Is it your department, or policing?
Some officers who want out are leaving one department's politics, schedule or leadership. Others are done with the risk and the public hostility that come with any patrol job. The fix is different, so tick what's true for you.
There are no wrong answers, and ticking a mix is normal.
How much of the street each exit keeps
Pew's 2017 survey of 7,917 officers found that 58% said the work nearly always or often made them feel proud, 51% said it nearly always or often left them frustrated, and 56% said the job had made them more callous. Pride and frustration in the same person is the usual starting point for a career change.
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| Police patrol officers | 69.2% |
| Probation officers | 61.7% |
| Detectives and criminal investigators | 42.5% |
| Information security analysts | 2% |
| Claims adjusters and investigators | 1.4% |
| Private detectives and investigators | 0.8% |
| Emergency management directors | 0% |
| Training and development specialists | 0% |
O*NET asks workers how often they deal with violent or physically aggressive people, and the answers split the exits into two groups. Probation and detective work keep much of the exposure. Every private-sector move on the chart drops it to near zero.
14 careers police officers move into, ranked by what you want
Pick what matters most. The list re-ranks. Pay is the US median compared with the police officer median of $76,210. Open any row for why it fits and the first step.
Pay: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 medians where an occupation exists. “Skills carried over” and “Fit” are our editorial ratings.
What 4,288 experienced career changers told us
Government data tells you what each career pays. It can't tell you what holds experienced people back or what they want next. These answers come from 4,288 MyPassion.ai quiz takers with four or more years of work experience, across every profession, January 29, 2026 to September 24, 2026. We publish a single profession only once at least 100 people from it have taken the quiz, and police officers aren't there yet.
What this means for you: not knowing which direction to pick is the most common struggle, ahead of being bored in the current job. The exit finder above narrows the field; the quiz below is built for the direction question.
Source: MyPassion.ai Career Changer Index 2026, self-reported answers from quiz takers with 4+ years of experience or returning after a break, January 29, 2026 to September 24, 2026. n = 4,288; each card shows its own base.
The quiz matches what you enjoy and what you're good at to specific careers, with salary data for each. Under 10 minutes, free.
Take the free quiz →Your years on patrol aren't wasted. Here's what they're worth outside the department
O*NET lists documenting information, working with the public and making decisions under pressure as the top activities of patrol work. Every one of those has a civilian name. Cut the acronyms and put a number on the paperwork.
Three ways to make the switch
How you leave matters as much as where you go. Pick the route that matches your pension clock and how far you're moving.
Detective, claims, fraud, background or workplace investigation. Your interviewing and report writing transfer directly, and employers in these fields know the record.
If your next pension milestone is close and the step is large, stay to it. Test a destination on days off and get the license hours or credential in place before you leave.
Information security is the main move that needs study: a certification path and an entry-level role before the median salary.
Where these jobs are posted
Law enforcement job boards show law enforcement jobs. Search by the title and the type of employer instead.
Search "special investigation unit", "SIU investigator", "fraud investigator" at insurers.
Search "compliance analyst", "corporate security", "asset protection", "loss prevention" at banks, retailers and large employers.
Search "emergency management coordinator" at county, state and hospital emergency management offices.
Search "background investigator", "workplace investigator", "employee relations investigator" at contractors and investigation firms.
Search "training specialist" at academies, security companies and corporate learning teams.
Does your police CV still work?
For investigations, mostly yes. For corporate roles, it needs translating out of department language.
Detective, SIU and background investigation. Lead with case types, report volume and court testimony.
Compliance, security and HR investigations. Re-tell two cases as findings, controls and outcomes, with no case numbers.
Information security. Certifications and a home lab project in the target field.
Count the pension years, then check the license
Many police pensions have a step in them. Under the Pennsylvania State Police plan for officers who entered the academy from 2019, 20 years of service earns 50% of your highest single year of pay. At 19 years, an officer on the 1.0 multiplier gets the basic formula, worth 38% of a three-year average salary, and only in full from 55. Your plan will differ, so ask for two written estimates: at your current service and at your next milestone.
Private investigation is licensed by the state. California's Bureau of Security and Investigative Services requires 6,000 hours of paid investigative experience, lists sworn law enforcement officers as a qualifying employer, and sets a two-hour multiple-choice exam. Three years of full-time sworn service can cover the hours.
