police officer

special agent

operations associate

training specialist

shift manager

United States Capitol Police

Let's start with basics shall we?  

Do not expect to do much in the way of policing in this job.  The only calls you will be responding to are false alarm calls (because just about everything on Capitol Hill that can be fitted with an alarm will be) or calls to let people into various areas or calls to relieve someone from their post so that they can go relive themselves.  I worked with people who had been there for 10-20 years who had never made a single arrest - let that sink in.  If you want to be the "real police", don't waste your time. 

Your basic day to day job function is to stand post at your assigned area, checkpoint, and/or screen people entering the various buildings which are part of the U.S. Capitol complex.  The only exception to this is if you happen to luck out and get into a "specialty unit" like patrol (yes, in USCP driving around in a squad car is actually considered a specialty unit), DPD (Diplomatic Protection Detail), etc. and those can be extremely difficult to get into.  So while they make this job to sound like way more than it is, you are basically going to be stuck standing post.  If you're very unlucky, those posts will be outside in the D.C. weather (i.e. you'll sweat yourself to death during the summer and freeze to death during the winter). 

So you stand post - then what?  Well, when you stood post you were expected to keep an eye on the people (tourists mainly) and check the IDs of any and all staff that were walking through the various buildings.  This sounds easy enough, but if you dared stop someone who didn't have their ID displayed and they actually worked there, you would receive the proverbial "don't you know who I am??" speech.  This extended to members of the U.S. Congress as well because you were actually expected to memorize the faces of all 535 members (yes really).  Congressmen/women are basic treated as royalty and even if you're doing your job, you are going to lose that fight since they are basically immune from everything.  Congressman shows up and wants to walk his 200 member tour into the building bypassing security?  Better let them do it - stuff like that.   

Working hours - oh boy, the working hours.  Technically they have three shifts like anyone else - day, evening, and midnight.  However, because there was almost always something going on within the complex or some alert or other, it was absolutely routine for shifts to get held over on a daily basis.  So your 8 hour shift easily turned into a 16 hour or more shift (my record was 26 hours).  This is because UCSP's response to anything was to simply throw bodies at it - if there were lots of people around, everything would be OK.  So just as you thought you were getting ready to leave for the day, you'd hear the nice "all units be advised that they are being held over".  Then, to top it all off, it was routine for us to get "drafted" into other shifts on our days off.  So you finally had your two days off coming up and "oh by the way, you guys are all drafted to come in and work FRU because the Deputy Assistant Minister to the Undersecretary's Assistant's Assistant from Nowherebekistan was going to be on the Hill for like an hour - so there went your days off after you just finished working like 60 hours.  Again, their answer to a problem was to throw bodies at it.  

These hours were made all the more painful because you were simply standing post and it was routine for people to develop serious back, leg, and knee problems from all of the standing (due to the heavy gear, hard marble floors, etc.).  With few exceptions, you were not allowed to sit down on post. 

The culture at this department was absolutely toxic.  There were serious racial issues there when I was working there and most of the management staff was more concerned about protecting themselves than they were the "troops".  Since they didn't have real police stuff to worry about, management simply micro managed the living heck out of us - walking around making sure we had our hats on, making sure we had all of our uniform stuff, making sure we weren't on our phone, making sure we weren't too far away from our post (you could only venture off a few feet in either direction), making sure you weren't talking with other Capitol staff (like the door guys, elevator guys, interns, etc.), etc.  I forgot my hat once and they seriously wanted to suspend me - I had to get the union involved to stop it, it was absurd.

Pay - you could basically make as much money as you wanted to since they were always looking to have bodies around.  The only limitation was that you could not make more money than the Speaker of the House and several guys I knew came close.  One guy I worked with easily made $125,000 a year on average, but keep in mind two things with that - (1) you will have NO life since you will spend every waking moment of your life on Capitol Hill and (2) even with that kind of money, the cost of living in the D.C. area is beyond ridiculous (I lived close to 2 hours away and that was common).  Even making that kind of money doesn't help you too much, so if you were not killing yourself by working all of those hours, you were barely surviving due to the high cost of living.  I actually knew a few guys who lived out of vans on the Hill to save money.  So if your only motivator is money, you can definitely make it here.

