WOULD AN ACADEMIC ROUTE WORK FOR YOU?
I think we can all agree that professional development is important for both career advancement and personal growth but what’s the best way to progress? When I talk to people who work in a practical field, such as close protection, experience is always emphasised as central to professional development.
Whilst I completely agree that experience should be at the core of professional development when working in a close protection environment, I think that there can sometimes be an over-reliance on experience as the sole source of professional development opportunities. This is, of course, limiting and so I am going to argue the case for introducing or extending the academic element of your professional development portfolio.
Starting with the basics
There are, of course, basic requirements for becoming a close protection operative, such as having a clean criminal record and (if you are in the UK) gaining your Security Industry Authority (SIA) licence. Getting the SIA licence is dependent on successfully completing an academic qualification (the Level 3 Certificate in Close Protection) from an approved provider but sometimes this is where formal qualifications end. Of course other training is often recommended and a quick search on the internet reveals there is a wealth of courses available such as First Aid training, firearms training, defence and restraint tactics, threat and risk assessment, surveillance awareness, and security operations training. The problem is that some of these courses are not formally accredited and do not result in qualifications. The difficultly with this is that it is hard to independently assess the quality of these courses which limits their value on the old CV.
I suspect that it is likely that you have already attended courses on at least some of the topics listed above (plus others) and that you may hold some formal qualifications as a result. This begs the question, why do you need to do anything else? The most obvious answer is professional development should be continuous. There are always changes and improvements being made in every field and it is important to keep abreast of current and emerging trends and new developments. Furthermore, my view is that everyone should aim to be a life-long learner and strive to continually improve their knowledge and skill base. Not only does this help us do our jobs more effectively but will also promote personal growth (e.g. by boosting confidence). Perhaps, more importantly, a focus on professional development will help you to stand out from the crowd. We should also strive to increase the level we are working at so that we can get that all important promotion. Have I convinced you yet?
The challenges and why you should do it anyway
Ok, so hopefully I have convinced you (if you weren’t convinced already!) that continuous professional development is a good thing. What I haven’t done yet is convince you that incorporating an academic element is worth considering. I do recognise that taking the academic route is not without problems but I honestly feel that many of the obstacles can be overcome. If I have managed to whet your appetite for professional development via an academic route then I have a few tips which you might find useful.
Tips for Professional Development via Academia
1. Set your own goals
What is the point of developing your career in a direction that does not interest you? However, bear in mind that if you want to progress within a particular organisation you will need to ensure your goals match/correlate/dovetail with those of that organisation to demonstrate you are worth having/keeping on their books.
2. Don’t study for study’s sake
A few, well-respected, targeted/focused qualifications are much better that 100s of unaccredited bit part courses.
3. Practical application
Focus on skills development not just knowledge.
4. Look for opportunities everywhere
There is nothing wrong with being focused but don’t be narrow minded. You might be surprised at what is available if you are willing to look around and ask questions about what courses are on offer.
5. Transferable skills
Skills can be developed in your field but also outside – e.g. transferable skills such as communication can be learned in a variety of different ways so don’t dismiss a course outright because it is not close protection focused.
6. Alignment
Identify a job you want, look at the job specification and work towards developing your skills to align yourself with the essential and desirable criteria. Think of clear examples of how you demonstrate each skill listed in the job specification. If you can’t, specifically look for courses and/or experience that will provide an example.
7. Establish a routine
If you do enrol in a course get into a routine if you can as allocating dedicated time to work will facilitate success. However, also try to maintain a good work-life balance or you may burn out. It is important to take time out to relax to help keep motivation high.
Conclusion
Whilst I agree that building experience is essential in a close protection environment, please don’t forget that qualifications can be used to formally demonstrate that you “know your stuff”. This can really assist you in securing work, especially if employers are sifting through CVs as the starting point of the recruitment process. From my perspective, I do think there is an increasing shift towards academic qualifications within the close protection community and I sincerely hope that interest in this area continues to grow. Now the emphasis is on people like me who work in the education sector to ensure that we meet your expectations!
Dr Amy Burrell
Associate Trainer
Perpetuity Training
