Job Interview!

[ShinyGreenApple]

So after several months of unemployment, several "Thanks, but we found someone more qualified" letters, and lots of frustration, I have an interview with my local Department of Corrections on Thursday morning. I'll be off tomorrow or Wednesday to get myself some proper clothes for interviewing; I assume I'll dress the same way I would for any interview.

Wish me luck!

[crazylegs]

Congratulations!

You might want to see if you can get in touch with Kara, she recently started that job so she might be able to give you some tips

[Kara]

Good luck! I hope you get it. Working in Corrections is a whole different experience. It's really fascinating to see what's going to happen each day (good and bad).

If you're going to be in a maximum-security facility like I am, there's a few tips I can give you.

Don't trust any inmates. No matter how nice and friendly they act.
That doesn't mean be a bitch. You can be nice to them, you can talk with them. But don't talk about your personal life, friends, family, etc.
Don't let anything they say or do get to you. Most of them that are going to act up are only trying to get a reaction out of you.
Follow the rules, even though other officers will say "Yeah, they tell you in training to do this, but we do things different." The rules are there for the preservation of your life and safety.
When in doubt, ASK!
If you can't handle it already, get used to foul language, threats, insults, and seeing various bodily fluids/waste matter.
If you work in a facility with male inmates, get used to seeing weiners. You won't do strip searches (those are conducted on male inmates by male officers, and female inmates by female officers only), but you might see them in the shower, taking a leak in their cell, prancing around naked (the crazy guys), and masturbating (a lot. I mean, what else are they going to do?). If they expose themselves to you intentionally, then you can write them for Lewd Acts. Otherwise, just shrug and move on.
Don't be afraid to let them off with a warning for minor things, but don't let the major offenses slip and never warn them more than once.

Finally, some insightful words from one of my favorite Captains:

"You have to understand that anything can happen at any time. You have to realize that every time you walk through the entry building and that door slams shut behind you, you have to think, 'This could be my last day on earth.' If you don't feel just a little nervous every time you walk in here, you need to find somewhere else to work."

I'm not trying to scare you off, just being real. I love my job. But I know the dangers I face every day. I know when I'm in the Chow Hall and there are 4 Officers and over 100 inmates, things could get nasty in a heartbeat. I know when I have an inmate out of his cell, no matter how nice and well-behaved he is, he might decide to make a move against me. I know when I'm cuffing a Segregation Inmate, he might grab my arm through the Food Pass in his door and break it. You'll be trained how to deal with these things if they happen to you (they haven't to me, yet). I know I'll be in a fight. I'll be in several fights. Some of them I'll win, some of them I'll lose. But I know that regardless, I trust my life and safety to the other officers around me, and they do the same of me.

I really do love my job. Because for the first time in my life, my job has meaning. I actually feel like I'm doing something that makes a difference.

Let me know how the interview goes!

[ShinyGreenApple]

I considered the dirty parts of the job for a very long time, trust me. And I have had no less than four close male friends and relatives look me in the eye and say "LB, don't do this." Obviously, I've done it anyways. While it could be one of the worst career choices I've ever made (Good grief, after freaking Wal-Mart and that horrible camp kitchen . . .), I think it's more likely one of the best. I've had recommendations from friends, customers, and former coworkers who have all escaped retail hell and other various dead end jobs by going into corrections, and they're all the happier for it.


I figure if it's really meant to be, I'll get it. And like Kara said, I'll have a job with a purpose. About the fluids and wieners . . . well, Mom will be horrified on a daily basis just from the thought of it, I'm sure. But I'm indifferent, lol. Yeah, yuck. But I'll live.

If you don't feel just a little nervous every time you walk in here, you need to find somewhere else to work."


I like how your Captain thinks :)

I'll be sure and let you all know how the interview goes Thursday. Yeesh, but that's almost the worst part; job interviews make me nervous like nothing else.

[ShinyGreenApple]

Well, that wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was. I tend to let myself get all worked up over anticipation -_-

We breezed through some hypothetical questions this morning, reviewed my job history, and the Sergeant said to call her back tomorrow morning to find out what the warden decided about me. I also found out that it's a maximum security institution, most of these guys won't be coming out. And the larger majority of them are in psych. The other officer interviewing referred to them as 'sea monsters' who take bites out of their own arms, etc.

So now all I have to do is wait . . .

[ShinyGreenApple]

Bugger, I hate double posting like this, but I just thought I'd pop on to say that it's a no go, but I am eligible to reapply after July 1.

To be totally honest, I'm relieved. The whole idea of most of these guys having mental problems bothered me. . .

[Andara Bledin]

Maybe you should look into maybe getting into a lower security facility?

Did they tell you why it was a no go?

^-.-^