Five Simple Steps to Becoming a Secret Service Agent
Becoming a Secret Service agent is not a simple process, but it has simple requirements. You may become the professional you want to be working for the federal government following the tips in this article. Each step is one way to get closer to your goals, and you must take each step seriously to get the desired result.
1. Get Your Criminal Justice Degree
A criminal justice degree is the best first step to becoming any kind of government agent. The services prefer you have this education before you enter their academy, and your application for their academy will include your education information. A criminal justice degree must come from an accredited four-year institution. Do not get your degree from a school that is not accredited, and do not go to a school that does not offer a four-year degree.
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Four-year degrees must include coursework that interests you. Do not go to a school that offers courses you do not want to take. Every degree program has its drawbacks, but you should not go to a school that gives you the impression you will not learn anything.
Students who are researching colleges may read the course catalog before enrolling, and the course catalog shows exactly what must be taken to complete the programs. A careful study of a few catalogs will reveal the best school to attend from an educational perspective.
2. Intern Often
You must find internships in the field of criminal justice that will give you real life experience. You must work along with people who do these jobs every day, and you should see what it is like to do these jobs. You cannot go into a career in criminal justice without knowing what the work is like. Internships look good on your resume, and they appeal to the government on your Secret Service application.
Internships are not always meant to mimic the work you will do in the future. You must go into different parts of the criminal justice system to learn what each part is responsible for. Work with a court clerk to see what it is like to be in the court every day. Work in the morgue to see how the coroner does their job, and find an internship that allows you to ride along with police officers. Find a criminal justice professional to shadow for your own benefit.
Every bit of experience you get as an intern makes you a more qualified applicant when you complete your schooling. You must know how the system works if you wish to join it, but you cannot learn how the system works until you are in the middle of it as an intern.
3. Find A Mentor
You must find a mentor in the criminal justice field who can vouch for your abilities when you are applying for the Secret Service academy. A mentor is someone who can write a personal recommendation for the academy, and a mentor can share information with you that you cannot learn in school.
Mentors are able to guide you through school, work and other things that will get you the job you want. Mentors often have contacts in the field you wish to work in that will help you get where you want to go, and mentors are the people that you turn to even after you get the job you want for advice. Mentors could be the one thing standing between you and the Secret Service Academy.
4. Prepare Diligently
You can research online everything you need to know to get ready for the Secret Service academy. Your research will tell you how to prepare, and you can use that information to plan your next four years of school. You may have done well in school, but you still need extra information to get through the academy. Someone who has done their research in advance is much more likely to succeed when they get to the academy.
5. Complete Your Application And Interview
Your application and interview for the Secret Service academy is the most important part of the process. You must complete your application perfectly before it is sent in, and you must prepare for the interview with the help of a mentor or professor. Everyone who takes an interview with the Secret Service must be up to the task of completing the academy before they begin their training.
You must do as much research as you can on the application and interview process before you proceed. You have professors at school who can help you, and you have a mentor who can show you what to do. The professionals you intern with will have endless advice, and you will be able to go into the interview with the utmost confidence. This is your final step before entering the academy and becoming an agent.
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