Expert: Jack Toomey - 8/29/2011

Question
Hello sir,I have had a huge passion of becoming a police officer since i was a young kid.I am 23 yrs old,and i have been diagnosed with ADHD.I was mainly having minor focus difficulty and making impulsive decisions.I have been prescribed Adderall xr as of about 3 months ago.I take one pill a day for treatment.My life has improved greatly on every little obstacle i faced before.I have been on my current job for one year and have never had problems even before taking medication.I basically have a learning disability in math,and that is why i went to doctor to get diagnosed.As i finished high school in 2007,I was not rewarded my diploma because i failed the math exit exam that Alabama requires for graduation.I passed every thing else,Im currently working on getting my GED now.After exiting high school,I got my first job that i stayed on for 8 months and i was doing well.Then i decided it wasn't good enough,And i job hopped for about 6 or 7 times.I know this looks bad,And i know i was being very childish and a immature person.I have worked on growing up so much.And at my current job there is not a single employee or supervisor who would not give me a good reference.I try my hardest at every thing i do.Sorry all this is so long,I was really wanting to ask would the ADHD or past job history when i was younger affect me in a really bad way when i apply to become a police officer?The only other thing that i can think to to tell you is that i have Pectus Caranatum which is also called bird chest. It has never affected me at all,I even played football with it.I thank you for your time and effort.And i will be waiting for your advice on my situation when you get time sir.

Answer
John Paul,

There is no way that I can give you a "yes" or "no" answer.  If we had a national police force like they have in some countries it would be easy to give you an answer since the qualifications and rules for hiring would be the same for everyone.  But we don't have a national police force.  We have thousands of police departments and each has its own hiring standards and rules.
What might be true for department #A might not be true on department #B.

The best that I can do for you is to tell you that your medical problems will not help you but they might not hurt you.  You will not know until you apply for work on a police department.  But let me caution you that you won't even be considered unless you graduate from high school and/or get some college credits.  Since you are 23 any department is going to be wondering what you have been doing in the five or six years since you left high school and that will not work in your favor.