Career prospects - unless you did something really stupid, you could easily make a career out of this place.  However, the consensus was always that you were an idiot if you did.  When I was there, the average life expectancy of an officer with this department was around 1 1/2 years to 2 years before they quit and moved on.  I literally lost 8 of my classmates within the first six months after graduation - that was how bad the attrition rate was (or probably still is).  By the end of my second year, close to 3/4 of my graduating class had moved on to other agencies.  If you see a department that is always constantly hiring non-stop, it's a sign folks.  As mentioned above, there were/are some specialty units that you can move into, but it's hit or miss.  We had the DPD as I mentioned earlier (basically you're a body guard for House/Senate leadership), a SWAT team (which basically spent its entire time training and then simply doing escort duty for high level government VIPs who came to the building - good gig if you could get in), a few "investigator" jobs (which really didn't investigate much), patrol, being a teacher at the academy, etc.  

Training - I can't really complain here as their training was actually pretty good and I actually had fun doing it.  At the time, you spent around 10 weeks at the FLETC facility in Georgia and then did another 10 weeks at the FLETC facility in Maryland (USCP's own agency specific academy).  This is why many people tried to get on with USCP - it was easy to get hired on, you got some good training and earned your federal LE certification, and then you could more easily transfer to another agency afterwards.  Like I mentioned earlier, within the first few years, most of my classmates had left the USCP for other agencies.  Training consisted of the usual - driving (which I never understood since you don't do any of it on the job), defensive tactics, firearms, arrest techniques, etc.  USCP specific training basically just involved learning how to use x-ray machines, handheld magnetometers, CBR, and some USCP specific policy stuff.    

So do I have any real pros to share?  Not many - this is an easy agency to get hired into unless you have some serious issues with your background or you're cognitively challenged.  The turnover is (was?) so bad that they are always desperate for people (same thing with MPDC).  The money was good, but the extreme high cost of living negates that.  I was able to meet a lot of cool people which included actors/actresses, comedians, authors, etc. since there is always someone famous visiting for one reason or another.  Some members of congress are actually pretty cool and they made some of our days/nights tolerable by providing us with food and drinks (since USCP didn't give us squat and you could never predict when you were going to be there for like 20 hours and prepare accordingly).  Working in the U.S. Capitol was actually pretty cool and I'm not really a huge U.S. history buff.  It was cool having total access to things that the public would never get to see, the paintings, the statues, etc.  If I had visitors come into town, I could take them on tours and it was also fun talking to the tourists who came there from all over the world.  Being asked to sit down with a congressman/woman or ex-president (under the right circumstances) for a chat or a drink had its moments as well, so I definitely came away with some memories that I won't forget.

But honestly, unless you are looking at this place as being a stepping stone to another federal agency (or local), I would suggest that you don't waste your time.  If you want to do real policing and live in this area, apply for MPDC or with one of the outlying counties like Charles County, PG County, St. Mary's County, Alexandria, etc.  There are so many LE agencies in and around D.C. that it isn't even funny, so you have so many other ones to choose from.  If you think you can be happy standing post and really think you are somehow protecting democracy, this is the place for you.

The reality of the job is that you're a glorified security guard with 500+ bosses (Members of Congress) on top of the bosses you already have on your division. 

95% of officials are only looking out for themselves and looking for their next promotional opportunity, which means, they'll change a SOP to something less efficient and sometimes making it a more dangerous situation for the Officer so that he/she can say they did something innovative when it comes time for their promotional interview.  

Shifts within Divisions constantly fight over who gets stuck with unwanted overtime (work). Hint: The shift with the most senior officers always get their way and the extra work is thrown onto "younger" shifts. The only way to get on the most senior shift( they all gravitate to day-work) is to be on the department for at least 8 -10 years.

