r/Corrections

Why do I see some people say they love their correctional office job and stay years and others hate it and quit? Thinking about going into that field .

Hi all, i received my CSC Stage 2/3 invite for the prairies and I’m trying to get a better idea of what to expect. For anyone who has recently gone through this part of the process, what was your experience like? What can I expect during Stage 2/3, and is there anything you wish you had known or prepared for beforehand? Are there certain modules/classes, that I should pay extra attention because of higher failure rates? How are the instructors and classes?

I’m also heading to Summerside, PEI for stage 3 in January. is there anyone else thats going?

I wanted to share my experience because I know there are a lot of people on probation who panic when they get an unexpected positive UA. I was one of them, and I think it’s important for people to know what actually happened in my situation.
I’m currently on probation and have alcohol-monitoring requirements. I had been completely sober for approximately 3 weeks when I went in for a urine test.
I wasn’t expecting any problems.
Then I was told that my initial urine screening was positive for alcohol/EtG.
I was absolutely confused and honestly terrified.
I knew I hadn’t been drinking.
My first thought was basically:
“How am I going to prove I didn’t drink?”
I immediately started going through everything I had consumed or been exposed to trying to figure out how an alcohol result could possibly happen. I had even had a couple of 0.0% beers a few days earlier, and I had been around various products containing alcohol in my normal life.
But the important thing was that I knew I hadn’t consumed alcohol.
Because this was a probation test, I was extremely worried about the consequences. I was concerned that the positive result could lead to an ankle CAM/SCRAM alcohol monitor being placed on me.
Then I got a voicemail from my probation officer.
My probation officer, Elise, contacted me while the confirmatory testing was still pending.
She explained that she had already sent the referral for the CAM monitor because of the initial positive result.
But she also explained that they were going to wait for the confirmation testing before moving forward.
She told me that if the confirmation came back showing that it was alcohol use, the CAM monitor would be the next step and they were already set up for it.
But if the confirmation came back showing that the original result was a false positive, she would cancel the CAM monitor.
That was a huge moment for me because I realized the initial screening wasn’t necessarily the final answer.
The process was essentially:
Initial screening positive → CAM referral initiated → confirmation testing → wait for laboratory result → determine whether CAM proceeds.
And then I had to wait.
That waiting period was honestly brutal.
I kept worrying that somehow the laboratory was going to confirm the positive even though I knew I hadn’t been drinking.
I was asking questions about false positives, EtG testing, incidental exposure, different products that could potentially affect testing, etc.
I was basically preparing myself for the worst while hoping the laboratory would show what I knew to be true.
Then I got the call.
My probation officer called me after receiving the laboratory results.
She told me:
“You were right. It was a false positive.”
She then told me that she was going to cancel the CAM monitor.
She even ended the call with:
“Way to go.”
I can’t really explain the relief I felt.
I had gone from thinking:
“I’m screwed. I’m going to have an ankle monitor because this test says I drank.”
to:
“The laboratory confirmed it was a false positive, and the CAM is being canceled.”
What I want people to take away from this
If you’re on probation and you get an unexpected positive screening result, don’t automatically assume that the initial result is the final determination.
I’m not saying every positive test is a false positive.
I’m not saying people should assume they’re automatically going to beat a positive.
And I’m definitely not saying someone who actually drank should expect the confirmation to magically make it disappear.
I’m saying that in my actual experience, the initial screening result was wrong, and the confirmatory laboratory testing caught it.
The initial result was serious enough that probation started the process for a CAM monitor.
But they waited for the confirmation.
The confirmation came back as a false positive.
And the CAM monitor was canceled.
That’s an important distinction.
My experience, in order:
1. I had been sober for about 3 weeks.
2. I took a probation urine test.
3. The initial alcohol/EtG screening came back positive.
4. I was extremely confused and scared because I knew I hadn’t been drinking.
5. The sample was sent for confirmatory laboratory testing.
6. My probation officer initiated the referral for a CAM monitor while waiting for the confirmation.
7. She explained that if the confirmation showed alcohol use, the CAM would be the next step.
8. She also explained that if the confirmation showed a false positive, she would cancel the CAM.
9. The laboratory confirmation came back.
10. My probation officer called me and told me it was a false positive.
11. She canceled the CAM monitor.
That’s my real experience.
So if you’re sitting there freaking out over an unexpected positive…
Take a breath.
If you genuinely haven’t been drinking, don’t immediately assume you’re done for.
Be honest with your probation officer.
Don’t make up an explanation.
Ask whether the sample is being sent for confirmatory testing.
Keep track of anything relevant that you’ve consumed or been exposed to.
And most importantly, wait for the confirmation before assuming the worst.
I spent a lot of time stressing over something that ultimately wasn’t evidence of alcohol consumption.
The initial screen said one thing.
The laboratory confirmation said something different.
And the laboratory confirmation ultimately cleared me.
I’m sharing this because when you’re on probation and you see POSITIVE next to an alcohol test, it’s very easy to think you’re the only person this has ever happened to.
You’re not.
An initial positive screening result does not necessarily mean the final laboratory result will be positive.
In my case, the confirmation mattered.
And because the confirmation showed a false positive, the consequence that had been set in motion — the CAM monitor — was canceled.
Hopefully this helps someone else who is sitting there right now scared out of their mind because of an unexpected positive screen.
There is a difference between an initial screening result and a confirmed laboratory result.

