How To Become A Cadet: What It Is and Career Path

What is a cadet and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Who ensures order and peace within your society? That would be the hardworking cadets. They are the young citizens or trainee police officers who understand the law enforcement profession by offering their services in police and law enforcement departments. The two most important things to be a successful cadet are to obey every order and contribute interest in learning.

A strong cadet performs various clerical duties such as answering calls, providing directions and general information to the people, keeping records, and entering data in the computer systems. They usually work under the direct supervision of an Officer to do various tasks in the department. These tasks are helpful in their career advancement into the law enforcement career.

The qualifications required to become a successful cadet are a high-school diploma or equivalent. They are usually hired by police and law enforcement departments of the state. The training agreement contains an average of eight working hours daily, with essential overtime in certain situations. On advancing to a successful cadet, you can earn approximately $19.39 per hour.

ScoreCadetUS Average

Salary

3.2

Avg. Salary $41,427

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.1

Growth rate 1%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.70%

Asian 5.20%

Black or African American 14.63%

Hispanic or Latino 14.44%

Unknown 9.36%

White 54.68%

Gender

female 27.39%

male 72.61%

Age - 31

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 31

Stress level

8.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.7

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

1.9

Work life balance is very poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a cadet

Explore cadet education requirements

Most common cadet degrees

Bachelor's

65.0 %

Associate

13.6 %

High School Diploma

12.8 %

Start to develop specific cadet skills

Skills	Percentages
Patrol	28.51%
Veterans	12.23%
Public Safety	7.90%
Cadets	5.75%
Emergency Calls	3.51%

Complete relevant cadet training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New cadets learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a cadet based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real cadet resumes.

Gain additional cadet certifications

Cadet certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific cadet certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for cadets include First Aid, CPR and AED Instructor and Certified Law Enforcement Analysts (CLEA).

More About Certifications

Research cadet duties and responsibilities

Lead the team as defensive captain to win the national championship of the most elite football level in Mexico.
Participate in leadership development program in BYU-Idaho ROTC while completing undergraduate studies.
Demonstrate strong teamwork, and critical thinking in order to reach a common goal with fellow cadets.
Participate in ROTC recruiting events and communicate effectively to prospective cadets and parents.

Prepare your cadet resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your cadet resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a cadet resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable cadet resume templates

Build a professional cadet resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your cadet resume.

Apply for cadet jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a cadet job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do cadets rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Cadet reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on May 2019

Pros

The things that i like the most as deck cadet are the adventure, learning, discipline, the sea, the sun, the moon, the satisfaction of the work done as well as the friendship and brotherhood on board.

Cons

What i do not like is the negligence.