What does a campus safety officer do?
A campus safety officer ensures the safety and security of individuals and facilities within campus premises. They patrol their assigned areas to look out for any suspicious behavior or activities and secure properties by locking or unlocking doors, arming security systems, and monitoring surveillance cameras and other alarms. They are also responsible for enforcing rules and regulations, conducting regular inspections, warning violators, and confronting or detaining violators when the situation requires. Moreover, a campus safety officer is often the first to respond to distress or emergencies, and they must contact emergency responders right away.
Campus safety officer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real campus safety officer resumes:
- Manage litigation and bankruptcy matters.
- Monitor CCTV for the inside and outside of buildings.
- Render emergency first aid and CPR, then call paramedics.
- Issue summonses, write reports of daily activities and irregularities such as unauthorized person or occurrences.
- Utilize access control software and CCTV technology to monitor and respond to alarms and assist with access control.
- Discourage and eject loiterers and disorderly persons and when appropriate, arrest and issue summonses to law violators on premises.
- Provide continuous patrol coverage and traffic operations on campus property.
- Preform regular patrol and shadow sworn officers in on campus investigations.
- Maintain a standard of punctuality and dependability of attendance and retain myself cleanliness, tidiness, neatness and appropriately attire.
- Operate magnetometers and hand wand to prevent any unauthorize weapons into the facility.
Campus safety officer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 23% of Campus Safety Officers are proficient in Patrol, CPR, and Criminal Justice. They’re also known for soft skills such as Empathy, Leadership skills, and Physical strength.
We break down the percentage of Campus Safety Officers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patrol, 23%
Preformed regular patrol and shadowed sworn officers in on campus investigations.
- CPR, 14%
Certified instructor through American Red Cross for Basic First Aid, AED and CPR for adult, child and infant.
- Criminal Justice, 4%
Certified Department of Criminal Justice Services Private Security Officer Instructor.
- Medical Emergencies, 4%
Respond to situations ranging from medical emergencies to safety incidents and complete required documentation.
- Public Safety, 4%
Monitored public safety radio frequencies and operated a variety of communications equipment, radio console, telephones, and computer system.
- Emergency Situations, 4%
Initiated effective steps in handling and controlling emergency situations.
"patrol," "cpr," and "criminal justice" are among the most common skills that campus safety officers use at work. You can find even more campus safety officer responsibilities below, including:
Empathy. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a campus safety officer to have is empathy. Their role and responsibilities require that "police officers need to understand the perspectives of a variety of people in their jurisdiction and be willing to help the public." Campus safety officers often use empathy in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "monitored drug and alcohol test giving to parolees skills used patients and understanding for various demographics of people"
Leadership skills. Many campus safety officer duties rely on leadership skills. "police officers must be comfortable with being a highly visible member of their community, as the public looks to them for help in emergencies.," so a campus safety officer will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways campus safety officer responsibilities rely on leadership skills: "enforced policies and guidelines to ensure maximum productivity provided leadership and solutions during emergency situations monitored security systems and frequently rectified problems"
Physical strength. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of campus safety officers is physical strength. This skill is critical to many everyday campus safety officer duties, as "police officers must be strong enough to physically apprehend suspects and to assist people in precarious situations." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "provided [ ] physical security and emergency response services for people and property. "
Communication skills. For certain campus safety officer responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "communication skills." The day-to-day duties of a campus safety officer rely on this skill, as "police and detectives must be able to speak with people and to express details in writing about an incident." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what campus safety officers do: "tested and adjusted communication and alarm systems and reported malfunctions to maintenance units. "
Good judgment. Another common skill required for campus safety officer responsibilities is "good judgment." This skill comes up in the duties of campus safety officers all the time, as "police and detectives must be able to determine the best way to solve an array of problems." An excerpt from a real campus safety officer resume shows how this skill is central to what a campus safety officer does: "provided excellent customer service to guests as a goodwill ambassador. "
The three companies that hire the most campus safety officers are:
- Roosevelt University5 campus safety officers jobs
- Union College4 campus safety officers jobs
- Widener University4 campus safety officers jobs
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Compare different campus safety officers
Campus safety officer vs. Patrolman
A Security's main responsibility is to keep people or an establishment safe. This responsibility is carried out by constantly patrolling a designated area and monitoring the activity within the premises. Most of the tasks involved are inspecting buildings and equipment, monitoring entry and exit points, reporting irregularities, responding to customers in distress, and other surveillance activities. The security is basically an establishment's first line of defense, this is why one must have good communication skills, keen observation and judgment, and as well as presence of mind.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a campus safety officer are more likely to require skills like "criminal justice," "emergency calls," "osha," and "fire alarms." On the other hand, a job as a patrolman requires skills like "law enforcement," "non-emergency calls," "crime scenes," and "traffic laws." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
The education levels that patrolmen earn slightly differ from campus safety officers. In particular, patrolmen are 0.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a campus safety officer. Additionally, they're 0.4% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Campus safety officer vs. Security
Security Agents guard the entrance and exit of a building, watching CCTV footage for unusual activities, and holding trespassers until authorities arrive. Being a security agent is usually a shift-based job and can sometimes last overnight. Security Agents must have first aid knowledge and basic skills with self-defense.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, campus safety officer responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "criminal justice," "federal laws," "emergency calls," and "osha." Meanwhile, a security has duties that require skills in areas such as "ladders," "good judgment," "customer service," and "metal detectors." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
On average, securities earn a lower salary than campus safety officers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, securities earn the most pay in the start-up industry with an average salary of $31,007. Whereas campus safety officers have higher pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $35,976.In general, securities achieve similar levels of education than campus safety officers. They're 3.0% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.4% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Campus safety officer vs. Security agent
Security guards are responsible for maintaining and ensuring the peace and safety of the building they are assigned to. They ensure that everyone who enters the building has official business to be done in the building. They are also in charge of patrolling and monitoring activities within the area. Security guards are also tasked to immobilize anyone who seems to pose a threat to the peace and safety of the building. They are also responsible for preventing any untoward incidences or crimes that may happen in the area. Security guards must be observant and alert to be able to succeed in their roles.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from campus safety officer resumes include skills like "criminal justice," "federal laws," "emergency calls," and "osha," whereas a security agent is more likely to list skills in "customer service," "english language," "loss prevention," and "safety oversight. "
Security agents earn the highest salary when working in the hospitality industry, where they receive an average salary of $37,992. Comparatively, campus safety officers have the highest earning potential in the education industry, with an average salary of $35,976.Most security agents achieve a similar degree level compared to campus safety officers. For example, they're 0.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Campus safety officer vs. Security guard
Even though a few skill sets overlap between campus safety officers and security guards, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a campus safety officer might have more use for skills like "criminal justice," "public safety," "federal laws," and "emergency calls." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of security guards require skills like "customer service," "ladders," "law enforcement," and "surveillance equipment. "
Security guards enjoy the best pay in the utilities industry, with an average salary of $30,916. For comparison, campus safety officers earn the highest salary in the education industry.The average resume of security guards showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to campus safety officers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 3.3% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.0%.Types of campus safety officer
Updated January 8, 2025
