I am interested in becoming a police officer and had some questions for any of the members that might be police officers. Even if your not and have some helpful info please post. I know everyone is from everywhere on here, but my question are pretty general i think you could still help. I would appreciate any and all advice and help.


1. What is the pysch test? Is it written or do you sit in front of a psychiatrist and he evaluates you. Are there any words of advice I could use, when I take this test


2. I have heard that sometimes even when you tell the truth you can still fail the polygraph exam. Is this the truth? If so what can I do, besides tell the truth thats given, to pass?


3. This is a little more direct, or should I say state specific, but what are someone's chances getting accepted if they have some traffic violations, mainly speeding. The criminal background is clean, never been charged with a felony or crime, only traffic offenses.

Thank you to anyone who responds with info!!

 

Moved to Off Topic

 

Ok, I'm most definitely not a police officer, but for what it's worth:

[QUOTE]2.

 

I am not a street officer, but I am an officer who works for an institution for the criminally insane, and I too had to go through the same loops as you.
To answer your questions, the psych test I had involved sitting in a room and taking a couple of personality tests on a scantron form. Then about a month later, I had an interview with a psychiatrist and he asked several questions in order to determine if I was suited for the job and also to evaluate my scores on the written exam. He did ask me some of the same questions that were on the written exam too, so he was probably trying to see that I did not answer questions differently between the interview and the written portion. Basically you will be asked if you have a temper, how do you act out, were you a bully, do you love your parents, do you abuse your spouse etc. Just remain calm and most of all be honest, because if he sees inconsistencies in your answers, he will discredit you.
The polygraph can be failed even if you are telling the truth. It measures your blood pressure, pulse pressure, pupil dilation, breathing style and things like that. If you find yourself getting very very nervous during the exam, it can cause it to default. Just remain calm and tell them what they need and nothing more.
Traffic violations are not looked at too much. If you admit you were young and a little less responsible than you are now and admit to your speeding, that should not be a problem. They are more concerned about DUI's and at fault accidents than a couple of speeding convictions. If you went to traffic school and paid your fines, you should be fine.
If you have a lot of credit cards out, pay em off and narrow them down to only a couple. When they do your credit check you do not want your potential debt to be too high, or else they may think you could be tempted to do unethical behavior or be brived.
The main advice to give you is to be completely honest throughout the whole process, believe me, they will pull up some dirt on you that you forgot about in the past and as long as you are honest and leave no surprises and have a valid, honest answer to their questions, it should not backfire on you.

 

Before I got into the Navy, a while back, I applied to the Dallas Police Department and was accepted.

1. I had an interview and filled out an application.
2. They called me and gave me a written test date which I passed.
3. Sent me to get a physical. No problems not quite as serious as Military.
4. Gave me an academy date which I had to reject because I had already joined the Navy and was given an enlistment date.

It took about a month between steps 3 and 4 without any communication. I already had over 60 hours of Engineering and Computer training in college so and at the time they were looking for technical people so I thought they did not think I had enough experiance. They told me it took a while because I was seeking a specialized position.

I did not find it hard to pass any of the tests nor the physical parts but I was a little impatient waiting and ended up in the Navy for 4 years.

 

Former Police Officer here. This is similar to what moonsurfer said, but I hope this helps:

1. The psych test they issued was the MMPI (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory). Essentially it is a ~500 question, true/false type test that asks some very interesting questions designed to get you to "reveal" your inner tendencies. That was the first part of the psych test. The second part involved an interview with a psychiatrist that went over your MMPI answers and asked several questions about your personal life. They just want to make sure that you have the psychological and emotional qualifications for the job. It also depends on the psychiatrist you get, some are more aggravating than others.

2. When I went through testing for where I worked, they had eliminated the polygraph exam because too many candidates were getting disqualified because of it. Take that for what it's worth. So I don't have any first hand experience.

3. Traffic Violations (speeding, running stop signs) won't disqualify you, as long as you're up front about it. Make sure that all your tickets are paid up and there are no suspensions/holds on your driver's license. One guy in my class got kicked out of the Academy because he failed to pay a simple noise violation ticket four years prior.

Be honest, and you'll be fine. Good luck!

 

When I was in field training with the Fayetteville PD about 10 years ago one of my field training officers told me a story from his interview for the job. He had several speeding tickets and the interviewer, looking at his driving record, said "I see you have a heavy foot." To which he replied, "No, I ride a motorcycle. I have a heavy hand."

 

I posted some good info here.

https://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showt...52&hl=POLYGRAPH

Since I posted, I was hired on as a correctional officer (the hiring process is the same, at least in the state of Washington) but plan on testing in the next year or so with Seattle PD or one of the nearby Sheriff's Departments. I can tell you I love the law enforcement field and if you enjoy a good challenge, you will to. I'm working a lot (60+ a week) but making decent money (averaging $6,700 a month as an entry level officer) and work with all sorts of intersting people (murderers, pyscho's, rapists, drug dealers ) I have no regrets leaving the military.

The polygraph is the most controversial portion of the hiring process. I personally don't trust it eventhough I passed the test. Departments use it because it's a cost - effective way of doing a background investigation, especially when you have hundreds of applicants. It's nerve racking, nobody likes it. Only 15 of the 300 people in my test group passed the polygraph.

I wish you the best of luck and if you have any other questions, feel free to PM me or post here.

 

Amazing. The most I have ever made was $1,500/month. The pay for public safety officials sucks in the southeast.

I too have worked those types of people. It is amazing how many slip through the background checks.

 

I think in New Jersey you have to fail the psych test to get in.