The job itself makes you lazy to the point where a good amount of officers do not enforce the law so they don't have to do paperwork; clock in and clock out....."do my eight and skate" attitude. 

If you do happen to get involved in an incident by doing your job, you'll be questioned by the Supervisor as to why you did what you did and then be told that you're creating unscheduled overtime and you're messing up the break schedule rotation. Seriously. (This is if you're working a post like a normal security guard) They legally can't tell you to not do your job, but they can say certain things to get the point across.....it's an effective loophole.

There are officers on the department who legally cannot make any arrests because they have been caught lying in court. Why does USCP continue to employ them? Because It's cheaper to retain them than to hire new officers. Fact.

Work for this department if you want to become disillusioned in federal law enforcement and the security of the Capitol Complex. You really have to see it to believe it. 

Don't believe me? Apply. Good luck.

I'd rather do something more with my life. 

There's much more.....but this is a public review.

A good strategy would be if you get into this department, get your FLETC Certificate, finish your probationary period, then immediately jump somewhere else.

The first few pay increases are fast for the first 4 years, but then the pay increase slows down substantially. It's a trapping mechanism to hold onto more people. This department has the reputation of a revolving door. 
Get in and get out while you can before it's too late....as in...the money gets too good that no other place will match your current salary. The longer you stay the harder it is to leave. The payscale was expertly designed this way, which is why morale will always be low there.

This agency could be a very good police agency if they replaced most of the management and focused on what our man goal is: protect congress from terrorism and threats. The Management has an "Us vs Them" mentality when it comes to the front line officers. Some of the management have been in trouble themselves yet still get promoted up the ladder. A typical day at work should be to look out for terrorism and threats of the Capitol Complex and protect the Senators and House members, but recently it has been how is management going to come after me today. I am an employee who does my job and does it well, but seeing how management treats other officers who do the same thing is ridiculous. Even if you have the experience to get a specialty, unless you know the management personally you will be passed up every single time. Most of the co-workers are there to do the job, but you got some like every job that do the least to get by. The one thing though is I have met some of my closest friends at this job and it makes me get through the day. Its hard to say the most enjoyable part about this job because while I am there it is not enjoyable. You get walked all over by the staffers and our management usually backs them. The biggest enjoyment I get is the leave that I can build up. The retirement is a joke. Where most police departments get 80% of their salary when they retire we get 39%. You are just a number to this department and they think they should come before your family. If you try to put your family first you will get disciplined. Be prepared to work up to 16 hours at a moments notice as well. They can "draft" you to work if they are short or a demonstration comes up at the last minute and they will not care if you have family stuff to do. At the same time if you need something last minute they will not help you out. Also be prepared to stand for that long too. They normally do not break down the schedule to help you get off of your feet. This job is good if you want to come to and go through motions. If you want to use your brain and make a difference look elsewhere because this agency is reactive, not proactive.

Prior to the January 6th, the department really was moving in the right direction.  We had taken in a lot of new hires, the specialty divisions were growing, and the overall outlook of things looked great.  Post January 6th we have had hundreds of officers outright quit, moral has dropped to all time low, the amount of forced overtime has become obscene and the management continues to make the wrong decisions with no one holding them accountable.  Officers that have been on since 9/11 have all agreed that this is hands down the worst time period they have ever seen and it does not appear it will get better anytime soon. Which, is really unfortunate because for the longest time I enjoyed working for USCP.  My experience had been great working for the Dignitary Protection Division.  But the amount of forced overtime and the strain that all of the sworn officers have been subjected to is unsustainable. What's worse is that our command staff is too incompetent to see that its slow destroying the department (not that they were ever competent leaders to begin with).  

Pay is amazing and is one of the highest starting salaries for a federal uniformed officer.  The job is unique and you will be witnessing history in the making. The specialty divisions are what make this place shine with DPD being the best one. But if you are looking for a high speed law enforcement job, this is not for you. If you are interested in doing force protection and making a ton of money and enjoying some good benefits, then apply. To be happy here, you need to find your niche and stick with it.

