Police Hiring Process: Every Step, in Order, With Timelines

The California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) defines a 7-step prototypical police hiring sequence: application, written exam, physical ability test, oral interview, background investigation, medical evaluation, and psychological evaluation. Exact step orders and timelines vary by department. For example, Redmond Police Department (WA) tests through Public Safety Testing before you apply to the city and completes its background check in about 6 weeks after the oral board, while San Francisco Police Department holds passing candidates on an eligibility list for up to 24 months.

Last checked Nov 3, 2026.

Step-by-step order and timelines across agencies

While every state and city sets its own hiring rules, California POST publishes the prototypical peace officer selection sequence for entry-level candidates: application, written exam, physical ability test, oral interview, background investigation, medical evaluation, and psychological evaluation.

Local civil service rules change both the order and the clock. In Washington State, Redmond Police Department requires entry-level candidates to pass their written and physical agility tests and fill out their Personal History Statement (PHS) through Public Safety Testing (PST) before submitting a city application. In San Francisco, the written and physical tests are pass/fail, and your Oral Interview score alone places you on an eligibility list for up to 24 months. If you want to practice for that panel step right now, you can Start a police mock board with Ten-Four.

Here is how the steps and published durations compare across California POST, San Francisco Police Department, Redmond Police Department, and, in a 2023 source that is 3 years old as of 2026, the New York City Police Department.

Minimum qualifications before you apply

Before an agency invites you to test, your application is screened against statutory minimums and department disqualifiers. Under California Government Code Sections 1029, 1031, and 1031.4, and rules in Washington and New York, baseline requirements cover five areas.

Check your target department's recruitment page for local additions under rules like California Penal Code Section 13510(d), which allows local agencies to set stricter standards than the state, such as higher education standards, drug screening, or polygraph exams.

• Minimum age: At least 21 years of age for specified California peace officers (Government Code 1031.4) and for Redmond Police Department in Washington.
• Education: A high school diploma, a passing score on the GED or state-approved equivalency test, or a two-year, four-year, or advanced degree from an accredited institution.
• Work authorization and citizenship: Legally authorized to work in the United States under federal law (California standard), or a US Citizen or lawful permanent resident (Redmond PD standard).
• Criminal history and character: Free from any felony convictions (California GC 1029, NYPD) or domestic violence misdemeanor convictions (NYPD). In the NYPD hiring process, a conviction for petit larceny or a dishonorable discharge from the Armed Forces will also disqualify you. Repeated arrests showing disrespect for the law, or being fired from a job for poor behavior and inability to adjust to discipline, ordinarily cause disqualification as well.
• Driver's license and English proficiency: A valid Washington State driver's license upon hire (Redmond PD) or a valid, unrestricted New York State driver's license on the date of appointment alongside the ability to understand and be understood in English (NYPD).

Steps 1 to 3: Application, written exam, and physical ability test

Step 1 is the initial application. In California and San Francisco, you submit a city or county application first with your contact information and basic history. In cities using regional testing vendors, like Redmond PD via Public Safety Testing, you take your written and physical tests, complete your initial PHS, and have the vendor send your results to the department before you submit your city application.

Step 2 is the Written Exam (Reading and Writing Ability Assessment). Under California POST Commission Regulation 1951, every candidate must prove reading and writing ability through the POST Entry-Level Law Enforcement Test Battery (PELLETB), a paper-and-pencil multiple-choice exam, or another validated reading and writing test. In the SFPD hiring process, you can take either the PELLETB or the FrontLine National Law Enforcement Examination administered by the National Testing Network (NTN). If your agency includes a written essay, POST notes that evaluators grade the basic mechanics of writing rather than policing content.

Step 3 is the Physical Ability Test (PAT). While California POST mandates a physical conditioning program during the basic academy, it does not mandate a pre-employment PAT, leaving each department to design its own. For example, NYPD administers the Job Standard Test (JST), a continuous physical test that you must finish in 4 minutes and 28 seconds. The JST requires sprinting 50 feet and surmounting a fence, climbing stairs, demonstrating the ability to physically restrain someone, running in pursuit, dragging a 176-pound mannequin 35 feet to simulate a rescue, and pulling the trigger of an unloaded firearm multiple times.

Step 4 & 5: Where the oral board sits and why it sets your list rank

In the standard sequence, the police oral board interview sits at Step 4, right after the written and physical exams and before the eligibility list and background investigation. According to California POST's hiring interview guidelines, interviews may also occur early as an initial screen or during the middle and later stages to select among finalists.

At San Francisco Police Department, the NTN FrontLine or PELLETB written exam and the PAT are both graded strictly pass/fail. SFPD uses your Step 4 Oral Interview score to place you on the Step 5 Eligibility List for up to 24 months, hiring under the Rule of List (the option to hire any candidate on the eligible list).

