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July 5, 2017

My Life at Niagara County Probation, Brandon Alt, HSI Major, May '18

My life for the last two months of the 2017 summer has been with Niagara County Probation Department. Probation involves supervision of criminals and giving them a chance to change their ways. For many, this is harder than being incarcerated because the department is making them change their own behavior. During the term of my internship, I was placed in multiple roles including contacting probationers, checking for weapons, drug testing and, of course, inputting data into their computer program. I have also shadowed family court, drug court and all other parts of probation. My experiences during my internship, at times, had certain difficulties. When dealing with a huge caseload, you have to utilize a system of organization that keeps you on the right track. I learned how to prepare and issue warrants, violations, and pre-sentence investigations (PSI). I went over the conditions of probation and gathered and reviewed records. I learned how to gather information from new probationers once the judge gave their sentence or asked for a PSI to be done. One of my duties was to call up probationers over the telephone to remind them when their next report date/class was to ensure they made it. On top of all of this, I learned and sharpened my record/entry keeping skills, punctuality, independence, and over all competence in a real working environment as a team. Probation officers work together to conquer huge caseloads.

I believe a classroom cannot fully prepare us for what working in the real world is like in the Criminal Justice System. Working at Niagara County Probation was not troublesome or hard, but it was immensely different from the book work many of us students do in the classroom every day. Trust in your professors when they tell you that taking an internship could mean the difference between an employer hiring you in the future or choosing someone else who has not had that experience. An internship is a huge stepping stone that can lead you to success. I had a remarkable time during my internship; there was never a hesitation in my mind that I was learning every day, for I was exposed to new experiences on a daily basis.

The learning opportunity that was offered to me through Niagara County Probation has helped me find answers in what I want to be when I graduate. I discovered I wanted something else, something a little more outdoors and on my feet dealing with the community. So now, I am pursuing a career in law enforcement and the intelligence community. This discovery was not because I didn’t enjoy the work in the probation office; but rather, because practicing having a real life job allowed me to evaluate the positives and negatives and find the best possible alternative in my mind. I cannot recommend enough the possibility of finding an internship doing something that fits you and one you want the most. Do it early if you can; you may want to take more than one.


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