Onward and Upward

After my delightful interview with Karen and Julie about Career Services, my next step was to talk to the man who hired me, Toby White. He's the head honcho for Internships and knows everything there is to know about Police Academy. He's a real catch, being an energetic extrovert who seems to be closer to omniscience than anyone I've ever met.

Toby and I had met in one of my first classes of my college experience. I took "Major and Career Exploration" and he was the professor. He taught the course and helped myself and a number of other freshman learn what there is to know about finding a career. I discovered my strengths, weakness, and preferences in a way I hadn't experienced before and knew how to apply that knowledge to choosing a career. Toby was there to help me out and guide me. I enjoyed my time with him and, after being hired, our interactions dwindled because of what I was doing with Julie so any time I was able to spend with Toby was something I looked forward to.

Toby started off telling me about internships. To him, internships were student's opportunity to dip their toes in the water to see what it's like in the career they might be in some day. After graduating college or grad school, chances are students will have to jump into their career's field in one way or another and internships let you know what that could be like. But that's not the only thing they can do.

Internships help you both academically and professionally. They contribute up to 12 upper division credits, which are a specific type of credit that you need to meet a quota of 45 to graduate with a BA. Internships aren't the only way to obtain upper division credits but they're certainly one of the most beneficial. This is because they look fantastic when you're applying for other jobs or opportunities. You've put your foot in the door for almost every opportunity in your field just from doing an internship. When it comes to your resume, cover letter, other interviews and the experience you've gained is only going to benefit you and make you look more appealing to your future potential employers.

All you need is to have GPA of 2.5 or higher, a faculty sponsor, and you can even get paid during your internship. That depends on the type of internship you pursue because there are unpaid interns but that shouldn't discourage anyone from pursuing this. Those 12 upper division credits can become an entire semester with the possibility of adding more classes if that what a student is looking to do and if a student chooses to intern over the summer it could shorten their college career by a full semester. Financial aid also follows you wherever you go if you choose to leave Potsdam's campus.

After giving me the gist of internships, Toby transitioned to Police Academy. Apparently, if a student is looking to pursue enforcing the law, it's perhaps the best opportunity imaginable. Police Academy is for anyone looking to become a part of University Police or a local Sheriff's office, not State Troopers or NYPD. Major doesn't matter, but Criminal Justice student do take priority. Students need to take a Civil Service Test and must graduate with a finished Baccalaureate Degree. Now, let's get into the meat and potatoes.

It's a two-phase process, with Phase 1 being a 600 hour pre-employment training process that fulfills 85% of NYS Police requirements. Phase 2 is rifle, pistol, taser, and radar training that all takes place within 1-3 weeks. These qualify as a full 12 credit internship and take care of two physical education requirements, which is a graduation requirement. These two phases save employers $38,000, making prospective officers who've completed both phases a no-brainer for employment.

After talking with Toby about these opportunities for students I felt as if I had made real progress. The only thing left I had to do was interview a man named David Bugg who's in charge of Service Learning. Hopefully, it will go just as well as my interviews thus far.

Here's to hoping, and thanks for reading.

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