88-520
SUFFOLK COUNTY
PROBATION OFFICER
CIVIL SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES
http://www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Departments/Civil-Service
·
LAST FILING DATE: MAY 8, 2024
·
WRITTEN TEST DATE: JUNE 15, 2024
·
COUNTY ANNUAL
SALARY $56,898
·
GRADE 21 STEP 1
(Bargaining Unit 16)
SPECIFICATION # 6511
All statements made on the application may be verified and the backgrounds of successful candidates
are subject to investigation by the appointing authority.
APPLICATION PROCESSING FEE and FEE WAIVER
The application
processing fee is $125. Application may be made
via the internet at www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Departments/Civil-Service. Payment must be made
by VISA or MasterCard credit card and there will be an additional convenience
fee of $1.95. An acknowledgement of
receipt of application will be sent to all internet
applicants via e-mail. A separate application and processing fee are required
for each examination (identified by examination number) for which you are
applying. The application
processing fee is non-refundable and non-transferable.
The application processing
fee may be waived for Suffolk County residents who are veterans, active duty
military, members of the reserves or National Guard, auxiliary police,
firefighters, members in good standing of a local fire district or ambulance
company, members of a Volunteer Fire Department or Volunteer Emergency Medical
Services Agency Explorers programs, volunteer CERT members and members of the
Suffolk County Police Explorers program. The fee may also
be waived if you are unemployed and primarily responsible for the
support of a household and for recipients of Medicaid, SSI, Public Assistance
or those in a training program under the Job Training Partnership Act/Workforce
Investment Act administered by a state or local social service agency.
Applicants should complete the “Request for Application Fee Waiver and
Certification” form online. All claims for application fee waiver are subject
to verification.
VACANCIES
The eligible list for this title will be used to fill future vacancies in the Suffolk County
Probation Department.
DUTIES
This is the entry-level professional
position in the Probation Department responsible for the control, supervision
and care of adults and juveniles subject to probation supervision,
investigation or intake services which require them to
meet certain standards of conduct. The incumbent uses sound professional
judgment and applies investigative techniques to evaluate the conduct of those
subject to court ordered investigation, analyzes data and makes recommendations
regarding court dispositions. The incumbent counsels and coaches probationers
and others receiving probation services to change patterns of thinking and
behavior to help promote and sustain law-abiding relationships with society and
to reduce the likelihood of becoming re-involved in criminal or delinquent
behavior. The employee may arrange for medical, mental health or substance
abuse treatment services. The employee may be assigned
to a specialty unit as an assistant to a Senior Probation Officer, handling
less complex assignments within the unit. Supervision is not a characteristic
of this position. The incumbent is supervised by a
higher-ranking probation professional. A Probation Officer is a Peace Officer
pursuant to Criminal Procedure Law Section 2.10 and may be authorized to carry
a firearm in the performance of his/her duties. Does related work as required.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
Either:
(a) One (1) year of permanent competitive
status as a Probation Officer Trainee or Probation Officer Trainee (Spanish
Speaking) in a New York State Probation Agency; or,
(b) Graduation from a college with federally
authorized accreditation or registration by New York State with a Master’s
Degree in Social Work, Social Sciences, Education, Administration, Law,
Criminal Justice, or a related field, or;
(c) Graduation from a college with federally
authorized accreditation or registration by New York State with a Bachelor’s
Degree*, including at least thirty (30) credit hours in the social or
behavioral sciences and two (2) years of experience in counseling, law
enforcement, juvenile or criminal justice, education, or casework in a
probation, law enforcement, juvenile or criminal justice, corrections,
community corrections, parole, social sciences, mental health, social work or
other public or private human services agency.
Notes: Coursework*
at the Master’s degree level in social work, social sciences, education,
administration, law, criminal justice, or a related field may be substituted
for work experience for a maximum of one (1) year of experience.
Social science includes areas of
study concerned with humans living in relation to other
humans in a social environment such as anthropology, criminal justice,
economics, geography, history, political science, psychology and sociology.
