J.

Dallon Allred

CJ 1010

10 April 2019

Should Police Officers be Required to Have a College Education?

Police officers are often put into challenging situations due to the nature of the job. They

deal with a variety of people, good and bad, which requires experience and knowledge in order

to make tough and quick decisions that can either save a life or end one. Because of this, I

believe that a college degree, more specifically a Bachelor’s degree, should be required in order

to become a police officer. Before this can happen, college needs to become more affordable and

accessible to all as not not deter people who want to become police officers. Long term studies

have shown the benefits of requiring college education for police officers and some police

departments have actually implemented these policies. Though this would cost police agencies

money, I believe it is more wise to invest money for the betterment of the community rather than

spending money fixing problems after they have occurred.

Police officers must make quick, justified decisions about their surroundings and the

people around them in order to protect and serve. According to Dr. Jennifer L. Schulenberg, a

professor of Criminal Justice at Sam Houston State University states that there are different types

of decision making when it comes to the job of being a police officer. She writes, “...the

description and explanation of police decision‐making adopts a pragmatist approach

incorporating analyses that are both quantitative – showing the factors which are associated with

outcomes – and qualitative – showing the ways in which police officers’ understanding of their

occupational world conditions their behaviour” (Schulenberg, 2007). No matter the directed

course of study, college is an important time to learn about decision making and consequences,
weighing out quantitative and qualitative data to make the most effective decision in a short

period of time.

College leads to an increased ability to make fair decisions due to the nature of diversity

on most college campuses. There is a lot of problems in the media about how modern day police

forces use excessive brutality toward minority groups. There is a lot of research about how the

typical American university prepares students for diverse civil spaces outside of college while

giving a cognitive development advantage. Nicholas A. Bowman writes about the positive

effects that different types of diversity in college settings have on college students stating,

“College diversity experiences are associated with gains in cognitive skills, cognitive tendencies,

and multiple/other cognitive outcomes, which underscores the role that these experiences may

play in promoting various forms of student development” (Bowman, 2010). Because of the

positive effect of diversity found on most college campuses, future police officers in attendance

will be able to make more personable decisions when faced with tough situations involving

minority groups, which would reduce negative media and improve the overall public opinion of

the community.

Because of better decision making skills made through both a college education and the

diverse nature it brings, police officers with college educations are less likely to have complains

against them, states Jennifer Manis, a Criminal Justice PhD student in Montana. Manis states in

her thesis, “All of the existing studies on this topic have concluded that police officers with a

college education are less likely to have complaints filed against them compared with police

officers with a high school education” (Manis, Archbold, & Hassell, 2002). Manis goes on to

write about the difference between the types of complaints police officers with Bachelor’s

degrees receive in comparison to their counterparts with high school diplomas, some college
credit, or an Associate’s degree. Manis argues that a four-year Bachelor’s degree in any course

of study is more desirable for the police force due to the time and dedication that it takes to get,

rather than simply receiving college credit or a two-year Associate’s Degree. Time spent training

new police officer recruits would be minimized as college would cover more complex

The cost of college is a deterrent to many people who want to attend. While the

arguments for college educated police officers are compelling, it could be a move that is seen as

elitist; only the wealthy and middle class could afford to go to college in order to become a

police officer. The requirement to go to college would further deter people of color and

minorities from becoming police officers. Rather than a salary increase, I would propose that

upon graduation and contracted employment with a police force for a set number of years, a

stipend would be given to pay off student loans and college debt to a certain point, which would

alleviate the stress that comes with debt. The average Bachelor’s degree at an in-state public

school can cost around $9,000 a year for 4 years, which adds up to about $36,000 total (U.S.

Department of Education, 2016). The average salary of a police officer nationwide is $58,320

according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS, 2017). While this number is expected to

change over time with inflation, the overall cost of a college tuition, whether in part of whole, of

a police officer on a contract is an investment for the community to prevent lawsuits, protect the

neighborhood, and have the best police force possible.

Victims of police misconduct and brutality often receive large, unspecified, and coveted

sums of money. Mary M. Cheh writes about the ways the law and courts uphold compensation

for victims of police misconduct and brutality stating, “...the civil law provides compensation to

victims who have been harmed by police misconduct. Recompense can be beneficial in itself,

and damage awards can spur reform if the costs of misbehavior are high” (Cheh, et al, 1996).
Taxpayers should not be required bear the costly burden of paying reparations for police

misconduct, but rather be given the option invest money up front in terms of college educations

for police officers that are proven to decrease instances of complaint and misconduct by police

officers. By taking a more proactive approach towards combating these issues, society can move

towards a more progressive state by providing a college education to those who are bound to

protect and serve communities.

In conclusion, police officers should be required to have at least a Bachelor’s degree

before entering the service. Having a 4-year college degree is proven to be beneficial in reducing

the amounts of complaints against police and misconduct performed by police (Manis, Archbold,

& Hassell, 2002). College must become more accessible to the average American, as the current

system of higher education is inaccessible to people of low socioeconomic status through cost

and lack of knowledge about the system. Aspiring police officers going through college should

be given a stipend to live on and to help pay for college upon the completion of their degree and

a contract of service for a specified number of years. As higher ranks are achieved by individuals

of the police force, such as Sergeant and Captain, educational requirements should be increased

as well as pay, just as other corporations require outside of policing. The benefits of an educated

police force, though perceived as costly, would be a better investment where taxpayers are

concerned to society than the current cost of legal battles against misconduct and brutality cases.
 References

Bowman, N. A. (2010). College Diversity Experiences and Cognitive Development: A

Meta-Analysis. Review of Educational Research, 80(1), 4–33.
https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654309352495

Denson, N. & Bowman, N. (2013) University diversity and preparation for a global
society: the role of diversity in shaping intergroup attitudes and civic outcomes, Studies in
Higher Education, 38:4, 555-570, DOI: 10.1080/03075079.2011.584971

Manis, J., Archbold, C. A., & Hassell, K. D. (2008). Exploring the Impact of Police
Officer Education Level on Allegations of Police Misconduct. International Journal of Police
Science & Management, 10(4), 509–523. https://doi.org/10.1350/ijps.2008.10.4.102

Schulenberg, J.L. (2007) Analysing Police Decision‐Making: Assessing the Application

of a Mixed‐Method/Mixed‐Model Research Design, International Journal of Social Research
Methodology, 10:2, 99-119, DOI: 10.1080/13645570701334050

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2018). Digest of
Education Statistics, 2016 (NCES 2017-094),