Is the job of probation officer very difficult or stressful?

Question

Is the job of probation officer very difficult or stressful?

Answer 1

That would be very objective. Stressors are items that vary with each person according to how they effect the individual.

Working probation is not a nine to five job in an office. (I am referring to a field agent). You will deal with a segment of society that does not quite think as we do and you will be lied to constantly and it is your job to determine exactly what is really going on.

You will be going into neighborhoods that you would not live in and you will stand out. You will be stonewalled while asking questions or just outright lied to when talking to family members or neighbors.

You will have times when you will be arresting probationers at the office on in their homes and it goes from 0 to 60 in a heartbeat on the violence scale.

As with any adminstrative job, it floats on a sea of paperwork ( if it isnt in writing, it didnt happen). Note taking and report writing is mandatory to be meticulous in detail, your time lines have to be bulletproof and your grammar and report writing skills have to be above average.

Is this difficult? That is something each person has to decide on an individual basis. I know a lot of PO's that live on it and love it. They actually enjoy outthinking the bad side and find a lot of personal satisfaction in what they do. I have also known some PO's that burnt out from the paperwork. They expected an 8 hour a day job and it usually doesnt work that way. Long after you are home, you are usually still writing your daily reports and preparing papers for submission for the following day or making phone calls long into the night.

If you are personally motivated, this would be right up your alley. Again, this is referring to a field agent. There are also many other positions that are just 9 to 5, such as the PSI agents that spend their time in an office writing Pre Sentence Investigation reports. Or the agents that deal solely in office positions. Most of those positions are offered on a seniority basis (the new kid gets the least desirable position, worst shift and worst days off) so it can be easier for you down the road, but at the start it is rough.

Best of luck in any case and I hope this can be useful to you