Correctional Officer Job Description

The profession of a correctional officer is highly misunderstood, and it has not helped that it has been depicted wrongly in films and on television. Read the correctional officer job description we have provided for you. It will provide the correct information about this profession.

The correctional officers are the guards working inside prisons. Their main job is to make sure that prisoners behave themselves even in the prison. They have to escort them all over the prison and have to keep a close eye on the work done in the prison. Scuffles and fights are common in prison, so the correctional officers have to stop them.

There is risk involved in this job, but the risk factor is also dependent on the kind of prison they are guarding. The correctional officers guard city, state and federal prisons. There are also low security prisons for white-collared criminals where the risk factor is less.

The main job of the officers to make sure that no one escapes from the prisons. They also have to do regular checks on the prisoners for contraband and weapons. Prisoners are known to make shanks and shivs for brawls. The correctional officers have to make sure that such weapons are confiscated in time. This is an important part of the correctional officer job description.

The correctional officers have to be in good shape and should have adequate training to tackle difficult situations. They also have to keep a close watch on the relatives that come in to visit the prisoners. The relatives sometimes bring drugs for them hidden in bags or even on their body. Hence, the officers have to closely watch over all the meetings.

The correctional officers have an extremely difficult job, but they are doing a great service to the society. They can even recommend names of prisoners for parole. To know about this profession in finer detail, read the correctional officer job description given below in bulleted detail.

Duties and Responsibilities of Correctional Officer

They have to guard the prisons they are assigned to
They have to ensure that the prisoners are on their best behavior
The officers have to prevent fights inside the prison
They have to do regular checks for contraband and weapons
They have to recommend names for parole of prisoners who show good behavior
The correctional officers can even start social programs that will help prisoners
The correctional officers have to oversee all the activities in the prison
They have to be aware of volatile situations and diffuse tensions before any problems occur
They need to know prisoners and gangs and keep close watch on all of them
The correctional officers have to provide security to prisoners who may face threat from other prisoners
They should be in good shape and should know some form of martial arts for better protection

Education

A bachelor's degree is mandatory
They need to clear a written exam before receiving training
They also have to clear a physical examination

Career Advancement

The correctional officers move up in the prison management. The highest position they can get upto is the prison warden, but to get here they need to have good education and lots of experience.

We are seeing a huge staff crunch in prisons, many new prisons are being made, but there are not enough people. Therefore, there is huge requirement in this field. If interested, read the correctional officer job description.