How I Got My Job: Brandon Kitzerow

Age: 31
Home: North metro
Job: Police officer for the city of Minneapolis

What do you do? I work in the Special Operations Division, which focuses on proactive police work. We also respond to "priority one" calls, such as shots fired, robbery of person, burglaries in progress, etc.

Salary: $60,000 to $65,000

How did you get hired? I applied to be a community service officer (CSO) for the Minneapolis Police Department, and was accepted. The next progression for the city is to move its CSOs - once they are qualified - to police officer positions.

Education: Bachelor's degree in kinesiology [study of the mechanics of motion with respect to human anatomy], with an emphasis in corporate fitness, from the University of Minnesota. I also have a law enforcement certificate.

When did you know you wanted to be a police officer? I grew up in Minneapolis and always thought cops were awesome, but then I decided to try something different in college. I finally realized I wanted to work for the Minneapolis Police Department and hopefully join the S.W.A.T. team at some point.

What kind of a person would be a good fit for your job? Someone who likes working odd hours, has the ability to stay calm and deal with stressful situations, and is physically fit.

Best part of your job: The flexibility of my schedule and working 10-hour days. Each 28-day-cycle, I get 12 to 15 days off, and I get to choose when I take them. The Minneapolis Police Department is one of a few police departments where this is available.

What's the job outlook like? The hard part is that most departments only hire one or two officers at a time. For these couple of spots, there may be 400 or more [applicants]. I know someone who graduated from the police courses with me almost 6 1/2 years ago who just got hired.

What's a typical day like? Every day starts with roll call, where the sergeant gives us information about crime trends or people we are looking for. Some days we drive around and there is nothing going on, and other days we may go to 25 or more calls.