Behavioral science is a subset of
social science characterized by observation of the behavior of living organisms
and focused on human behavior such as psychology, sociology, anthropology,
counseling, criminal justice, gerontology, human behavior, social work/social
welfare and vocational rehabilitation.
Counseling experience involves
individuals and/or families, discussing and evaluating their problems (e.g.
drug and alcohol abuse, family conflicts, disabilities) and developing and
carrying out plans to resolve problems.
Those who perform counseling duties work directly with individuals
and/or families on an ongoing basis in order to assist them
and monitor and evaluate their progress.
Law enforcement experience involves providing
for public safety by maintaining order, responding to emergencies, protecting
people and property, enforcing motor vehicle and criminal laws and promoting
good community relations as a member of a regional state park police or a
police force, police department or other organization of a county, city, town,
village, housing authority, transit authority or police district.
Education experience involves teaching
a curriculum to students or supervising/administering such a curriculum and
those teaching it or experience as a guidance counselor, school or educational
counselor or instructional coordinator/curriculum coordinator in a criminal
justice or juvenile justice setting.
Casework experience involves
activities directed toward enhancing a client’s ability to cope with and solve
problems and the referral of clients to supporting resources and services.
Necessary Special Requirements
At the time of appointment and during
employment in this title employees must possess a
valid license to operate a motor vehicle in New York State. Candidates must be
a United States Citizen at the time of appointment. Candidates will be required to successful
complete the State Requirements of Peace Officer Training and Firearms Training
as per New York State Criminal Procedure Law Section 2.3
SCOPE OF THE EXAMINATION
This examination will consist of three
parts:
I. The
written test will cover knowledge, skills and/or abilities in such areas
as:
1.
Advising
and interacting with others;
2.
Preparing
written material;
3.
Evaluating
conclusions in light of known facts;
4.
Applying
written information.
Note:
The use of calculators is recommended for this examination.
Note: The New
York State Department of Civil Service has not prepared a test guide for this
examination. However, candidates may find information in the publication
'General Guide to Written Tests' helpful in preparing for this test. This
publication is available on line at: https://www.cs.ny.gov/testing/testguides.cfm.
II. Medical
evaluation – As the needs of the service require, candidates who pass the
written test will be called for a qualifying
medical/physical evaluation. (Medical
standards appear on page 4 of this announcement.)
III. Psychological
evaluation – As the needs of the service require, candidates who pass the
written test will be called for a qualifying
personality/psychological evaluation.
Notes: The medical and psychological standards are
subject to change without notice to candidates.
Failure or failure to appear as scheduled for any of these tests or
evaluations will result in the elimination of a candidate’s application from
further consideration for purposes of this competition. Candidates must pass all parts of this
examination in order to be eligible for appointment. Rank on the eligible list
will be determined by the written scores only, plus veterans’ credits if
applicable.
NOTES
1.
Should
it become necessary to amend any part of this announcement, the Department of
Civil Service reserves the right to make such amendment on the Department’s web
page without notification to applicants. The most current copy of this
announcement is available during the filing period at www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Departments/Civil-Service.
2. Expanded Description of the examination subtests.
3.
Candidates
who apply for this examination and who have not heard from the Suffolk County
Department of Civil Service by June 12, 2024 are advised to contact the
Department before the written test date at (631) 853-5500.
N.Y.S.
DATE
PREPARED: March 26, 2024
GENERAL CONDITIONS OPEN-COMPETITIVE
ANNOUNCEMENT
1.
Application
may be made using the Suffolk County Application for
Employment (Forms CS-205A and CS-205B).
2.
Applicants
may complete a “Request for Application Fee Waiver and Certification” form and
submit it with Forms CS-205A and CS-205B.
3.
Unless
otherwise stated, candidates must meet the minimum qualifications by the date
of the written test, or last filing date in the case of training and experience
evaluations. Unless otherwise stated
part-time experience will be pro-rated.
