Constable intern

Briefly explain what you do for a living.

I work as a constable intern, which means I am completing a 10-month training period at the Eastern Finland Police Department, which is part of my final stage studies. During this period, I have been able to work in all basic police tasks, such as emergency and surveillance work in the field, licence services and forensic investigations and criminal investigations. I have enjoyed working in the field and at the traffic police the most.

How have you ended up in the profession of your choice?

I have previously worked at the Finnish Defence Forces and the Finnish Border Guard. At some point, I noticed that I am increasingly interested in police work. I thought that as a police officer I could work with real people and real things, so I decided to apply to the Police University College. 

Describe your typical working day or week.

I am currently working at criminal investigation, so my days are filled by questioning. You must prepare for them well. For example, I need to examine the evidence and documents related to the case as comprehensively as possible. At the end of the questioning, I will write an examination record. In addition, I manage various arrangements related to the questioning, such as acquiring an assistant or an interpreter, and scheduling the questionings. 

What kind of work environment or working hours do you have?

With investigation, the working environment is the police department. In the field, you can work almost anywhere but most of the time is spent in a police car. In my opinion, traffic is the greatest risk of occupational accidents in this profession. 

At investigation, the working days begin at 7 a.m. and end at 4 p.m. In the field, you work 12-hour shifts, so you can take leave in periods of several days. 

What kind of competence or qualities are required in the profession?

You can cope well in this profession when you get along well with different people. A good police officer can be relaxed but firm if necessary. Good physical fitness is needed, above all, to recover from shift work. The significance of language skills varies from region to region, and in Eastern Finland I need some English in the field. 

What is the best thing about your profession?

When a citizen is in such distress that a police officer must be called in, they are in a stressful and possibly unique situation. When the police arrive, you can often sense their relief yourself. Although for the police the task may be a job among others, it is great that you can offer people a sense of security, which for many results from the presence of the police. 

In the traffic police work, I like the tasks requiring rapid action and the fact that work is done in a team.  

What are the downsides of the profession or what seems challenging?

I find working in an investigation more stressful than working in the field. The tasks in the field are one-off, while in the investigation, work matters also come back to mind outside working hours. I spend some time thinking about future questionings and the schedules for holding them. 

What would you tell a person considering the profession of a police officer?

Many fail the essay section of the Police University College entrance examination. If this happens, I recommend asking to see the essay and its evaluation so that you can prepare for the next attempt. 

Your career may not necessarily start in a position you prefer, if you have applied to become a police officer for the field work, for example, because there may be more jobs available for police officers at the beginning of their career in investigation than in the field. 

How do you see the future of your profession?

There are temporal and regional variations in the employment of police officers. Unlike the Finnish Defence Forces, the budget of the Police is decided for one year at a time, which makes the planning of operations more difficult.