The Sanford probation office is responsible for the outlying areas and covers major portions of Brevard and Seminole Counties. As of June 2012, the Sanford circuit probation office supervised 7,569 offenders on probation in the area, which makes it one of the larger probation providers in all of Florida. Outside of people on probation, there is an incarcerated population of 2,475 in Sanford and the two counties combined. In total, there are four offices under the supervision of the Sanford circuit: an intake office in Melbourne, and then offices in Cocoa, Titusville and Casselberry.
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Probation officers in the entire state of Florida are granted peace officer status, which means they have the option of carrying a firearm (it is not mandatory) and are allowed to arrest offenders under their supervision if the offender violates the conditions of their probation.
Education and Experience Requirements
All applicants looking for a probation officer job in Sanford are required to have at least a bachelor’s degree from an accredited school. Applicants without a bachelor’s degree will not be accepted, whether or not they have other relevant experience.
There is no work experience requirement, but applicants with education, internship, volunteer or work experience in the areas of criminal justice, law enforcement, military operations, psychology, sociology, social work or counseling will be given preference over applicants who do not have relevant professional experience. There are a series of other requirements that must be met as well.
Training Academy
When considering how to become a probation officer in Sanford, applicants must be prepared to go through a thorough interview and hiring process. The process includes a Civil Service Examination conducted by the local office of the Florida Department of Corrections, a physical exam, a medical and psychological exam, a background check and drug testing, among many other interviews, exams and evaluations.
If an applicant is moved along through the process, they are then required to enroll in a 16-week training academy. Through training, the probation officer recruit will learn how to make arrests, communicate and interview offenders, conduct probation violation investigations and handle firearms (if they opt to do so.)
Probation officer careers in Sanford require that recruits complete 640 hours of training during the first year of employment, and then 40 hours of training every year after the first one. If a probation officer in Sanford, Florida opts to carry a firearm, they are required to get certification to do so, and then to renew that certification every year that they are employed by the department.