4.
Candidates
found ineligible to compete in the written examination may appeal to the Department
of Civil Service for reconsideration prior to the written test date appearing
on this announcement. Appeals received
on or after the announced written test date will not
be considered.
5.
Candidates
who fail the examination, or who fail to appear for the examination as
scheduled, will be eliminated from further
consideration for purposes of this competition.
Unless otherwise specified, the final rank order of the eligible list
will be determined on the basis of the score received
on the written test, plus veterans’ credits where appropriate.
6.
Eligible
applicants will be notified when and where to appear for examination. If an application is rejected, due notice
will be sent.
7.
Unless
specifically prohibited by the examination instructions, candidates are permitted to use quiet, hand-held, solar or
battery-powered calculators. Devices
with typewriter keyboards, spell-checker, personal digital assistant, address
books, language translators, dictionaries and any similar devices are prohibited.
8.
When
the examination is prepared and rated by the Suffolk County
Department of Civil Service, the provisions of the Suffolk County Civil
Service Rules dealing with the rating of examination will apply.
9.
When
the written examination is prepared and rated by the New York State Department
of Civil Service in accordance with Section 23-2 of the Civil Service Law, the
provisions of the New York State Civil Service Rules and Regulations
which deal with the rating of examination will apply.
10.
The
eligible list established as a result of this
examination will remain in force for at least one year and may be extended by
the Department of Civil Service for a maximum of four years. Changing conditions may make it necessary to
certify to future vacancies at higher or lower salaries than those announced.
11.
Information
regarding eligibility for veterans’ credits appears on the open-competitive
application form.
12.
Pursuant
to Section 85-a of the Civil Service Law, children of firefighters and police
officers killed in the line of duty shall be entitled to receive an additional
ten points added to a passing score attained in a competitive examination for
original appointment in the same municipality in which his or her parent
served. If you are qualified to
participate in this examination, and you are the child of a firefighter or
police officer killed in the line of duty, please so notify us in writing when
you submit your application for examination.
A candidate claiming such credit must submit appropriate documentation
to verify eligibility to receive these additional credits before the eligible
list is established.
No additional credits will be granted after the
eligible list is established.
13.
Inquiries
may be made as to character and ability and all
statements made by candidates are subject to verification. Some employers may require the candidate to be fingerprinted and to pass a background investigation.
14.
Candidates
must be medically, physically and psychologically capable of performing the
duties of the job. Candidates who are appointed to positions in the Suffolk County service may
be required to pass qualifying medical and/or physical and/or psychological
evaluations.
15.
Residency
is not required for taking any examinations.
However, some jurisdictions, such as schools, libraries, etc., give
hiring preference to residents. Some
towns also require employees to establish residency within the township. For employment in a Suffolk County
Department, with only limited exceptions set forth in Suffolk County Law,
residency within Suffolk County is required within five years of employment
with the county. In any case in which residency preference is given, the
appointee(s) must meet a specific residency standard as defined in the Civil
Service Rules.
16.
Saturday
Sabbath Observers and handicapped persons:
If special arrangements for testing are required, indicate this on your
application.
17.
No
smoking is permitted in the building or on the grounds
of the examination site.
18.
If
you will be on active military duty with the armed forces of the United States
on the date of this test, please contact the Suffolk County Department of Civil
Service before the last filing date appearing on this announcement for
alternate test date information.
19.
Multiple Examinations Scheduled for the
Same Day: If you have applied to take a
written test announced by either one or several local jurisdictions (county,
town, city) scheduled to be held on the same test date as this written test,
you must notify each of the local jurisdictions no later than two weeks before
the test date, so they can make arrangements for taking all tests at one test
site. All examinations for positions in State
government will be held at a State examination
center. If you have any questions,
please call the Suffolk County Department of Civil Service at (631) 853-5500.
20.
