UPD recruiting newbies for the force

UTICA, March 9, 2010 -- Utica Police Department is looking for a few good men -- and women -- to suit up and take to the streets in the fashion of only those who want to help this community.

Those who show an interest have until March 31 to sign up for the Utica Civil Service Exam for police officers. The test is May 8 at an undetermined location.

UPD Chief Mark Williams said the biggest aspiration is to bring the force to a whole new level of diversity.

"I am excited," he said. "We do this about every two years, but last time, I was a little disappointed. We didn't have a lot of minorities taking the job; and this time we plan to be more aggressive to improve that."

In particular, UPD would love to see more interest coming from women, ethnic minorities, and bilingual and inner-city people.

"We want a department that represents the community," Williams said. "There can't be all-white police officers. As an agency, I think we've moved in a fairly good direction."

For example, Williams said, in the past years, UPD lacked black female officers. Now, there are 18 female officers total, some of whom are  black.

"We thought they would be ideal role models in our community," he said, "and they are."

EDUCATION

Police recruiters will visit local colleges such as Herkimer County Community College, Mohawk Valley Community College, and Utica College, and hone in on those taking an interest in criminal justice and cyber security.

"We are focusing on everything we can do," said Officer Richard Shaffer. "We want to get as many people as we can to take this test."

Shaffer said the age range being considered is 19-34. Anyone who takes the test must be 19 on or before the test, or no older than 35 on the day of the test. This excludes those with military backgrounds.

Shaffer also said if you took the exam in November of 2009, you wouldn't be eligable to take it this May, but you can use the results for this test. Contact Civil Services to tell them you're still interested, he said (792-0225).

"As people leave, we need to replace them," Shaffer said. "We anticipate things like retirements. We have three (training officers) in the Mohawk Valley Police Academy now. We need more."

'IT'S A UNIQUE JOB'

Williams said you need to have a couple basic qualities to make it on the force: Preparedness and competitiveness.

"It's a unique job," he said. "It's not like you're confined to an office. It's a job that will challenge you every day. It requires you to think quickly on your feet and have great communication skills to be effective out there."

The civilian perception of law enforcement is not what you see on television, Williams added.

"There are periods of time where you might be bored out of your mind right up to the minute where you break that spell and you go into a situation that could be very dangerous and critical right off the bat. It varies. It's not like what you see on TV."

Sometimes, Williams warned, you need to be prepared for the downside of the job.

"The sad part is sometimes you see people at their worst," he said.

"Be prepared -- You will be surprised. Sometimes you run across people you wouldn't expect to."

RIGOROUS HIRING PROCESS

After the written Civil Service test, applicants who passed go on an eligible list. They are then called to a physical agility test. Once they pass that, your combined scores on those tests go into scoring brackets that UPD will choose from.

"We may canvass 95s and 90s," Williams said. "It depends on how many people take the exams."

After that, there are background investigations done on each candidate and board interviews. candidates with sit with the top administrators at UPD, who will ask them questions about their interest in the job, work history and personal lives.

If you make it that far, you're given a conditional offer of employment.

"If they pass medical testing to include a psychological exam, they will then be employees of the City of Utica and go into police academy, which is about 23 weeks long," Williams said. "They then complete a 13-week field training officer program."

Then they hit the streets.

BENEFITS

The employee package at UPD is not too shabby, Williams said.

• Membership to the police union, the John E. Creedon Police Benevolent Association
• Medical care
• Good pay rates compared to other jobs in the area
• Educational incentives to further college education up to a PhD