Odds of getting hired (amount of applicants vs. how many officers will be hired)

[Ignite]

Hello again,

Maybe some of you here have a general idea of the odds for someone getting hired with a department that has 1,100 applicants and is only filling 20 spots? The written test is 80% to pass and the physical test is pass/fail.

Those numbers 1,100/20 seem daunting when wishing to become one of those filled positions, but realistically about how many of those wash out just on the written/physical test portions?

[Citicop]

Well, statistically, your odds of being hired are 20/1100, or 1.818181818%

If you want a better idea, it will depend on what the department is looking for, what you bring to the table, and what your competition looks like as far as skills, experience, etc.

It's a process. Sign up and see how you do. You may well be one of the 20...

But keep in mind that there is some number of the applicants who will meet all the standards who will not get hired. If (to completely make up a number) 200 people pass all the tests, only about the top 10% will get hired.

What do you have to help you stand out from the other 1,099?

-Citicop.

[pac201]

Citicop hit the nail on the head. I think too often people will read what the minimum qualifications are and surmise that "hey, I can do that". Later on they realize that minimum is just that, it ain't gonna get ya in the door...

[retdetsgt]

When I went in to take the written, there were probably 300 people in the room. I almost left thinking it wasn't worth it, but I did stay and take it.

A lot of people did fail the written, but a lot passed and the top scores (if they pass everything else) get hired. My final score was 99 out of 100.

About 20 were hired off of that list, but you can bet that no one who scored less than 96 or 97, if that got close were in that group.

[Milwaukee P.A.]

First I wish you Good Luck. I can tell you that when I applied for the job there was over 1,800 applicants. Several months later and several tests later I recieved a letter that said my test score had ranked me at 156. At this point I almost gave up as they were hiring only 36 appplicants. It is important to not give up however, I did not give up but thought, Hey even if I do fail out of the process, it's excellent experience and you can prep for the next process. I did get through the process and after background investigations came out with a job. What I'm trying to say is you shouldn't look at odds, they are very decieveing, afterall it may be small odds that you have but they are hiring SOMEONE and you are a SOMEONE. If you look at the odds and decide they are not high enough for you and quit, then you have 0% chance.

[Ignite]

Thanks for the responses. That's a good way of looking at it Milwaukee, and very encouraging.

I just want to know what else I can do to be a better applicant, aside from simply having the qualities the department is looking for. What are some more practical things I could do in the meantime? I mentioned in a recent thread that I did 4 years honorable service in the Marines and now I'm in school for the first time, slowly working toward a degree. By the way, I'm still conflicted on what to study. For now I'm working on my general education. If Criminal Justice were offered at my school I probably would have already decided on that, because obviously it's most appealing to me. I'm thinking of switching schools at some point to do that. Thoughts on that? -- Aside from school, I work part-time at a call center. I was just accepted to be involved with the Community Police Academy here. It's a 10 week program with one 3-hour class a week.

I'm not sure what else I could be doing, if anything. Any ideas/advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks again.

[retdetsgt]

Different departments do it differently. Mine actually gives you two scores, one for the written and one from the oral board. At the oral board, things like volunteer work, etc. might give you a few points depending on the interviewers. Having sat on a number of these, I can say that answers to questions that demonstrate your aptitude for the job are the most important.

But at the end, they combine the two scores. The rest of the testing is pass/fail, including physical agility, medical, psych, background and so forth. If you pass all of the latter, you are put on a list according to your final written and oral scores and we hire from top to bottom.

As just said, if you don't try you have a zero chance. I also nearly walked out, but didn't.

Good luck, I hope it works out for you.

[Ignite]

Thanks, ret.

[mcsap]

It doesn't matter what the odds are. Odds don't hire.

You simply need to end up as one of the top 20 which is entirely up to YOU.

If you end up as #21. You aren't getting the job.

We just gave a written test.

700 signed up and paid $40.

600 showed up. ( no refunds)

270 FAILED.

So 330 are on to the oral exam this weekend.

Prob about 50% of them will fail.

From there is it psych interview and backgrounds.

We wash a LOT out on backgrounds mainly becaue they LIE. If you can manage to do better then the rest , you have a decent shot.

[Ignite]

Awesome, thanks.

What are a lot of these guys lying about?

[mcsap]

They lie about arrests , tickets , not being fired from jobs , not using drugs etc.

A lot of those things are NOT automatic DQ's but if you lie about it , you are done for.

You did what you did and have done what you have done. When we ask , it is time to let it ALL hang out. It isn't a matter of being proud but rather a time to admit what you have done in your past. A LOT of us have gotten tickets , been fired and done some other things that we aren't proud of.

Someone who thinks that we won't find out about their past or is to embarrassed to admit what they have done will only mean the job they might have had is going to go to the next guy down on the list.

Our last go around , we went through 50 names to get TWO good candidates.

[Ignite]

we went through 50 names to get TWO good candidates.

That's crazy... Do you think it's more a matter of the quality of people applying or the strictness of hiring standards?

[Citicop]

That's crazy... Do you think it's more a matter of the quality of people applying or the strictness of hiring standards?

I know a TON of people who would meet the minimum standards but would make horrible cops. My two best friends in the world are in that cagtegory. They are both excellent at their respective professions, in reasonable physical shape, have clean backgrounds and college degrees. But they would have no business being cops anymore than I would be good at doing what they do.

Meeting the minimum does not make one a "good candidate."

[GoDirectly2Jail]

I know a TON of people who would meet the minimum standards but would make horrible cops. My two best friends in the world are in that cagtegory. They are both excellent at their respective professions, in reasonable physical shape, have clean backgrounds and college degrees. But they would have no business being cops anymore than I would be good at doing what they do.

Meeting the minimum does not make one a "good candidate."

Quoted for truth, and that is a point lost on A LOT of applicants (and hopefuls who come here). Only certain people have the aptitude for this job.

[retdetsgt]

700 signed up and paid $40.

Your department charges people who apply??? I definitely wouldn't have applied there.