Police detective to police officer
A police detective already meets 47% of what the police officer role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
57.3/ 100
1 How much of what a police officer is expected to do is already part of a police detective’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the police officer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A police officer role treats 9 of its required skills as things a police detective already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- apply first response
- detain offenders
- ensure compliance with types of weapons
- ensure law application
- first response
- handle case evidence
What stands in the way is 6 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 22 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A police officer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a police detective background worth leading with.
- already held investigate forgery cases information skills
- already held perform drug investigations information skills
- already held examine crime scenes information skills
- already held first response health and welfare
- already held control crowd assisting and caring
- already held hear witness accounts communication, collaboration and creativity
All 22 carried skills, including the 9 the police officer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 33 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn comply with legal regulations required
- still to learn comply with the principles of self-defence required
- still to learn patrol areas required
- optional, not held ensure public safety and security optional
- optional, not held issue fines optional
- optional, not held check official documents optional
- optional, not held conduct frisk optional
- optional, not held maintain order at scenes of accidents optional
- optional, not held manage major incidents optional
- optional, not held manage theft prevention optional
- optional, not held regulate traffic optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
- still to learn instruct public required
- still to learn use different communication channels required
- optional, not held educate public on road safety optional
- optional, not held execute working instructions optional
- optional, not held ride horses optional
- still to learn road traffic laws required
- optional, not held railway law optional
- optional, not held analyse road traffic patterns optional
- optional, not held assess railway operations optional
- optional, not held conduct drug abuse tests optional
- optional, not held investigate road accidents optional
- optional, not held perform underwater investigations optional
- optional, not held safe horseback riding principles optional
- optional, not held diving operation requirements optional
- optional, not held illegal substances optional
- optional, not held check diving equipment optional
- optional, not held maintain diving equipment optional
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a police officer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 comply with legal regulations practise this
- 02 comply with the principles of self-defence practise this
- 03 instruct public practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 22 skills that carry over
- already held apply first response skill
- already held detain offenders skill
- already held ensure compliance with types of weapons skill
- already held ensure law application skill
- already held first response knowledge
- already held handle case evidence skill
- already held identify security threats skill
- already held law enforcement knowledge
- already held legal use-of-force knowledge
- already held analyse legal evidence skill
- already held apply knowledge of human behaviour skill
- already held control crowd skill
- already held examine crime scenes skill
- already held hear witness accounts skill
- already held investigate forgery cases skill
- already held investigation research methods knowledge
- already held perform drug investigations skill
- already held practice vigilance skill
- already held present evidence skill
- already held restrain individuals skill
- already held use personal protection equipment skill
- already held write situation reports skill
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held provide care for horses optional
- optional, not held train animals for professional purposes optional
- optional, not held physical characteristics of railways optional
- optional, not held anticipate foreseeable problems on the road optional
27 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held analyse road traffic patterns optional
- optional, not held anticipate foreseeable problems on the road optional
- optional, not held assess railway operations optional
- optional, not held check diving equipment optional
- optional, not held conduct drug abuse tests optional
- optional, not held ensure public safety and security optional
- optional, not held investigate road accidents optional
- optional, not held issue fines optional
- optional, not held physical characteristics of railways optional
- optional, not held provide care for horses optional
- optional, not held safe horseback riding principles optional
- optional, not held train animals for professional purposes optional
- optional, not held check official documents optional
- optional, not held conduct frisk optional
- optional, not held diving operation requirements optional
- optional, not held educate public on road safety optional
- optional, not held execute working instructions optional
- optional, not held illegal substances optional
- optional, not held maintain diving equipment optional
- optional, not held maintain order at scenes of accidents optional
- optional, not held manage major incidents optional
- optional, not held manage theft prevention optional
- optional, not held perform underwater investigations optional
- optional, not held railway law optional
- optional, not held regulate traffic optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
- optional, not held ride horses optional
11 held skills the police officer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role conduct public presentations skill
- not needed by the target role conduct research interview skill
- not needed by the target role criminal law knowledge
- not needed by the target role criminology knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop investigation strategy skill
- not needed by the target role ensure information security skill
- not needed by the target role form operational strategies for law enforcement skill
- not needed by the target role lead police investigations skill
- not needed by the target role legal requirements related to ammunition knowledge
- not needed by the target role legal research knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain operational communications skill
6 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn road traffic laws required
- optional, not held physical characteristics of railways optional
- optional, not held safe horseback riding principles optional
- optional, not held diving operation requirements optional
- optional, not held illegal substances optional
- optional, not held railway law optional
Common questions about this move
Can a police detective become a police officer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A police detective already covers 47% of what a police officer is expected to do: 22 skills carry over, 9 of which the police officer role treats as required.
What skills does a police detective need to become a police officer?
6 required skills are missing, plus 27 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by assisting and caring. The single most important is comply with legal regulations.
How hard is the move from police detective to police officer?
Its learning distance is 57.3 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.