Want to see what kind of input I could get here :)

[SlickBlade]

I am at the point where I don't like my current job and kind of been living paycheck to paycheck. I have tried going to different colleges a few times and couldn't figure out what I wanted to do in the end so ended up putting it on hold instead of wasting money on random classes...

Right now I work for a redistributing company that sells over eBay and their website. At the same time I'm doing software QA work as a second job.

Here are two careers I can't really decide between.

1) Get a degree in Computer Science and see where that takes me

2) Become a Police Officer for SJPD

I like computers and have been messing around with them since I could walk but I don't like being stuck in a cubicle or an office all day.. On the other hand I've worked security with SJPD previously and loved it! Both jobs pay about the same except with Computer Science you usually would also need 5-10 years of experience for a good job. I bought some books to get a better idea of what Police Officers really deal with on day to day basis so hopefully that will help out with my choice... Anyways just wanted to see if any of you would have any suggestions or comments regarding the two career choices from personal experience or something you've heard.

Any input will be appreciated

[Yordor]

Computer Science is for programmers so that's 100% inside work. You could go toward the networking / server admin side like I did but it's also mostly tedious behind the scenes work. Then I really messed up by opening my own business -- I have only myself to complain about now!

I always did like law enforcement -- I can probably quote any episode of COPS that ever ran. You can get the most accurate picture of how their days are by asking to do a ridealong with your local dept. It's not glamorous work but it can be rewarding. A degree in criminal justice or public administration can help here if you want to get to the highest ranks later on.

[SlickBlade]

Interesting... Thank you for your input.

I've always liked working with code that's why I was leaning towards computer science as well as living in Silicon Valley. I would like to be a network admin but seems like it would be a long journey from now (mostly due to experience) and like you said inside work which seems to be not my thing.

I have tried to get a ride along before but the sergeant that I was talking to kept forgetting about it heh. I will look into it some more. Looks like they require you to take a class prior to ride along.

I might be taking over the QA business in the near future but that all kind of happened all of a sudden. My boss is a family friend who received an offer to work for 175k for a company and he needs someone to manage his QA business while he works at the other company. I am not trying to count on this at all to help me make money in the future so trying to keep this as a "Might Happen" while I work on a degree.

Thank you for sharing Yordor , Now it's between going in for Computer Science or Criminal Justice (leaning more towards Criminal Justice). I bought 3 books that a lot of people seemed to like about police work (the ups and the downs), hope that will help me make the final choice... Might see me on one of these COPS shows one day hehe

[GhostRiderGrey]

Slickblade, these two career paths seem to me to each take a different skill set. Law enforcement requires that you be more of a "people person", as you will spend most of your time interacting with the public and your fellow officers. Keeping a cool head while dealing with "stupid" people will be key. Also, you must be able to handle stress well. You will need to be physically fit here as well, just to qualify. There will be a fitness exam, a written exam, oral boards and probably a polygraph before they even offer you a chance to go to their academy (my fiance has applied for LE jobs here in Arizona, so I am recently familiar with the process, California will probably be similar).

Ride alongs will give you a good idea of what typical day is like. Try to do ride-alongs with several agencies if you can. You might find that the styles of various agencies differ radically.

In an IT path, you will have less people interaction, Like Yordor said, its a lot of behind the scenes "brain work"

Good luck with your decision!
GhostRiderGrey

[SlickBlade]

Thanks Ghost. I'm pretty sure I would pass their written and physical evaluation. What got me stumped was the 20/40 vision.. I'm a bit confused there but I think if I can have a driver's license then I should be good right? I don't wear glasses but my eye sight has been getting worse. I passed the eye exam for my M1 recently but they never tell me what I got like 20/19 or what..

[GhostRiderGrey]

There are recruits and officers who wear glasses, so as long as you can be corrected to what they require, I would not think it was a problem. =)