Much of being a patrol officer involves the tedium of writing reports and updating records. When you’re not behind a desk, you’ll be on patrol, making your presence known in the community and responding to incident reports.

There is clearly a public service element to the job that you could reasonably call heroic, but there’s also a cost to your personal life. Officers work long hours and suffer high rates of job-related injury. Still, for those with the right character, the protect-and-serve profession can be very rewarding.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 3.3% employment growth for patrol officers between 2022 and 2032. In that period, an estimated 22,500 jobs should open up.

Each jurisdiction has its own educational requirements for patrol officers. In some, a high school diploma is sufficient. Others demand a college degree. In any event, you probably won’t use a lot of textbook knowledge on the job. Before becoming an officer, you’ll go through some form of training academy, where you’ll learn about key legal codes, first aid, firearms, patrol protocol and more. You’ll also have to pass a rigorous physical exam.

Those who want to become a federal law enforcement agent should expect even more intensive training, usually at the U.S. Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia, or a Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. You’ll need to be a U.S. citizen for any of these positions, and you should have a clean criminal record.