Erie County is an Equal Opportunity Employer and committed to workplace diversity. 

Residence Requirements:

CANDIDATES MUST HAVE BEEN LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY FOR AT LEAST ONE MONTH IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE DATE OF THE WRITTEN TEST AND MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY AT THE TIME OF APPOINTMENT. The eligible list resulting from this examination will be used to fill future vacancies in the Probation Department.

List certification – Candidates who are appointed as a result of this examination will be certified at the trainee level (Job Group IX) . Persons appointed at the trainee level will be advanced to Probation Officer (Job Group XI) without further examination upon satisfactory completion of the applicable traineeship period.

Examples of Duties:

A Probation Officer Trainee -Spanish Speaking cares for adults and juveniles subject to probation supervision or intake services which require them to meet certain standards of conduct; 

Participates in an in-service training program regarding the investigation, supervision, counseling and coaching duties and responsibilities of a Probation Officer 1 and develops goals and objectives to ensure the successful completion of the training program;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, gathers, verifies, reviews and analyzes social, medical, mental health, substance abuse, sex offender, legal and other documentation and by interviewing defendants/respondents, victims, law enforcement personnel and other case related individuals to conduct preplea/pre-sentence/pre-disposition investigations;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, prepares reports regarding persons awaiting disposition of the courts;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, conducts risk and need assessments and evaluates results for pre-trial, investigation, and supervision purposes;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, promotes risk reduction by providing direction and support to help the probationer change factors that promote and maintain criminal/delinquent behavior; coaches probationers to select new patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving and develop new attitudes and skills which help sustain a constructive and law-abiding relationship with the broader community and reduce the likelihood of becoming re-involved in criminal or delinquent behavior;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, prepares progress reports on probationers and periodically reviews case histories to determine the degree of adjustment;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, prepares a final case report once a case is closed;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, prepares violation reports;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, prepares case/supervision plans and explains conditions of sentence/disposition to probationers;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, monitors probationers’ compliance with conditions of probation;

Under the direct supervision of a probation professional, performs drug/alcohol screenings, and collects DNA samples from probationers;

May develop and maintain professional relationships with other social and law enforcement agencies and cooperates with them in matters of mutual interest such as assisting probationers with life adjustments;

May arrange for medical, mental health, substance abuse treatment or other services according to individual probationer’s needs or court orders;

May testify in court or at violation hearings;

May use a firearm in performing duties and exercising authority pursuant to departmental policy.

Qualifications:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:  Candidates must meet the following requirements on or before the date of the written test:

Graduation from a regionally accredited college or university or one accredited by the New York State board Regents to grant degrees, with a Bachelor’s degree or higher with at least thirty (30) credit hours in the social or behavioral sciences. (See Notes 1 & 2) 

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

+ When considered for appointment a candidate must be able to demonstrate proficiency in the other language at the level deemed appropriate for the department worked in. The language proficiency of the permanent appointees will be further evaluated during the post-appointment probationary term. (Candidates must demonstrate ability to speak and understand Spanish as spoken in the Buffalo Metropolitan Area.)

Where required, possession of a current driver’s license or the ability to otherwise meet the transportation requirements of the position.

Background Investigation/Psychological Evaluation: Applicants will be subject to an extensive pre-employment background investigation and psychological evaluation. CONVICTION OF A FELONY WILL BAR AND CONVICTION OF A MISDEMEANOR OR OTHER OFFENSE MAY BAR PARTICIPATION IN EXAMINATION AND APPOINTMENT. Criminal convictions or other offense are subject to evaluation and may result in disqualification pursuant to Section 50 of the New York State Civil Service Law. The psychological evaluation will consist of a combination of psychological tests and interviews. Candidates must pass the psychological evaluation. In addition, a negative report or failing psychological evaluation may result in disqualification pursuant to Section 50 of New York State Civil Service Law. Candidates must be a United States Citizen, an Erie County Resident, and where applicable a resident of the Town or Village where he or she is appointed per Public Officers Law at time of appointment. (See Erie County Policies and Procedures.)