Hello, I am getting re hired at my state prison I previously worked at during the COVID years but I was on days then and it was rough with all the movement. Now I am going to nights. Does it make a difference?

I start the academy this upcoming Monday, any tips? Thank you.

I applied for the Correctional Officer I–Senior CO position with TDCJ around September 21. My application currently shows “Under Consideration.”
Recruiting told me they were backed up about 2 weeks and that I would receive a pre-interview questionnaire by email from a third-party company. I was told I’d have 5 days to complete it, and then the virtual interview would come after that.
It’s now been a little while and I’m still waiting on the questionnaire.
For anyone who recently went through the TDCJ CO hiring process:

How long did you wait for the questionnaire?
How long after applying did you get your interview?
How long did the entire process take from application to job offer?
Did your application stay “Under Consideration” the whole time?
Did you contact recruiting, or did you just wait?
Just trying to get an idea of whether this is a normal wait time or if I should be following up again.

Hi everyone,

I recently passed the initial screening for the Ontario Correctional Officer 1 recruitment process and have been invited to complete the TalentClick online assessment.

For anyone who has completed it recently, what should I expect in terms of the overall format and difficulty? I understand it may include cognitive/aptitude and behavioural components and takes around 60–90 minutes.
I’m mainly looking for advice on:

Which areas are most important to practise beforehand?
How difficult is the numerical/verbal/spatial reasoning portion?

Is time management a major issue?
Any general tips that helped you perform well and move on to the interview stage?

Not looking for actual/confidential test questions — just preparation advice from people who have gone through it recently.

Thanks!

Hi there. I don’t post often to Reddit, but I had a genuine question. My SO has been on parole since June 2026, and today got charged for CPCS7 (possession 7th) during a traffic stop. I don’t believe he called his PO yet (he will tomorrow am first thing) but I’m sure the cops will be contacting the PO today. He said the cops would put in a good word because he was super polite and didn’t give them any BS.
Should we just expect his parole officer to come to the house tomorrow to do a home search? Has anyone had a residence search and know what they entail? Like, I heard they search common spaces like kitchen bathroom bedroom, but do they go into EVERYTHING in the kitchen/bathroom? (We have so much stuff in our pantry and linen closet- it’s going to be awful cleaning up after they flip everything) And do they go into the basement? Our basement is pretty packed and I REALLY don’t want to have to clean up the WHOLE house.
Plus, to top it off, I’m really scared, no, petrified and super depressed, anxious beyond belief that he’s going to go away again. He has 2 out of 3 years left and I couldn’t function/hold it together the 9 months he was gone before he got out on parole. Idk how I’m going to be if he goes away 2 more years. Any insight about parole home searches would be great. The more details, the better. Thanks in advance.