Under California POST Commission Regulation 1952, every peace officer candidate must be interviewed prior to employment by the department head, department staff, and/or human resources personnel. According to POST's August 2009 Hiring Interview Guidelines, which are 17 years old as of 2026, an interview should last at least 15-20 minutes with a talk ratio of about 80:20 or higher in the candidate's favor. Every California POST oral interview must evaluate six mandated factors:

• Experience: Accepting responsibilities and performing assigned tasks in work, school, or other activities, demonstrating diligence, maturity, and conscientiousness.
• Problem Solving: Identifying information, analyzing risks, choosing a practical response under pressure, and assessing the outcome.
• Communication Skills: Speaking clearly, listening actively, and using appropriate non-verbal body language without rambling.
• Interest/Motivation: Realistic expectations of the job's demands and frustrations, career planning, and preparatory steps taken to learn about policing.
• Interpersonal Skills: Social self-regulation, empathy, team orientation, conflict management, and dealing with angry or upset people without losing your temper.
• Community Involvement/Awareness: Interest in community issues, respect for cultural and demographic diversity, and role adaptability.

Worked example: How a 3-person oral board calculates your rescaled rank

In California POST's Hiring Interview Guidelines, agencies using a compensatory scoring model rate candidates across the 6 POST factors using 7-point rating scales: 1 to 2 is Unqualified (Not Qualified), 3 to 5 is Qualified (with a pre-defined pass point of 3 points), and 6 to 7 is Highly Qualified.

With 3 panel members rating 6 factors, the pass point (minimum score) is 54 points (6 factors times 3 points times 3 panel members) and the maximum score possible is 126 points (6 factors times 7 points times 3 panel members). In POST's scoring table, scores are rescaled to a 70- to 100-point range, where the rescaled score range (30) divided by the raw score range (72) equals .42 per raw score point.

In POST's published example, a candidate earns factor totals across the 3 raters of 11 in Experience, 10 in Problem solving, 15 in Communication, 9 in Interest / Motivation, 11 in Interpersonal, and 13 in Community Oriented, for a total raw score of 69:

1. Subtract the pass point from the total score: 69 minus 54 equals 15. 2. Multiply by the raw score point value (.42): 15 times .42 equals 6.3 rescaled points over the minimum. 3. Add 6.3 to the rescaled pass point (70) for a rescaled total score of 76.3. By our calculation from this POST table, adding 1 raw point per factor from each of the 3 raters (18 raw points total) raises a candidate's rescaled total score by 7.56 points, moving them from 76.3 to 83.86.

Step 6: Background investigation, Personal History Statement, and polygraph

Once pulled from the eligibility list, you enter the background investigation (California POST Commission Regulation 1953). At Redmond PD, the background check takes about 6 weeks from the time you pass the oral board, verifying your moral character, employment history, judicial and driving records, and local, state, and national fingerprint files.

You begin with the Personal History Statement (PHS) or San Francisco PD's Personal History Questionnaire (PHQ), followed by a background investigator interview. While not required by California POST, many agencies administer a polygraph or voice stress analysis exam to verify the truthfulness of your PHS and interview answers.

California POST notes that prior illegal drug use, driving under the influence (DUI), theft, or a past arrest or conviction may not automatically disqualify you on their own. However, deliberate misstatements or omissions are the number one reason candidates fail background investigations. Gather your records early using this checklist based on California POST guidelines:

• Download and fill out a working copy of the California POST Personal History Statement (PHS) and save it in a file.
• Order certified copies of your birth certificate.
• Request official, sealed copies of your high school and college transcripts.
• Gather federal employment eligibility verification documents.
• Update your working PHS copy whenever you move, change jobs, or complete college so your records stay accurate.

Step 7 & Post-hire: Conditional offer, medical, psych, and academy

According to California POST's Hiring Interview Guidelines, the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) strictly prohibit inquiries that require an applicant to reveal a physical, mental, or emotional impairment, including past drug addiction or alcoholism, prior to a conditional offer of employment. Once an agency issues a conditional job offer, you complete the final two statutory evaluations:

Medical Evaluation (Commission Regulation 1954): Conducted by a licensed physician and surgeon designated by the agency (you cannot use your own physician). In California, it begins with the Medical History Statement, Peace Officer (Form 2-252) and includes vision, hearing, and drug testing.

Psychological Evaluation (Commission Regulation 1955): Conducted by a qualified, licensed psychologist or psychiatrist who meets POST Continuing Professional Education requirements. It requires at least two written assessments (one targeting abnormal behavior patterns and one assessing normal behavior) followed by an in-person clinical interview. Note that Redmond PD conducts an initial psychological exam and polygraph during its 6-week background check, followed by a second psychological and medical exam before issuing a conditional offer.

From Day 1 of the Basic Academy, you earn entry-level pay. At San Francisco PD, entry-level officers earn $121,654 per year starting on Day 1 of the academy (reaching $231,919 at top step with retention). At Redmond PD, entry-level officers earn $110,434 per year while attending the 20-week (720-hour) WA State Criminal Justice Training Center Basic Law Enforcement Academy (laterals with at least 24 months of full-time sworn experience within the last 5 years attend an 80-hour Equivalency Academy), followed by a 12-16 week Field Training Program (FTP, California POST Regulation 1004) across four phases.

