39 Issue: 1 Dated: (January 1991) Pages: 282-286
Date Published
1991
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Although some police agencies fear that requiring a college degree for entry-level police officers will place the agency at risk of discrimination suits, the courts will permit such a requirement if it can be shown to be job-related.
Abstract
When a department plans to implement an educational requirement as a condition for employment, the department must indicate, preferably in a policy document or position paper, the basis for the decision. Included in the rationale should be information on the police officer's service responsibilities, information about the nature of the community, special police strategies that require enhanced officer expertise, precedent established by other agencies, the evolution of the department toward a more professional organization, documentation of current officers with higher education, and projections of future responsibilities benefiting from higher education. There is sufficient evidence that a college education develops a broader base of information for decisionmaking, enhances a sense of responsibility, provides a broader expertise in law and democratic values, enhances flexible decisionmaking, increases communications and community-relations skills, and improves officers' capacity to relate police services to community needs.