What does a police sergeant do?
A Police Sergeant is responsible for supervising patrol officers and agents, as assigned. They oversee and assess the performance of subordinates, such as disciplinary actions, continued training, and counseling.
Police sergeant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real police sergeant resumes:
- Plan, manage, develop, implement and revise the training FTO program, as needed.
- Collaborate with federal and state agencies, including the FBI, DEA, ATF, IRS and SBI.
- Perform data entry into NCIC system, protection from abuse database, and automate incident memo systems.
- Provide keen oversight to multiple divisions, including animal control, records, communications, training, and docket detention.
- Coordinate department's firearms training and qualification programs for officers.
- Complete advanced firearms, interviewing, interrogation, and supervision training.
- Institute new tracking and organizational protocols for patrol equipment to increase accountability and equipment care.
- Develop a comprehensive time management/accountability program for patrol officers that increase self-initiated productivity, individual efficiency, and unit effectiveness.
- Investigate complex incidents, to include but not limit to narcotics trafficking, money laundering, sexual assaults and homicide.
- Ensure court subpoenas are adhere to by assign personnel.
- Serve subpoenas at direction of prosecutors.
- Arrange quarterly Compstat, take complaint reports (CRs), handle special attentions and conduct roll call training.
- Specialize training for investigation of narcotics, robbery, vice and intelligence gathering.
- Serve as lead investigator on numerous homicides and other felonies resulting in arrests and successful prosecutions.
Police sergeant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 32% of Police Sergeants are proficient in Patrol, Public Safety, and Emergency Situations. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Empathy, and Good judgment.
We break down the percentage of Police Sergeants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patrol, 32%
Obtained instructor certification from the Massachusetts Criminal Justice Training Council, Applied Patrol Procedures for full-time and reserve intermittent police academies.
- Public Safety, 8%
Planned Police Department response to numerous significant events, assuring adequate staffing to maintain public safety while remaining within budget.
- Emergency Situations, 5%
Provided specialized pedestrian and traffic control services in connections with ceremonies, emergency situations, and similar events.
- Law Enforcement Agencies, 5%
Transported parole violators apprehended by allied law enforcement agencies from one jurisdiction to another and to local detention facilities.
- Field Training, 3%
Qualified Field Training Officer recognized for critical thinking as area of expertise conducting investigations and provided recommendations.
- CPR, 3%
Provided first aid and CPR to victims as necessary.
Common skills that a police sergeant uses to do their job include "patrol," "public safety," and "emergency situations." You can find details on the most important police sergeant responsibilities below.
Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a police sergeant to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "police and detectives must be able to speak with people and to express details in writing about an incident." Police sergeants often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "developed and cultivated an email-based communication system to alert residents and businesses to crime trends and enhance police / community relations. "
Empathy. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling police sergeant duties is empathy. The role rewards competence in this skill because "police officers need to understand the perspectives of a variety of people in their jurisdiction and be willing to help the public." According to a police sergeant resume, here's how police sergeants can utilize empathy in their job responsibilities: "demonstrated expertise in the application and understanding of criminal law, human behavior, investigation techniques, evidence collection and analysis. "
Good judgment. police sergeants are also known for good judgment, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to police sergeant responsibilities, because "police and detectives must be able to determine the best way to solve an array of problems." A police sergeant resume example shows how good judgment is used in the workplace: "exercised independent judgment in meeting emergency situations. "
Leadership skills. For certain police sergeant responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "leadership skills." The day-to-day duties of a police sergeant rely on this skill, as "police officers must be comfortable with being a highly visible member of their community, as the public looks to them for help in emergencies." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what police sergeants do: "provide leadership, motivation, direction and resources as well command critical incidents. "
Physical strength. A commonly-found skill in police sergeant job descriptions, "physical strength" is essential to what police sergeants do. Police sergeant responsibilities rely on this skill because "police officers must be strong enough to physically apprehend suspects and to assist people in precarious situations." You can also see how police sergeant duties rely on physical strength in this resume example: "utilized verbal and physical techniques to maintain control of criminal investigations. "
The three companies that hire the most police sergeants are:
- University of Nebraska System
3 police sergeants jobs
- Lenoir Memorial Hospital2 police sergeants jobs
- State of Georgia: Teachers Retirement System of Georgia2 police sergeants jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable police sergeant resume templates
Build a professional police sergeant resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your police sergeant resume.
Compare different police sergeants
Police sergeant vs. Deputy commander
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between police sergeants and deputy commander. For instance, police sergeant responsibilities require skills such as "patrol," "public safety," "emergency situations," and "law enforcement agencies." Whereas a deputy commander is skilled in "logistics support," "oversight," "emergency operations," and "combat support." This is part of what separates the two careers.
The education levels that deputy commanders earn slightly differ from police sergeants. In particular, deputy commanders are 15.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a police sergeant. Additionally, they're 1.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Police sergeant vs. Co-captain
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that police sergeant responsibilities requires skills like "patrol," "public safety," "emergency situations," and "law enforcement agencies." But a co-captain might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "championship," "scholarship," "all-conference," and "soccer."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Co-captains tend to reach lower levels of education than police sergeants. In fact, they're 5.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Police sergeant vs. Deputy chief of staff
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, police sergeants are more likely to have skills like "patrol," "public safety," "emergency situations," and "law enforcement agencies." But a deputy chief of staff is more likely to have skills like "human resources," "logistics support," "direct support," and "legal assistance."
Deputy chief of staff earn the best pay in the government industry, where they command an average salary of $102,164. Police sergeants earn the highest pay from the government industry, with an average salary of $62,320.When it comes to education, deputy chief of staff tend to earn higher degree levels compared to police sergeants. In fact, they're 11.6% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 6.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Police sergeant vs. Command master chief
Types of police sergeant
Updated January 8, 2025