- Stay to the milestone if it's close and the step is large
That year can be worth more than a second career's raises in its first five years. Run the transition while serving.
- Get the license or credential while you serve
A PI license, a Certified Fraud Examiner credential or FEMA courses can be earned before you leave, so the first job search starts with them.
- Leave now if the milestone is far or the step is small
Then the pension stops being a reason to wait, and the plan is a job search now.
What happened to officers who left
Paraphrased from public Reddit threads, usernames removed. Each card links to its thread.
After about ten years as a cop, one officer left to become a counselor, later earned a PhD and now works as a professor.
A detective who left found an investigative job that still allowed field work.
Asked what former officers do, the top answer came from someone in an insurance special investigation unit, pointing departing officers to SIU work.
One answer listed former cops they knew who now sell cars, work in real estate, became lawyers, sell insurance or work in finance.
Questions police officers ask before switching
What is the best job for a former police officer?
It depends on what you are leaving. To keep investigating without the street, insurance fraud and claims investigation, compliance and corporate investigations reuse your report writing and interviewing with almost no exposure to violence. To stay in public safety with a desk and a plan, emergency management fits. To keep the badge with better pay, detective or federal investigator roles are the lateral step.
Should I leave the police before or after 20 years?
Run your own plan's numbers first, because many police pensions have a step at 20 years. Under the Pennsylvania State Police plan for officers who entered from 2019, 20 years earns 50% of your highest single year of pay, while leaving at 19 falls back to a basic formula worth about 38% of a three-year average for most members. Request a written estimate at your current service and at 20.
Can a police officer become a private investigator?
Yes, and police work usually counts toward the license. In California, the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services requires 6,000 hours of paid investigative experience, lists sworn law enforcement officers among qualifying employers, then sets a two-hour exam. Rules vary by state.
What jobs can ex-cops do that pay well?
In the May 2025 BLS wage data, detectives and criminal investigators, emergency management directors, compliance officers and claims investigators all earn more than the patrol officer median of $76,210, and information security analysts earn far more but need technical training. Private investigation pays less, so it tends to work beside a pension.
Why are so many police officers leaving?
Resignations are the part that grew. A Police Executive Research Forum survey of 217 agencies found 18.4% more resignations in 2024 than in 2019, while retirements were only 1.6% higher and sworn staffing was still 5.2% below January 2020. The officers leaving now are more often mid-career people choosing to go early.
Do police skills transfer to corporate jobs?
More directly than most officers expect. O*NET lists documenting and recording information as a core activity of patrol work, and the tasks include incident reports and court testimony. That is the daily work of an insurance investigator or a compliance analyst. The gap is vocabulary, not skill.
Can I test a new career before I resign?
Yes. Call an insurer's SIU investigator, sit in on a county emergency management exercise, teach an in-service block, or subcontract one private investigation case on days off. Keep a short log of how each felt.
Can I go back to policing later?
Often, through a lateral hire, though you may face a new background check and academy requirements depending on your state and how long you've been out. Ask your state's police standards board how long your certification stays valid.
Answer a few questions and get matched careers with salary data and a first step for each.
Start the free quiz →Related guides
- How to change careers: the full guide
- I hate my job: what to do first
- Transferable skills mid-career
- Military career change guide
- Social workers changing careers
- Where people in human resources move next
- The Golden Handcuffs Index
- Lawyers changing careers
- Low-stress jobs that still pay well
- Taking a pay cut for a career change
- How long a career change takes
Sources
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (pay)
- O*NET OnLine, Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers (work context, activities and related occupations)
- Pennsylvania SERS, State Police retirement benefits fact sheet
- Police Executive Research Forum, 2025 workforce survey
- Pew Research Center, Behind the Badge (2017)
- California Bureau of Security and Investigative Services, private investigator factsheet
- Reddit, "To those who left law enforcement for whatever reason" (r/AskLE, 2021)
- Reddit, "Leaving law enforcement" (r/AskLE, 2025)
- Reddit, "What did you do after leaving LE for work?" (r/AskLE, 2024)
- Reddit, "Career choices for former LEO" (r/AskLE, 2023)
- MyPassion.ai Career Changer Index 2026 (quiz takers with 4+ years of experience)