Practice oral board question and model answer

In the oral interview, panels use behavioral questions ('What did you do?') and situational questions ('What would you do?') to test the six POST factors, then use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to probe your answer. You can review more prompts in our guide to police oral board questions or follow our police oral board prep plan.

Question: Tell us about a time when you had to make a difficult decision under pressure. What was the situation, what options did you consider, what did you do, and what did you learn from the outcome?

Example answer (written by Ten-Four as a model, not from a real candidate): Two winters ago, I was working as the night shift supervisor at a distribution warehouse when a forklift clipped a rack upright during loading. No one was hurt, and the driver wanted to keep loading so we wouldn't miss our 2:00 AM dispatch cutoff. I had two options: let the crew finish loading the last three pallets next to the bent upright to hit our on-time metric, or halt the bay, cone off the aisle, and miss the truck deadline. Even though my manager graded us heavily on dispatch times, a compromised rack carrying 3,000-pound pallets was an immediate safety hazard. I stopped loading in that aisle, moved the crew to a secondary dock door, called our safety engineer to inspect the upright, and notified the regional dispatcher that the truck would leave 40 minutes late. The engineer confirmed the upright had sheared bolts and could have collapsed if bumped again. My manager backed the call the next morning. That night taught me to gather the physical facts first, weigh safety above schedule pressure, and communicate bad news early so the rest of the team can adjust.

Why this works: On California POST's Problem Solving rating sheet, ratings of 3 to 5 ('Qualified') apply when a candidate recalls a difficult situation and executed an adequate solution. To earn ratings of 6 to 7 ('Highly Qualified'), POST's rating sheet requires the candidate to recall a highly challenging situation and clearly state all the elements that constituted it. The candidate must also state realistic and optimal solutions that were available to explore, execute the best solution available, resolve the situation, and volunteer lessons learned from the experience.

Practice this out loud. Ten-Four is AI oral board practice: its panel asks you these questions out loud and follows up on what you missed. You get a 1 to 5 score with the points you made and missed, and a dated plan up to your board. 7 days free. Start a police mock board

FAQ

What are the steps of the police hiring process in order?

California POST lists the prototypical peace officer selection process in 7 pre-hire steps: 1) Application, 2) Written Exam, 3) Physical Ability Test, 4) Oral Interview, 5) Background Investigation (including the Personal History Statement, investigator interview, fingerprinting, and polygraph), 6) Medical Evaluation, and 7) Psychological Evaluation. Departments like San Francisco PD also place a formal Eligibility List step between the Oral Interview and Background Investigation.

How long does the police hiring process and background check take?

Timelines depend on the phase and department. At Redmond Police Department (WA), once you pass the oral board, the background investigation takes about 6 weeks, followed by a 20-week (720-hour) basic academy and 12-16 weeks of Field Training. At San Francisco Police Department, passing candidates can remain on the Eligibility List for up to 24 months before appointment.

Why does the oral board interview determine my rank on the eligibility list?

At agencies like the San Francisco Police Department, both the Step 2 Written Exam (NTN FrontLine or PELLETB) and the Step 3 Physical Ability Test (PAT) are graded strictly pass/fail. Because those early tests do not generate a ranking number, your Step 4 Oral Interview score (often rescaled to a 70 to 100 point range) is used to place you on the Eligibility List.

What is the number one reason candidates fail the police background check?

According to California POST, the number one reason individuals fail a police background investigation is deliberately withholding or misrepresenting job-relevant information. Prior illegal drug use, a DUI, theft, or a past arrest or conviction are not always automatic disqualifiers on their own, but lying or omitting facts on your Personal History Statement (PHS) or to an investigator will result in rejection.

Why do the medical and psychological exams happen after a conditional job offer?

Under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), employers are strictly prohibited from asking questions or conducting exams that reveal physical, mental, or emotional impairments, including past drug addiction or alcoholism, prior to issuing a conditional job offer.

Do all police departments test in the exact same order?

No. While California POST and San Francisco PD start with a city application followed by the written and physical exams, Redmond Police Department (WA) requires entry-level applicants to pass their initial written and physical agility tests and complete their Personal History Statement through Public Safety Testing (PST) before submitting a city application.

Related guides

• What is an oral board interview?
• SFPD hiring process
• Police Interview Questions
• All guides

Official sources

• California POST: Peace Officer Candidate Selection Process (Updated 1/22/2024)
• California POST: Peace Officer Candidate Selection Standards (Updated 8/28/2026)
• California POST: Commission Regulations 1004 and 1950-1955 (Updated 3/3/2026)
• California POST: Interviewing Peace Officer Candidates: Hiring Interview Guidelines (August 2009)
• San Francisco Police Department: Hiring Process (2026)
• Redmond Police Department (WA): Hiring Process (2024)
• Redmond Police Department (WA): Recruitment FAQs (November 2024)
• NYPD Recruitment: Police Officer Hiring Process (2023)

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Ten-Four is not affiliated with any police or fire department, civil service commission, POST, or testing company.