Notes:

1. Social science includes areas of study concerned with humans living in relation to other humans in a social environment and such as anthropology, criminal justice, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology and sociology.

2. Behavioral science is a subset of social science characterized by observation of the behavior of living organisms and focused on human social behavior such as psychology, sociology, anthropology, counseling, criminal justice, gerontology, human behavior, social work/social welfare and vocational rehabilitation.

3. Individuals whose duties and responsibilities include the use of a firearm must also complete training pursuant to Criminal Procedure Law Section 2.30(3).
3a. Prior to completion of the first year of the traineeship, candidates must successfully complete the basic fundamental course for probation officers, peace officer training course and qualify to carry a firearm. Participation in these courses will be arranged by the Probation Department.

4. *The class specifications including the minimum qualifications for positions in Probation Departments are established by rule and regulations of the Division of Criminal Justice Services. These class specifications are found in Title 9 NYCRR Part 347, Appendix H-10, Standard Specifications for Professional Probation Positions.

5. This position is allocated to the competitive class pursuant to Executive Law Section 257(1).

6. Verifiable part-time and/or volunteer experience will be pro-rated toward meeting full-time experience requirements.

7. Your degree and/or college credit must have been awarded by a regionally accredited college or university or one recognized by the New York State Education Department as following acceptable educational practices. A grade of "D" or better is necessary for a course to be credited as successfully completed. If your degree and/or college credit was awarded by an educational institution outside of the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. You can write to this Department for a list of acceptable companies providing this service; you must pay the required evaluation fee.

Notice to Candidates: Transcripts will now be accepted by the Department of Personnel ONLY at time of application.

All subsequent transcripts must be submitted at time of interview.

A Guide to the Written Test for the Probation Series is available on the Department website at https://www.cs.ny.gov/testing/testguides.cfm

Subjects of Examination:

SUBJECTS OF EXAMINATION: This examination will consist of two parts: 1. A weighted written test; and 2. A qualifying Spanish language oral test.

THE WRITTEN TEST is designed to evaluate knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas:

Advising and interacting with others
These questions test for the ability to interact with other people in order to gather and present information and to provide assistance and advice in a courteous and professional manner.

Preparing written material
These questions test for the ability to write the kinds of reports and correspondence required in criminal justice settings such as probation and parole. Some questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately. Others test for the ability to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly.

Evaluating conclusions in light of known facts
These questions will consist of a set of facts and a conclusion. You must decide if the conclusion is proved by the facts, disproved by the facts or if the facts are not sufficient to prove or disprove the conclusion. The questions will not be specific to a particular field.

Applying written information
These questions evaluate a candidate's ability to read, interpret and apply rules, regulations, directives, written narratives and other related material. You will be required to read a set of information and to appropriately apply the information to situations in various settings. All information needed to answer the questions is contained in the rules, regulations, etc. which are cited.

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES: It is recommended that candidates use a quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculator. Devices with typewriter keyboards, "Spell Checkers", “Personal Digital Assistants", "Address Books", "Language Translators", "Dictionaries", or any similar devices are prohibited. You may not bring books or other reference materials.

THE QUALIFYING SPANISH LANGUAGE ORAL TEST is designed to evaluate the candidates’ proficiency in the Spanish language, at the level appropriate for the position(s) being filled.  Only a sufficient number of candidates needed to fill the present vacancy will be called to take part in this qualifying portion of the examination.  As additional vacancies occur, other candidates who were successful on the written portion of the examination will be invited to take the qualifying oral test.  Candidates must pass both parts of this examination in order to be eligible for appointment.  A level 2 proficiency in the Spanish language is required to pass this qualifying test. 

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A $20.00 filing fee is required for this exam. The required fee must accompany your application. Send or bring check or money order made payable to Erie County Personnel Department and write the examination number(s) on your check or money order. Do not send or bring cash, as the County cannot be responsible for cash payment. As no refund will be made, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the requirements for admission and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.