How To Become A Parking Enforcement Officer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a parking enforcement officer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Janet Brewer

The role of parking enforcement officers is important in towns and cities as they help maintain law and order on our roads. A parking enforcement officer, also called a traffic warden or parking inspector, controls the traffic and issues citations for traffic violators.

There are laws guiding road usage, and failure to abide by these rules may attract punishment or fines. When there is an accident, parking enforcement officers quickly control the situation to avoid traffic buildup by controlling traffic.

There are skills parking enforcement officers must possess, including excellent verbal and written communication skills and strong interpersonal skills. The officer must also demonstrate skillfulness in dealing with people in the most courteous manner even if the person[s] involved is proving difficult. Plus, vast knowledge about rules and regulations guiding road usage and traffic laws is also helpful in this role.

To become a parking enforcement officer, you need a minimum of a high school diploma. Nonetheless, you must meet the requirements of any agency you want to work with. You must have a valid driver's license and also pass a physical fitness test.

What general advice would you give to a parking enforcement officer?

Dr. Janet Brewer

Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice & Sociology, Governors State University

Market yourself as someone who can increase revenue or decrease workload for that entity. Use your school's alumni network to its fullest.

ScoreParking Enforcement OfficerUS Average

Salary

3.0

Avg. Salary $38,755

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.9

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

9.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.58%

Asian 11.14%

Black or African American 12.33%

Hispanic or Latino 14.63%

Unknown 1.75%

White 56.57%

Gender

female 36.95%

male 63.05%

Age - 39.5

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 - 39.5

Stress level

8.9

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.6

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

10.0

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a parking enforcement officer

Explore parking enforcement officer education requirements

Most common parking enforcement officer degrees

Bachelor's

41.4 %

High School Diploma

25.8 %

Associate

19.9 %

Start to develop specific parking enforcement officer skills

Skills	Percentages
Parking Enforcement	21.30%
Patrol	17.23%
Motor Vehicle	11.77%
General Supervision	11.64%
Traffic Control	11.18%

Complete relevant parking enforcement officer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New parking enforcement officers 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 parking enforcement officer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real parking enforcement officer resumes.

Research parking enforcement officer duties and responsibilities

Work directly with police officers, violations bureau, and court officials to achieve proper responses to valid subpoenas.
Develop and manage firearms training programs, including weapons selection and qualification standards.
Operate and maintain equipment (weed eaters, blowers, push mowers, chain saws, groomer).
Develop technical skills by operating forklifts, skid loaders and tractors regularly.

Prepare your parking enforcement officer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your parking enforcement officer 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 parking enforcement officer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable parking enforcement officer resume templates

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