Worked there over 20 years. Pros- Good salary. Had a lot of diverse assignments.  The opportunities are there if you don't abuse your sick leave, apply yourself, do what you're supposed to do.  
Cons- Bad retirement.  Forget getting holidays off, you will be required to work the majority of them. Leave is hard to get. The whiners go to the union and the union does nothing but try to make all management look bad. Moving up in rank isn't worth it. Salary is the only benefit to it. Too many headaches and most upper level managers are not fair or have favorites who get special treatment.  Most of them just want to get higher in rank and use you. They take credit for your work or discipline officers/lower officials to try and make themselves look good to upper management by being seen as strict disciplinarians, regardless of whether or not it is right/justified. Department never accepts blame/responsibility for their mistakes. Holds people accountable for things that aren't even in policy. No one in upper management really cares about making things better or the officers needs. Rather force overtime than hire enough people.

If you work for Capitol Police at night you won’t get holidays off.  You only get a holiday off if it falls on your day off.  Forced overtime happens constantly.  The chief blocks out lots of days that people can’t take off no matter what is going on in your life.  2021 already has lots of days blocked out.  Summer time leave with your family is almost impossible to get unless you ask for special permission months ahead of time.  Then you still might be told no.

There is tons of money to be made.  You won’t have a life but, you will make great money.  Officers burn out quickly.  If you are a loner type this is probably the perfect job for you.  You can get a post where you will basically see nobody all day or night.

Do not think about calling in sick.  You will get a negative write up in your jacket.  It doesn’t matter if you show up the next day with a broken leg and a note from your doctor.  You will still get written up.  God forbid you should take a sick day before or after a scheduled day off.  Your write up will let all the supervisor know it.  This will keep you from ever getting a better assignment.

Overall, the Department is a great place to work.  People applying for the job have to understand from the beginning is that this is not a traditional police department.  Although you attend some great training, the Department is more geared towards security work.  That being said, you are still a Police Officer, and you are required to take action if necessary.  Upon graduation from the academy, new officers will spend a couple of weeks with a training officer.  Afterwards, you will be assigned to one of the Uniformed Divisions.  Expect to work an x-ray machine and magnetometer, conduct building patrols, answer alarm calls and stand post outside in all types of weather.  The pay and benefits are second to none.  The retirement program is good, but start putting money into the Thrift Savings Plan (Government's 401k) as soon as you are hired.

The best part of the job is being present as history occurs.

After 28 years the only thing I can say is that the job is what you make of it. If you want to make a difference you can. I did. If you want a career in law enforcement this might be for you. Cost of living around the DC area is high. I worked with a lot of great people. You are a part of history that goes back to 1828. opportunities for females is outstanding. There is room for growth and movement in departments. I enjoyed working with my staff, they were the best. Highly trained team that when a emergency response was needed the were ready to respond. Dealt with different law enforcement agencies throughout the DC area. Bosses where good most of the time, some had egos that you had to deal with. You will have that with any job, you learn how to deal with that but you become good at customer service.

I took a temporary (1 month) assignment to gain federal space experience. My days consisted mostly of administrative tasks both simple and complex. My direct boss was an amazing person; fair, kind, lenient, trusting. The office culture however was very different. There is a lot of explicit and implicit exclusion, bouts of collusion, and creation of hostile work environment for employees of a certain title, classification, race etc. If you are a person who does not mind working under these conditions, its a wonderful department to work for. I met a lot of great people and personalities and some not so great. My advice is keep your head down, believe in no one but yourself, and understand that no one is your friend. Everyone is there for self, self-advancement, self-preservation, benefits, and a great retirement package.

During my career as a U. S. Capitol Police Officer, I have worked with a team of professionals who put our lives on the line everyday. A typical day at work includes handling multiple priorities, responding to emergencies and significant interaction with the public. Our management is fully supportive and provides us with challenging experiences. The most difficult part of my job is emergency preparedness when the terror alert is elevated. I enjoy serving my country while dealing with the public.

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