What your job title is, and what that means: I'm a police dispatcher which means that I tell police officers where to go, I keep track of what they are doing and some nights I answer 911 calls or take police reports.
A description of a typical day: I work over night on what we call 1st Watch which means I work "graveyard." My hours are 11:45 p.m to 7:45 a.m. Usually I am on the radio. 911 dispatchers send typed up calls to my computer and I decide who goes to the calls (which officers in my area). I also put them on traffic stops, give them lunch breaks, and plan containment and handle foot pursuits and traffic pursuits. I keep control of the radio "air" so that people don't talk all over each other. It can be really busy at times and then it will quiet down for awhile. The most important thing is to know where all my officers are in case they get into trouble and need help, and to make sure that I get officers to citizens quickly.
What you need in the way of training/education/experience to do this job: Well, there are places to get an education in this line of work but I didn't have it. Instead, I was a counselor before this job. You do have to take tests and they make sure that you can type fast, do a lot of different things at one time, and use good judgement in prioritizing workload.
Why you like it and (if you dare): I like the adrenaline rushes that we get during hot calls; the variety in workload; my ccworkers; working mostly alone; all the different things we must do; knowing I keep people safer and lunch breaks. Oh, plus when the day is done, it is really done. I don't bring work home. And it pays well and there's a lot of job security.
Why you dislike it: I get so tired of answering phones that when I'm home, I hate talking on the phone.
What sorts of things can go wrong at your job? Well, if I don't pay attention and dispatch officers quickly, someone could die. Actually, people will die sometimes even when we do everything right It's very serious work.
What kind of person thrives in your job: A person has to be able to think about and handle a lot of different things at once. Sometimes I'm listening to my radio while on the phone talking to another police agency and I have someone standing next to me asking me a question. A person also has to be able to understand that things can go wrong and not beat themselves up about it.
Anything else you can think of that would give her an idea of what it might be like to choose your career? Police work puts you in a special group of people who consider themselves family. No one really understands the job except other people who do it and sometimes it's hard because you can't really expect family and friends to know what you go through. Also, we get a very weird sense of humor because we deal with death and injury so much.
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Polic e Dispatcher/911 Operator
Date: 2003-04-23 10:25 pm (UTC)What your job title is, and what that means: I'm a police dispatcher which means that I tell police officers where to go, I keep track of what they are doing and some nights I answer 911 calls or take police reports.
A description of a typical day: I work over night on what we call 1st Watch which means I work "graveyard." My hours are 11:45 p.m to 7:45 a.m. Usually I am on the radio. 911 dispatchers send typed up calls to my computer and I decide who goes to the calls (which officers in my area). I also put them on traffic stops, give them lunch breaks, and plan containment and handle foot pursuits and traffic pursuits. I keep control of the radio "air" so that people don't talk all over each other. It can be really busy at times and then it will quiet down for awhile. The most important thing is to know where all my officers are in case they get into trouble and need help, and to make sure that I get officers to citizens quickly.
What you need in the way of training/education/experience to do this job: Well, there are places to get an education in this line of work but I didn't have it. Instead, I was a counselor before this job. You do have to take tests and they make sure that you can type fast, do a lot of different things at one time, and use good judgement in prioritizing workload.
Why you like it and (if you dare): I like the adrenaline rushes that we get during hot calls; the variety in workload; my ccworkers; working mostly alone; all the different things we must do; knowing I keep people safer and lunch breaks. Oh, plus when the day is done, it is really done. I don't bring work home. And it pays well and there's a lot of job security.
Why you dislike it: I get so tired of answering phones that when I'm home, I hate talking on the phone.
What sorts of things can go wrong at your job? Well, if I don't pay attention and dispatch officers quickly, someone could die. Actually, people will die sometimes even when we do everything right It's very serious work.
What kind of person thrives in your job: A person has to be able to think about and handle a lot of different things at once. Sometimes I'm listening to my radio while on the phone talking to another police agency and I have someone standing next to me asking me a question. A person also has to be able to understand that things can go wrong and not beat themselves up about it.
Anything else you can think of that would give her an idea of what it might be like to choose your career? Police work puts you in a special group of people who consider themselves family. No one really understands the job except other people who do it and sometimes it's hard because you can't really expect family and friends to know what you go through. Also, we get a very weird sense of humor because we deal with death and injury so much.
Hope this helps!
Lisa