Customer Reviews

John Douglas's Guide to Landing a Career in Law Enforcement

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This book includes some of the best information on choosing a career in law enforcement that I've ever seen. John Douglas knows what he is talking about and has done a great deal of research to supplement his vast knowledge of law enforcement. It's easy for anyone to understand and is a quick read. I would recommend this book to anyone who is considering a career in law enforcement and is just not sure which angle they want to start their career from.

I bought this book hoping to gain some insight into law enforcement careers that I might be interested in. It did have some information that was good, although the book does have a decidedly "Federal" spin; more than half the book is dedicated to Federal agencies, but this is to be expected since Mr. Douglas is a former FBI agent. The book does contain very general information, although I was hoping for more tips and advice that a person could use in order to pursue a law enforcement career, other than wavetop overviews of several different agencies, most of which a reader could gain through visiting the websites for those agencies.

Although much of the information in this book is available on the internet, you can't find it unless you know what your looking for. This book covers a very broad range of federal, State and local law enforcement organizations, from the well known to obscure. Each having a small 2-10 page section on the agencies history, positions and duties, and requirements for employment. Some examples of organizations covered are the FBI, DEA, ATF, Bostan PD, and also smaller ones like Department of State Security, ICE, and Park Rangers. Yes they have special agents too. Of course if you know which agencies interest you then definitly find a more specialized book. But if your like me and want a more general preview then this is a well spent 15$.

This book is very general in nature. Most of the book is fluffed up with detailed descriptions and history of city departments that you will never apply too. As far as his more extensive knowledge on federal agencies like the ATF, DEA, FBI, CIA, this book's information is dated in salary scale and half of the requirements listed to obtain the position.He fluffs up the book even more by using the first chapter to scare away those people that should not become officers. All and all, I learned a little bit from this book, but if I took a brief few minutes online, I could have easily found more in depth information for free, without the dated material, from a man the has RECENTLY been a law enforcement officer.

This book answered a lot of my questions and even some that I didn't even know I had. It helped me make some important decisions concerning my future. I'd suggest it to anyone looking for a career in this field.