Learn About Becoming a Probation Officer or Parole Officer

Parole and probation officer careers: read training requirements and job descriptions.

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Criminal Justice Careers: Probation Officer

Criminal justice careers are many and varied, and parole and probation officers are just two of the most obvious ones.

In the United States, there can be probation officers at the city, county, state or federal level. Depending on the jurisdiction, probation officers may or may not also be parole officers.

Most jurisdictions require probation officers to have a four year college degree, but a graduate degree is preferred to become a probation officer at the federal level.

A criminal justice degree is a great way to start your career as either a parole or a probation officer.

Probation Officers: What They Do

Generally, probation officers supervise defendants before they have been sentenced to jail or prison.

On the other hand, parole officers supervise offenders once they are released from prison. Parolees are essentially serving the remainder of their sentence in the community under the supervision of a parole officer.

To further complicate matters, some jurisdictions are abolishing the practice of parole and giving post-release supervision obligations to community corrections agents, generically referred to as "probation officers."

Often, parole and probation officers get a degree in criminal justice. Although they don't wear uniforms, probation officers are usually issued a badge and may carry concealed weapons and pepper spray for protection.

Probation officers and parole officers with law enforcement powers (technically classified as peace officers) must attend a police academy as part of their training and certification.

Probation Officers: Job Specifics

Probation agencies have a general paramilitary command structure and are usually headed by a Chief Probation Officer. The chain of command usually flows to Deputy Chief or Assistant Director, then to Senior Probation Officer, and finally to the front-line probation officer.

Some parole and probation officers supervise general caseloads with offenders who were convicted of a variety of offenses.

Others hold specialist positions, and work with specific groups of offenders such as sex offenders, offenders sentenced to electronic monitoring (under house arrest or GPS monitoring), cases with severe mental health, substance abuse issues or violent histories.

Probation officers can perform any function assigned to them by the court, but they usually supervise offenders placed under supervision.

Probation and parole officers must possess excellent oral and written communication skills and a broad knowledge of the criminal justice system, both taught in criminal justice degree programs.

They must also have the ability to work with an extremely diverse population and wide variety of government agencies and community organizations, and accept the potential hazards of working closely with a criminal population.

In some cities and states, probation departments have a specialized officer position known as the surveillance officer. These officers have full probation-officer authority, are peace officers with arrest authority, wear a badge and are often armed.

The purpose of a surveillance officer is to serve as the eyes and ears of a probation team on specialized caseloads, performing field work, including random home and work visits, surveillance, and performing arrests and searches.

As a point of contrast, probation officers do much of their work in the office. Surveillance officers usually attend the same training academy and generally only require a two-year degree or high school diploma with public safety experience.

If the job of parole officer, probation officer or surveillance officer seems like it would be a good fit for you, get the best criminal justice education you can and find your niche in the field of corrections.