Description / Duties:
     Depending on the police department or agency, the titles of probation officer and parole officer can be used interchangeably or be used to describe two separate positions. If used to differentiate duties, the probation officer oversees the criminals who are under a set of instructions from a judge but not needing to serve a jail sentence and parole officers oversee the criminals who have served time in prison and have been released. If used interchangeably, the duties of the position include overseeing people on probation and parole.
     Before a person even appears in court, the probation officer may be asked to talk to the person and then give the judge recommendations as to which type of punishment would be best suited to the suspect. These recommendations are based on the person's prior record, the severity of the crime, the person's level of involvement in the crime, and whether or not they will benefit most from probation or serving time in prison. The probation officer will often be required to attend pre-trail hearings or parole board meetings at which time they can answer any questions about their written reports.
     After the criminal is sentenced to probation or released on parole, they're assigned to a probation officer. The officer works with the individual to help them find jobs and housing, job training or an education, and substance abuse or other types of counseling. The main goal is rehabilitate the person on probation or a parolee so they become active and law-abiding members of the community. They're also responsible for ensuring the safety of the community by monitoring the people assigned to them and reporting or arresting the person for involvement in any illegal activity. They can also have the person taken into custody if they violate any part of the orders or instructions handed down by the courts.
     Probation officers are are responsible for writing reports for and communicating with the courts and the law enforcement agencies within the community.

Schedule:
     Probation officers generally work a standard forty hour work week. Some overtime may be required in order to meet deadlines for reports or when the officer is investigating a person in order to gather the information needed to make recommendations to the court.

Requirements:
     Most colleges and universities do not offer a specific major related to the career of probation or parole officers. Most police departments and other law enforcement agencies require the officer to obtain a college level (four year) degree in a field of study such as criminal justice, sociology, or psychology. Some agencies also require the officer to have at least two years of experience doing field work.