Police Officer

Police Officers perform general police duties and related work in the New York City Police Department including connecting and building relationships with the community. They patrol an assigned area on foot or in a vehicle to prevent crime; apprehend crime suspects; intervene in various situations involving crimes in progress, aided cases, complaints, emotionally disturbed persons, etc.; respond to and investigate vehicular accidents; investigate specific offenses; interact with prisoners; operate and maintain patrol vehicles; issue summonses; obtain information regarding incidents by interviewing witnesses, victims, and/or complainants; safeguard and voucher found, seized or recovered property; provide information to the public; handle situations involving maltreated, abused, or missing children; interact with juveniles; may be assigned to crowd control for large-scale events such as demonstrations, rallies and parades; prepare forms and reports; and testify in court. All Police Officers perform related work.
Special Working Conditions:
Police Officers will be required to work various shifts including nights, Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, and to work rotating tours, change tours or work overtime when ordered, as permitted by the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Some of the physical activities performed by Police Officers and environmental conditions experienced are: working outdoors in all kinds of weather; walking and/or standing in an assigned area during a tour while remaining alert; driving or sitting in a patrol car during a tour while remaining alert; running after a fleeing suspect; climbing up stairs; carrying an injured adult with assistance; gripping persons to prevent escape restraining a suspect by use of handcuffs; detecting odors such as those caused by smoke or gas leaks; engaging in hand to hand struggles to subdue a suspect resisting arrest; being physically active for prolonged periods of time; understanding verbal communication over the radio with background noise; reading and writing under low light conditions; carrying or wearing heavy equipment; and wearing a bullet resistant vest.

Exam No. 7311, 7312, 7313, 7314, 7315, 7316, 7317, 7318, 7319, 7320, 7321, and 7322 - Page 2 (This is a brief description of what you might do in this position and does not include all the duties of this position.)

How To Qualify:
You will be given the test before we verify your qualifications. You are responsible for determining whether or not you meet the education and experience requirements for this examination prior to submitting your application. If you are found "Not Qualified," your application fee will not be refunded, and you will not receive a score. (For more information see Exam Site Admission section.)

Education And Experience Requirements:
By the date of appointment, you must have a four-year high school diploma or its educational equivalent, and
1. successfully completed 24 college semester credits at an accredited college or university with at least a 2.0 cumulative index or its equivalent, or
2. have completed two years of honorable full-time U.S. military service The high school diploma or its educational equivalent must be approved by a State's Department of Education or a recognized accrediting organization. The college or university must be accredited by regional, national, professional, or specialized agencies recognized as accrediting bodies by the U.S. Secretary of Education and by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). If you were educated outside the United States, you must have your foreign education evaluated to determine its equivalence to education obtained in the United States. You will receive instructions from the Police Department during the pre-employment screening process regarding the approved evaluation services that you may use for foreign education.
Age Requirement:
You must be at least 17 years of age by the date you take the multiple-choice test to be permitted to take this examination. You must have attained age 20 years and 6 months to be appointed as a Police Officer. Only persons who are less than 43 years of age on the date of filing an application for this examination may be appointed as a Police Officer. Exceptions to Age Requirements : If you have qualifying military service, you may deduct up to six years for the time you served from your age when determining whether you meet the maximum age requirement. This provision is in accordance with NYS Civil Service Law Section 58 and NYC Administrative Code Section 14-109.
Character and Background :
Proof of good character and satisfactory background will be absolute prerequisites to appointment. The following are among the factors which would ordinarily be cause for disqualification: (a) arrest record or conviction of an offense, the nature of which indicates lack of good moral character or disposition towards violence or disorder; (b) repeated arrests or convictions of an offense, where such convictions or arrests indicate a disrespect for the law; (c) discharge from employment, where such discharge indicates poor behavior or an inability to adjust to discipline; (d) dishonorable discharge from the Armed Forces; and (e) conviction of petit larceny. In accordance with provisions of law, persons convicted of a felony or domestic violence misdemeanor are not eligible for appointment to the title of Police Officer. Driver License Requirement : On the date of appointment as a Police Officer, you must possess a valid unrestricted New York State Motor Vehicle Driver License. You must maintain this license for the duration of your employment. Medical and Psychological Assessment : Medical and psychological guidelines have been established for the position of Police Officer. You will be examined to determine whether you can perform the essential functions of a Police Officer. Additionally, you will be expected to continue to perform the essential functions of a Police Officer throughout your career, and may, therefore, be medically and psychologically tested periodically throughout your career. Where appropriate, a reasonable accommodation will be provided for a person with a disability to enable him or her to take these medical and psychological examinations, and/or to perform the essential functions of the job.
Physical Testing :
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The multiple-choice test will be given at a computer terminal. Your score on this test will be used to determine your place on an eligible list. You must achieve a score of at least 70% to pass the test. The multiple-choice test is designed to assess the extent to which candidates have certain abilities determined to be important to the performance of the tasks of a Police Officer. The multiple-choice test may include questions requiring the use of any of the following abilities:

Exam No. 7311, 7312, 7313, 7314, 7315, 7316, 7317, 7318, 7319, 7320, 7321, and 7322 - Page 4 Deductive Reasoning: applying general rules to specific problems and coming up with logical answers. It involves deciding if an answer makes sense. Example: this ability may be used by a Police Officer when determining the appropriate dispatch code based on the situation. Inductive Reasoning: combining separate pieces of information, or specific answers to problems, to form general rules or conclusions. It involves the ability to think of possible reasons for why things go together. Example: this ability may be used by a Police Officer when investigating specific offenses. Information Ordering: following correctly a rule or set of rules or actions in a certain order. The rule or set of rules used must be given. The things or actions to be put in order can include numbers, letters, words, pictures, procedures, sentences, and mathematical or logical operations. Example: this ability may be used by a Police Officer when storing found, seized, or recovered property. Memorization: remembering information such as words, numbers, pictures, and procedures. Pieces of information can be remembered by themselves or with other pieces of information. Example: this ability may be used by a Police Officer when searching for individuals who are wanted for questioning after being presented with an image and description of the individual. Problem Sensitivity: being able to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It includes being able to identify the whole problem as well as elements of the problem. Example: this ability may be used by a Police Officer when apprehending crime suspects or working with crime victims. Spatial Orientation: determining where you are in relation to the location of some object or where the object is in relation to you. Example: this ability may be used by a Police Officer when navigating throughout their assigned precinct while on foot or in a vehicle. Visualization: imagining how something would look when it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged. It requires the forming of mental images of how patterns or objects would look after certain changes, such as unfolding or rotation. One has to predict how an object, set of objects, or pattern will appear after the changes have been carried out. Example: this ability may be used by a Police Officer while searching for individuals who are wanted for arrest or questioning when attempting to identify such individuals who are believed to have changed their appearance. Written Comprehension: understanding sentences and paragraphs written in English. Example: this ability may be used by a Police Officer when reading policies, laws, and other legal documents, as well as reading traffic signs, traffic violation summonses, etc. Written Expression: using English words or sentences in writing so that others will understand. Example: this ability may be used by a Police Officer when recording information in a memo book or other report(s). Certain questions may need to be answered on the basis of documents or other information supplied to the candidates on the date of the multiple-choice exam.

The New York State Public Officers Law requires that any person employed as a Police Officer in the New York City Police Department must be a resident of the City of New York or of Nassau, Westchester, Suffolk, Orange, Rockland, or Putnam counties. Citizenship Requirement : United States citizenship is required at the time of appointment as a Police Officer.