Law Enforcement Background Investigation – A Key Step in the Hiring Process
If you are contemplating beginning a career in law enforcement, one of the key factors in whether or not you get hired by a given agency or department is the background investigation. This step occurs midway through the entire hiring process and involves an individual or team of investigators looking into various aspects of your personal history, the results of which help determine if you are fit to hold a position of public trust. General items that always receive scrutiny on a law enforcement background investigation are things like driving records, criminal records, any record of civil litigation, financial records, and employment history. Passing the background investigation portion of the hiring process is crucial, so here are a few things to think about before answering the questionnaire for your desired agency.
Do not lie, embellish, or attempt to conceal anything! Most background investigators will turn up more dirt than you can shake a shovel at, so be truthful and upfront to start. If you're looking to hold a position of public trust, you have to ask yourself why you would lie or conceal something to get the job in the first place. If an investigator catches you being untruthful, you can be certain you're name will be the first dropped from the list of potential candidates and you can forget any chances of being hired by another agency.
While your personal history is a significant aspect of the background investigation, it is not the entire the only thing about you that an investigator takes into consideration. Some candidates have excellent employment history, family life, no criminal record, high credit score, and academic achievement but still fail to get hired. Sometimes it's the unquantifiable factors like your interpersonal skills during the background investigator's interview or the fact you have a decked out Crown-Vic patrol car in your driveway and you run around in faux-police uniforms all day. Obviously this kind of person would likely not be the best fit for a number of departments.
Background investigations take time, so don't stress out or agonize over your answers on the questionnaire if it seems to be taking some time for the department to get back to you. Most background investigators have more than one case they are working, so it is very normal for any one case to take between two to six weeks, especially if you've applied to a smaller department that doesn't outsource their investigations. Just remember to be patient, since being patient throughout the process is part of the testing as well.
If you've decided on a career in law enforcement and you've made it to the background investigation portion of the hiring process, it is normal to worry and wonder whether or not you'll get hired. Above all, honesty is the key. The overwhelming majority of the time, assuming you no felony record or major personal issues, it's not a given issue that will get you disqualified from the hiring list, it's the lack of truthfulness or having a laundry list of excuses for past actions that will do the most damage during your law enforcement background investigation.
