After they receive the training and skills needed to become probation officers, they are rewarded with a career where they have the ability to change lives. They accomplish this by ensuring offenders stay on course with the conditions of their probation.

People on probation have set goals and rules on which the success of their rehabilitation depends. A probation officer is charged with seeing that persons assigned to probation adhere to these following goal and rules:

1. They must be employed, actively seeking employment, or register for school.

2. They must notify their probation officer of any changes in employment, phone number, or address.

3. They must not receive any new charges.

4. They may not leave the jurisdiction of the probation without first notifying their probation officer.

5. They must be present for all scheduled appointments or give 24 hours notice if unable to attend.

6. They must pay any restitution, court costs, fines, or other costs incurred by their judgment.

Statistics show that 86% of all those on probation violate or are otherwise repeat offenders.

Probation officers should be in good physical and emotional condition. Most agencies require applicants to be at least 21 years old. Those convicted of felonies are not usually eligible for hire in this occupation. Prior employment in such areas as court services, corrections, drug abuse treatment, or counseling may aid towards any requirement for previous work experience.

Qualifications vary by agency, but a bachelor's degree in criminal justice is one of the most common requirements. Most applicants are required to complete oral, written, psychological, and physical certification examinations for probation officer licensing.

Many probation officers work as trainees, on a probationary period of up to a year, before obtaining a permanent position.

A probation officer must have the following skills to be successful:

1. Excellent listening abilities since you need to absolve what is being said.

2. The skill to work effectively with others because you need to deal with offenders and their families.

3. The ability to communicate effectively. This is because you will be required to testify in the court of law. The last thing you need is to fumble around when the time comes.

4. The skill needed to write reports. The job requires you to write progress reports on the offenders you are working with. This report will go to courts and will be read by judges and lawyers.

5. You will need to know basic self defense skills. The criminal offenders you supervise can get violent sometimes. You need to be able to protect yourself before law enforcement officers get there.

There you have it----the skills and training you need to become a probation officer. If you are interested, I encourage to do more reading on the internet. You can do this if you visit websites that cover the probation officer profession in more detail.

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