What is the career path to get a job at a metropolitan police department?

Regardless of what you see yourself eventually doing in a police department you first have to meet some general requirements and be hired as a police officer. If you are a sophomore in high school you are close to the minimum age required to take a police exam (usually 17).

• Ace the exam. The police exam is perhaps the most critical step in becoming a police officer. If you do not score high enough, you will not be chosen to continue in the hiring process. The exams can be very competitive with thousands of people trying for a small number of slots.


• Take as many exams as you can. They are often few and far between. It could be years before another one opens again.

Requirements differ from department to department but generally you’ll need the following before being hired as a police officer:

• Have attained at lest the age of 21


• Some number of college credits. This could be some non degree amount, or as much as a 60 credit associate’s degree. A specific degree type is not required; however if you’re pursuing a career in Law Enforcement, you would probably be more interested in a degree that is associated with the job. GPA is not as important as how you score on your police exam. You will not be chosen over someone with a higher exam score then you if you had a 4.0 GPA in college and they had a 3.0 GPA.


• Have an unrestricted driver’s license. Not just a State ID. High School is a great time to get this out of the way.


• Meet a specific resident requirement. Some departments may allow an officer to reside in a number of surrounding counties, others may require one specific county residency


• Be a citizen of the United States.

During High School and while accruing your required number of credits in college, it is beneficial to gain other experiences that will be considered towards your eligibility or otherwise benefit you on your career path to be a police officer. These include:

• Volunteer time. Law Enforcement is a public service and they will look for that service oriented quality in your history. Auxiliary police is a good example.


• Public speaking. History of being able to effectively communicate with a diverse group of people is a plus.


• Commitment. A history of maintaining a job or performing a duty for a number of consecutive years.

Immerse yourself. Meet with law enforcement professionals, visit a precinct and sit in on criminal trials. The more you experience your career the more motivated you will become and the better prepared you will feel.

[Written by a friend who was a police officer in the Los Angeles area for his whole career - over thirty years]

The written examination, as discussed above, is important as it usually is the first step in an extended process. The agency I am most familiar with graded the written examination pass/fail. The next step was the oral examination where the applicant was interviewed by three individuals and graded in competition with all other applicants. Obviously applicants coming into the interview fully prepared usually were given the best scores. Applicants with the highest scores proceeded with the process and next underwent medical and psychological examinations. Applicants successful with these tests next proceeded to the background investigation.

The background investigation is a comprehensive process that examines every facet of an applicant's history. In my agency the process started with an applicant completing a multiple page application that was extremely detailed. The applicant was expected to be forthright and honest. It is worth noting at this point that the number one reason for disqualification was dishonesty by the applicant during some part of the hiring process.

Next the applicant's case was assigned to a background investigator. The investigator interviewed the applicant one on one in a private setting to insure the application was complete and sufficiently detailed. The investigator asked a series of questions covering a wide variety of topics including, but not limited to, employment, financial matters, arrest record, adverse law enforcement contacts, illegal drug and alcohol usage, military service, driving record, and mature judgment regarding friends and associates. Again, any breech of agency requirements at this point could result in disqualification.the

The next step involved the background investigator going into the field and interviewing many people; employers (past and present), coworkers, family members, neighbors, roommates, spouses (past and present), and others. The investigator willreview records; employment, military, financial, school, police agencies ( also state and federal), and others. All of this is done to insure, as much as possible, that the applicant meets all agency, municipal and state requirements.

The goal of the investigation is to provide a pool of applicants from which the most qualified may be offered employment. It should be obvious that the best applicants, the most successful applicants, were those who decided early on to conduct themselves in a manner that would one day provide them with the opportunity to wear the uniform of a police office.