Color Blindness and Careers

              In working with students the Center has recently been confronted with the issue of color blindness impeding on career choices. Some professions may ban or restrict applicants due to color blindness. A few of the more common career fields that have color vision requirements are firefighting, aviation, law enforcement and the military.

                Since law enforcement is an area of interest for a large number of our students this can be especially important for those who are embarking on this career path at John Jay. We highly suggest getting tested early on for color blindness especially if you suspect that you may be even slightly colorblind. In order to get tested you need to make an appointment with an eye doctor and specifically request testing for color blindness. General practitioners do not typically test for color blindness so it would be best to see an eye doctor.

                If you are diagnosed as colorblind this does not necessarily mean you have to give up on your career dream of working in law enforcement. Requirements differ by agency and state. Some are more flexible depending on how severe the color blindness. However, the New York State Police Department does disqualify any candidates who are considered to be colorblind. So if you are interested in working with a certain agency it would be best to call ahead and see what their regulations are.