Why is the possession of higher education by police officers controversial, and what are some rationales given for and against officers having such education?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The issue of higher education for police officers has been addressed by a number of notable entities, going back more than forty years. The President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice the American Bar Association, and the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals all have issue statements endorsing the need for college educated police officers. The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the constitutionality of requiring a minimum number of college credits for application to a police department.

Empirical evidence also supports the claim that college-educated police officers are better officers; compared to officers with less education, college-educated officers have significantly fewer founded citizen complaints; have better peer relationships; are more likely to take a leadership role in the organization; tend to be more flexible; are less dogmatic and less authoritarian; take fewer leave days, receive fewer injuries, have less injury time, have lower rates of absenteeism, use fewer sick days, and are involved in fewer traffic crashes; and have a more desirable system of personal values. They also are significantly less likely to violate internal departmental regulations regarding insubordination, negligent use of a firearm, and absenteeism than officers who lack a college degree.

One of the main arguments against requiring a college degree for entry-level officers is that the recruitment of minorities will greatly suffer. However, a number of jurisdictions argue just as strongly that this is not a problem and offer anecdotal evidence that the reverse is actually true and that maintaining the college requirement has a number of benefits.

Some studies have identified negative effects of higher education. Critics believe that educated officers are more likely to become frustrated with their work and that their limited opportunities for advancement will cause them to leave the force early. They also argue that police tasks that require mostly common or “street” sense are not performed better by officers with higher education. These studies found that higher education had no positive effect on officers’ public-service orientation and that college-educated officers attach less value to obedience to supervisors than do officers without a college education.