Due to the current shortage of officials, career progression in the lacrosse community can be rapid. Officials trained at Levels 1 and/or 2 are sure to find opportunities to officiate youth (U-15) or high school (U-19) games in their first few years. It takes four or five years to develop a strong high school official and most commonly another five or six years before application can be made to Level 3 training and the college ranks. After attaining a college level ranking, opportunities to officiate post-collegiate club and international lacrosse games await the experienced and dedicated lacrosse official.  Because opportunities for advancement differ from region to region, you will want to ask your MDOC Trainer about the ladder for career progression in your district.