• How to Become a Corrections Officer
• Corrections Degree Programs

How to Become a Corrections Officer

1) Start by earning an Associate's or Bachelor's Degree (The most commonly held degree by Corrections Officers is a Criminal Justice Degree) Most corrections departments want their corrections officers to have at least an associate's degree. Federal Correctional Officer positions require a bachelor's degree in most cases.
2) Read more about the corrections officer job requirements below
3) Contact the Department of Corrections for your state and request application materials

Corrections Officer Job Description

Correctional officers work in the prison system, most often in a jail setting. As a corrections officer's career progresses opportunities to work in courthouses, courtrooms and related assignments. Corrections officers maintain the security and safety of the jail, process booking and release of offenders, supervision of inmate work crews, supervision during meals, conduct cell searches, escorting inmates to court, parole hearings, doctors appointments, maintain logs, dispense medications in some states, and related duties. Often, correctional officers will emergency situations where they will need to maintain ttheir calm and rely on their training they have received to respond to the situation. Corrections officers work in close confines with inmates of differing racial backgrounds, some of which may not speak english as a first language and will need to maintain an effective form of communication.

Two important criteria for corrections officers is to be able to function in a team environment along side fellow correctional officers as well as supervisors, other law enforcemnt agencies, the public, other county or state agencies, social workers and counselors. The second criteria revolves around physical and mental strength. Corrections officer must be able to, after their training, possitively respond to verbal abuse, hostile inmates, long hours and related situations.

What You Can Expect to Earn as a Corrections Officer

The job outlook for correctional officers is very good. Increased sentence terms and laws governing parole opportunities have increased the demand for corrections officers in most states. The Bureau of Labor statistics reported that the median annual salary for corrections officers was $35,760 in May of 2006. Federal prisons paid their corrections officers the highest salaries, but require their officers to hold a bachelor's degree. Read about bachelor's degrees in criminal justice and corrections before making your decision. State run facilities had the second highest salaries then local facilities and the lowest pay was found in private prison systems, where not many correctional officers are employed.

Corrections and Criminal Justice Degrees

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Kaplan University: Kaplan will prepare you for an entry level or advanced job in the corrections field.

AAS in Criminal Justice
AASCJ Corrections
BSCJ Corrections

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University of Phoenix Online:

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