For
information regarding a weather-related cancellation of this examination,
please refer to our website at www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Departments/Civil-Service
and click on the “Weather Related Exam Cancellations” link. Civil Service Announcements are shown at the bottom of that page. Also check News 12
Long Island for notice of cancellation of this examination: NEWS 12 LONG ISLAND, TV CHANNEL 12 or at
their website: www.news12.com.
Suffolk County
Department of Civil Service
725 Veterans
Memorial Hwy.,
William J. Lindsay
County Complex, Bldg. # 158
P.O. Box 6100
Hauppauge, NY 11788-0099
Phone: (631) 853-5500
SUFFOLK COUNTY OFFICE OF EMPLOYEE MEDICAL REVIEW
MEDICAL REQUIREMENTS
PROBATION OFFICER
Weight: Weight should not interfere with candidate’s
ability to perform the duties of the position.
Vision: Candidates must have uncorrected vision of no
worse than 20/100 in each eye, and must be correctable to 20/30 binocular. Binocular peripheral vision should not be
less than 170 degrees.
Color
Vision: Perception of color is deemed acceptable if
the candidate correctly reads 9 or more of the first
13 plates of the 24-plate edition of the Ishihara Test. If the candidate’s color perception is deemed
unacceptable through the use of said test and he/she believes the results to be
incorrect, such an individual may at his/her own expense take the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-Hue Test under the supervision of an
ophthalmologist having the proper equipment and utilizing the standards
established by the Municipal Police Training Council.
Hearing: The average hearing level (HL) for the 3 test
frequencies of 500, 1000, and 2000 Hz will not exceed 25 dB in either ear, and
no single hearing level will exceed 30 dB at any of these 3 test frequencies in
either ear. Hearing loss at 3000 will
not exceed 40 dB HL in either ear. Use
of hearing aid is permitted and should correct the
deficiency so the binaural haring loss in the combined frequency level of 500,
1000, and 2000 Hz is no greater than 15%.
Candidates with hearing aids, at their own expense, must provide
evidence from a licensed audiologist, using functional gain or real ear
measurements, that their aid(s) meet the stipulated manufacturer standards.
Speech: Significant speech pathology interfering with
communications will be considered disqualifying.
Speech must be clear and intelligible.
Cardiovascular
Health: Candidates must be free of chronically
disabling conditions that would interfere with the performance of required
duties; uncontrolled high blood pressure will be restricted pending
remediation.
Respiratory
Health: The respiratory system must be free of
chronically disabling conditions that would interfere with the candidate’s
performance of required duties.
Endocrine
& Metabolic:
Candidates having a condition or disorder that may affect job performance will be evaluated on a case-by-case assessment including
control of disorder, and the presence and severity of symptoms and/or
complications. Ability to perform shift
work and overtime will be assessed.
Neurological
Health: Candidates must be free of neurological
disorders that may affect job performance. Candidates with epilepsy seizure
disorders must provide evidence of one-year seizure free history with or
without drug control.
Musculoskeletal
Health: Candidates must have no defects, deformities
or disorders that will interfere with the candidate’s ability to perform the
essential functions of the position. The
use of prostheses or braces is allowed as long as the
candidate can perform the full range of duties of the position and no security
risk is posed.
Gastrointestinal
Health: Candidates must be free of gastrointestinal
disorders or deformities that would interfere with the performance of job
duties.
Mental
Health: Candidates must be free of mental illness,
serious emotional disturbances or nervous disorders, drug dependence or abuse
that would interfere with the performance of their duties.
General
Medical Statement: Candidates must be free of any medical and/or
mental health condition which would jeopardize safety
and health of the public and/or other employees. Candidates with communicable disease will be disqualified until condition becomes corrected or
controlled. Ability to perform shift
work and overtime will be assessed.
Physical
Fitness: Candidates will be asked
to demonstrate physical fitness through tests of strength, flexibility and
endurance. A limited agility test will be performed to evaluate physical fitness level.
* The medical requirements are subject to
change.
4/2024