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Cop vs police officer

The differences between cops and police officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a cop has an average salary of $92,365, which is higher than the $52,638 average annual salary of a police officer.

The top three skills for a cop include situational awareness, control systems and gccs. The most important skills for a police officer are patrol, public safety, and law enforcement agencies.

Cop vs police officer overview

CopPolice Officer
Yearly salary$92,365$52,638
Hourly rate$44.41$25.31
Growth rate3%3%
Number of jobs1,470116,287
Job satisfaction-2
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age4040
Years of experience--

Cop vs police officer salary

Cops and police officers have different pay scales, as shown below.

CopPolice Officer
Average salary$92,365$52,638
Salary rangeBetween $60,000 And $141,000Between $38,000 And $71,000
Highest paying City-Anchorage, AK
Highest paying state-Alaska
Best paying company-Icma-rc
Best paying industry-Government

Differences between cop and police officer education

There are a few differences between a cop and a police officer in terms of educational background:

CopPolice Officer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common majorBusinessCriminal Justice
Most common college-Pennsylvania State University

Cop vs police officer demographics

Here are the differences between cops' and police officers' demographics:

CopPolice Officer
Average age4040
Gender ratioMale, 69.1% Female, 30.9%Male, 83.2% Female, 16.8%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 18.4% Asian, 3.1% White, 60.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%Black or African American, 12.9% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 3.3% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage7%7%

Differences between cop and police officer duties and responsibilities

Cop example responsibilities.

  • Complete VMWARE infrastructure course lead by certify VMWARE trainer, which cover all aspects of VMWARE installation and support.
  • Work with AIS systems administrators to maintain and upgrade Unix base servers and GCCS applications.
  • Assist POs to develop plans and tools relate to business and marketing opportunities.
  • Deploy to multiple MSCs worldwide to install and to train new users on the proper use of C2PC.
  • Configure servers base video matrix switches base on engineer specifications.
  • Provide build system support for release engineering teams which entail automated installations of Java build engines and Linux server system management.
  • Show more

Police officer example responsibilities.

  • Apprehend violators and log evidence, complete require USAF and DoD forms, and accomplish report.
  • Train in CPR and first aid, radar speed enforcement, domestic violence intervention, pepper spray, and basic anti-terrorism.
  • Gather preliminary investigation information as a first responder to crime scenes.
  • Perform basic patrol functions including criminal and traffic law enforcement, incident reporting and community relations.
  • Complete numerous testimonies at criminal hearings and traffic violations, serve summons, subpoenas and other official documentation.
  • Patrol MARTA trains and bus lines.
  • Show more

Cop vs police officer skills

Common cop skills
  • Situational Awareness, 32%
  • Control Systems, 29%
  • Gccs, 19%
  • Climate, 8%
  • Windows, 7%
  • Law Enforcement, 6%
Common police officer skills
  • Patrol, 27%
  • Public Safety, 6%
  • Law Enforcement Agencies, 5%
  • Emergency Situations, 5%
  • Field Training, 4%
  • CPR, 3%

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