Police detective to prison officer
A police detective already meets 40% of what the prison officer role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
56.7/ 100
1 How much of what a prison 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 prison officer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A prison officer role treats 5 of its required skills as things a police detective already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- ensure compliance with types of weapons
- identify security threats
- law enforcement
- legal use-of-force
- restrain individuals
What stands in the way is 7 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 11 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A prison 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 restrain individuals assisting and caring
- already held criminology social sciences, journalism and information
- already held legal use-of-force business, administration and law
- already held write situation reports communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held ensure law application assisting and caring
- already held practice vigilance assisting and caring
All 11 carried skills, including the 5 the prison officer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 18 missing skills fall into 6 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 see to the detainees' well-being required
- still to learn comply with the principles of self-defence required
- still to learn escort defendants required
- still to learn patrol areas required
- optional, not held conduct security screenings optional
- optional, not held conduct frisk optional
- optional, not held handle surveillance equipment optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
- still to learn correctional procedures required
- still to learn illegal substances required
- still to learn undertake inspections required
- optional, not held maintain logbooks optional
- optional, not held manage security clearance optional
- optional, not held contribute to the formulation of correctional procedures optional
- optional, not held oversee rehabilitation process optional
- optional, not held propose leisure activities optional
- optional, not held use different communication channels optional
- optional, not held surveillance methods optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a prison officer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 see to the detainees' well-being practise this
- 02 comply with the principles of self-defence practise this
- 03 correctional procedures study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 11 skills that carry over
- already held ensure compliance with types of weapons skill
- already held identify security threats skill
- already held law enforcement knowledge
- already held legal use-of-force knowledge
- already held restrain individuals skill
- already held apply knowledge of human behaviour skill
- already held criminology knowledge
- already held ensure law application skill
- already held maintain operational communications skill
- already held practice vigilance skill
- already held write situation reports skill
11 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held conduct security screenings optional
- optional, not held maintain logbooks optional
- optional, not held manage security clearance optional
- optional, not held conduct frisk optional
- optional, not held contribute to the formulation of correctional procedures optional
- optional, not held handle surveillance equipment optional
- optional, not held oversee rehabilitation process optional
- optional, not held propose leisure activities optional
- optional, not held respond to enquiries optional
- optional, not held surveillance methods optional
- optional, not held use different communication channels optional
22 held skills the prison officer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role analyse legal evidence skill
- not needed by the target role apply first response skill
- 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 control crowd skill
- not needed by the target role criminal law knowledge
- not needed by the target role detain offenders skill
- 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 examine crime scenes skill
- not needed by the target role first response knowledge
- not needed by the target role form operational strategies for law enforcement skill
- not needed by the target role handle case evidence skill
- not needed by the target role hear witness accounts skill
- not needed by the target role investigate forgery cases skill
- not needed by the target role investigation research methods knowledge
- 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 perform drug investigations skill
- not needed by the target role present evidence skill
- not needed by the target role use personal protection equipment skill
3 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 correctional procedures required
- still to learn illegal substances required
- optional, not held surveillance methods optional
Common questions about this move
Can a police detective become a prison officer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A police detective already covers 40% of what a prison officer is expected to do: 11 skills carry over, 5 of which the prison officer role treats as required.
What skills does a police detective need to become a prison officer?
7 required skills are missing, plus 11 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by assisting and caring. The single most important is see to the detainees' well-being.
How hard is the move from police detective to prison officer?
Its learning distance is 56.7 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.