Evaluate the recruiting efforts of at least two police/sheriff’s departments in the
United States. This involves evaluating two agencies’ recruiting announcement and recruiting
information available on the department websites (including videos and FAQs…).
Specific tasks:
 Search the internet for current job openings for “police officer recruit.”
o You can search a job search site (i.e. indeed.com) or google it.
 Find a couple job advertisements/announcements that stick out to you (as good or bad)
o What sticks out to you? Why did this announcement stand out?
 Go to those departments and look at their websites for more recruiting information.
o Choose two to write about (one great and one bad/okay).
o Pay attention to the words and images they use to describe the agency, job (patrol
and other opportunities), officer expectations, and community. – Who are they
trying to recruit (review ch. 6 for desirable qualities)? What does the agency value?
 Pick one agency that stands out for doing a great job.
o Explain why you think that agency is doing a great job. Why are their recruiting
efforts praise worthy? **Judge recruiting materials based on the things you have
learned thus far in the course about democratic policing, diversity, & desirable
qualities.** Also judge their efforts from the perspective of a prospective recruit.
Would you want to work for this agency? Why?
o Madison (WI) is an example of an agency doing a great job recruiting.
https://www.cityofmadison.com/police/jointeam/ (you can’t choose this city)
 Go to indeed.com and type in police recruit and Madison, WI in the search
fields to see their announcement. (If you can’t find it, it may have expired.)
 Notice how much effort they put into describing what they are looking for in
potential candidates. Notice how they describe the department & culture.
 Pick one agency that stands out for doing a poor job.
o Explain why you think that agency is doing a poor job. What are they doing wrong
or what could they be doing better? What’s missing and what would you add? Or
what would you re-word or change? **Judge their recruiting materials based on
the things you have learned thus far in the course about democratic policing,
diversity, & desirable officer qualities.** Also judge their efforts from the
perspective of a recruit. Would you want to work for this agency? Why/why not?
o If you can’t find one that is mediocre, choose one that is ok but could be improved.
Offer your insights and suggestions based on what you’ve learned so far.
 In your assignment, you should clearly identify the two departments you choose and state
whether each is a good or bad example and why. You should also include links to the
website. You can also include screen shots or copy and paste the material from the
announcement into your post (clearly identifying the material as being from the
department). Assignment should be a minimum of 500 words and probably closer to 800.