Protective Service · Holland code ECS
First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives
Directly supervise and coordinate activities of members of police force.
Also called: Lieutenant, Patrol Sergeant, Police Captain, Police Sergeant, Captain, Deputy Sheriff, Detective Sergeant, Police Chief.
O*NET 33-1012.00
At a glance
- US median annual pay
- $106,040
- Middle half earn $81,860 to $132,620. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
- Most common education
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)
- 56% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
- Preparation needed
- Job Zone 2 of 5
- Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
What the work involves
The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.
- Supervise and coordinate the investigation of criminal cases, offering guidance and expertise to investigators, and ensuring that procedures are conducted in accordance with laws and regulations.
- Prepare work schedules and assign duties to subordinates.
- Direct collection, preparation, and handling of evidence and personal property of prisoners.
- Investigate and resolve personnel problems within organization and charges of misconduct against staff.
- Explain police operations to subordinates to assist them in performing their job duties.
- Maintain logs, prepare reports, and direct the preparation, handling, and maintenance of departmental records.
- Inform personnel of changes in regulations and policies, implications of new or amended laws, and new techniques of police work.
- Train staff in proper police work procedures.
Skills and knowledge it leans on
Skills
- Reading Comprehension4.0 / 5
- Active Listening4.0 / 5
- Speaking4.0 / 5
- Critical Thinking4.0 / 5
- Monitoring4.0 / 5
- Active Learning3.9 / 5
Knowledge areas
- Public Safety and Security4.7 / 5
- Law and Government4.5 / 5
- Customer and Personal Service4.4 / 5
- Administration and Management4.0 / 5
- English Language3.8 / 5
- Psychology3.8 / 5
Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.
Who tends to enjoy it
How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.
- Realistic41
- Investigative22
- Artistic0
- Social46
- Enterprising98
- Conventional68
The same work abroad
Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.
European occupation titles (ESCO)
- lieutenant · DE Leutnant/Leutnantin · FR lieutenant
- sergeant · DE Unteroffizier/Unteroffizierin · FR sergent-chef
- police commissioner · DE Polizeipräsident/Polizeipräsidentin · FR commissaire de police
- police trainer · DE Ausbilder bei der Polizei/Ausbilderin bei der Polizei · FR formateur en sécurité intérieure/formatrice en sécurité intérieure
- criminal investigator · DE Polizeibeamter im Ermittlungsdienst/Polizeibeamtin im Ermittlungsdienst · FR officier de police judiciaire/officière de police judiciaire
- police detective · DE Kriminalbeamter/Kriminalbeamtin · FR gardien de la paix/gardienne de la paix
Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)
- Police community support officers (6311)11,800 employed
- Officers in armed forces (1161)33,700 employed
- Police officers (sergeant and below) (3312)198,400 employed
Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.
Pay across Europe, for the whole group
Median annual earnings of all employees in “Technicians and associate professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.
| Country | Median pay |
|---|---|
| Belgium | €50,992 |
| Austria | €46,986 |
| Germany | €44,473 |
| Netherlands | €42,448 |
| Ireland | €41,613 |
| Sweden | €41,155 |
| Italy | €34,882 |
| France | €34,816 |
| Spain | €29,757 |
| Portugal | €18,080 |
| Poland | €12,108 |
Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.
Exposure to AI
This occupation sits in the middle third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -0.19. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.
Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.
Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (33-1012).
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