Why Continuing Education Is Important for Law Enforcement

Whether you are a patrol officer or in a supervisory position in law enforcement, making time for continuing education can be difficult. Many departments are understaffed, and the workloads keep many peace officers constantly busy. But city, county and state governing bodies have made it clear how important continuing education is for law enforcement by continuing to budget for ongoing training for their officers, with many even including tuition reimbursement for those who want to take a few criminal justice or other law enforcement-related courses. Those in leadership know that continuing education helps give law enforcement officers an edge in their work. Helpful courses may include information on topics such as hostage negotiation, criminal justice administration and law enforcement information technology (IT).

The Advantage of Taking Online Classes

Online classes, whether they are credit-bearing or non-credit bearing, can help broaden your understanding of some of the major issues affecting law enforcement. As long as the classes are offered by an accredited university, the instruction delivered in online classes is held to the same standard as the instruction given in a traditional class, so you will not be missing out on quality by choosing to take classes online. Online classes are also convenient, allowing law enforcement officers to continue working full-time while taking classes, as they can access their courses 24/7. Online classes eliminate the need for a commute, so you will never need to worry about being late for class—only meeting the deadlines set for you by your instructor.

How Free Online Classes Can Supplement Your Career

One of the best kept secrets in academia is the expanding availability of Open Courseware, or free online course material that universities make available to the general public. Paving the way for these courses are some of the nation’s top universities, such as MIT, UC Berkeley and the University of Michigan, all of which provide Open Courseware in a variety of subject areas, including courses related to law enforcement and criminal justice. While not credit-bearing, these courses are nonetheless still put together by some of the brightest minds in law enforcement, and can help challenge you as you grow past academy training to learn more about the world of law enforcement. Course listings have included: DNA Fingerprinting, Genetics and Crime; American National Security Policy; and The Technology of Crime Control.

• The meaning of crime: Explore the motives of criminals and the definition of crime. [The Open University]
• Police Training Course Content: Lessons here will teach you how to write up different reports and the aims and objective of police. [WikiEducation]
• DNA Fingerprinting, Genetics and Crime: Discover how DNA testing is analyzed in court. [University of Michigan]
• American National Security Policy: Identify the official threats to national security while learning about the history of American security policy. [MIT]
• The problem with crime: In this class, you will explore the nature of crime and disorder and how crime is represented. [The Open University]
• Drugs, Politics and Culture: Learn all about drug laws, drug culture in other countries, and global drug trade. [MIT]
• The technology of crime control: Find out how technology systems like closed-circuite video cameras curb crime. [The Open University]
• Introduction to Security: Take this course to learn about different types of security, including loss prevention and physical security. [Weber STate]
• Advanced Topics in Cryptography: Learn about zero-knowledge proofs in this course. [MIT]
• Criminal Law: Get an overview of criminal law here. [Qedoc]
• Juvenile Delinquency and Juvenile Justice: Lessons here cover juvenile court, status offenders, delinquency research, and other topics. [UC Berkeley]
• Radar Jammer in Matlab: Learn how to operate a police radar gun. [Connexions]
• Race, Crime and Citizenship in American Law: Get an overview of the complicated relationship between race and crime in the U.S. [MIT]
• Intelligence and National Security: Learn about the different departments in U.S. intelligence and what they do to protect the country. [MIT]
• Justice: Explore the moral, legal and philosophical arguments for justice. [Harvard]
• Forensic Biology and Impression Evidence: Find out how forensic scientists collect and use evidence. [Kaplan]
• Improving Understanding and Collaboration among First Responders: Learn how to work with other emergency personnel in the event of a public crisis. [Johns Hopkins]
• The Supreme Court, Civil Liberties and Civil Rights: Study the basics of American constitutional law and the Supreme Court. [MIT]
• Violence, Human Rights and Justice: When you take this course, you’ll have a better understanding of political violence, human rights, and human rights cases. [MIT]
• Environmental Justice: Gain a broad understanding of the players, issues and protocol involved with environmental justice cases. [MIT]
• Sexual Health, HIV/STI and Human Rights: Learn about the sexual and reproductive rights people have and the rights of the public regarding sex and STIs. [Johns Hopkins]
• Making and using rules: Get some insight into the purpose of rules and how they’re carried out. [The Open University]
• Human rights and law: Learn about international human rights tribunals and cases. [The Open University]
• Constitutional Law: Get an overview of constitutional law here. [University of the Western Cape]
• Prohibition and Permission: Consider the rules and laws that restrict or dictate our daily life, like eating and marriage. [MIT]
• Children’s rights: Better protect the rights of children after you take this course. [The Open University]
• Judges and the law: When you take this course, you’ll have a better understanding of how judges — particularly in England — make uphold laws and promote justice. [The Open University]
• A Unified Theory of a Law: This in-depth course follows the theory of a law. [Connexions]
• Gender and the Law in U.S. history: Here you will learn about the role of gender and identity in U.S. law and policy. [MIT]
• Aims and Limits of the Criminal Law: Find out exactly what and who criminal law can protect and what it can’t. [UC Berkeley]
• Political Philosophy: Global Justice: Topics covered include global democracy, property rights and the question of global justice. [MIT]
• Selected Topics in Cryptography: Learn how to identify safety protocols for technology use. [MIT]
• Patents, Copyrights, and the Law of Intellectual Property: If you’re interested in intellectual property law, take this course. [MIT]
• Comparative Security and Sustainability: Learn about safety and security systems around the world, and how they may affect states’ relations with each other. [MIT]
• Science in the Courtroom: The Woburn Toxic Trial: Follow this case to understand how science is used in court. [Carleton]
• Company law in context: This business law course narrows its focus on company and organization law. [The Open University]
• Ethics and Law on the Electronic Frontier: Topics covered here include copyright control, privacy, technology policy, and more. [MIT]
• Property Rights in Transition: You’ll gain a better understanding of property rights here. [MIT]
• Law and Society in U.S. History: Find out how major American social issues are resolved in court. [MIT]
• A Primer in Modern Intellectual Property Law: If you’d like to work in intellectual property law enforcement, take this course. [Connexions]
• Civil Litigation I: Learn the basics of civil suits here. [Kaplan]
• Law, Social Movements, and Public Policy: Comparative and International Experience: Find out how major social movements can influence laws, the courts, and even international economics and policies. [MIT]
• Theories of Law and Society: Study different types of law, including Roman law and natural law, in this philosophy course. [UC Berkeley]
• Law and Veterinary Medicine: Take this course if you want to learn more about animal rights and veterinary law. [Tufts]
• Legal Aspects of Property and Land Use: If you’re in the field of property and land use law, you’ll enjoy this comparative law course. [MIT]
• Privacy rights and the law: Learn about the right to privacy in the UK as well as a more universal definition of privacy. [The Open University]
• Wikiversity School of Law: You can look up all sorts of resources for understanding justice and the legal system here. [Wikiversity]
• Inventions and Patents: Learn about patent laws for medical, technological, protective and engineering uses. [MIT]
• Ethics and Law on the Electronic Frontier: Get a legal background on the Internet, including cases involving data mining, the U.S. PATRIOT Act, 4th Amendment, and more. [MIT]
• Does prison work?: Analyze the effectiveness of prison here. [The Open University]