The City of Olympia holds its entry-level police officer test once a year. There is a non-refundable $15.00 examination fee charged to take the test. The following is a step-by-step outline of the examination process.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS

To become a police officer with the City of Olympia you must . . .

• Have a high school diploma or GED.

• Be a U.S. citizen.

• Be at least 21 years of age at the time of hire.

• Have a valid Washington State Drivers' License at the time of hire.

• Successfully complete a polygraph examination, a physical agility test and a criminal and personal background investigation prior to hire.

• Successfully pass both psychological and medical examinations as a condition of employment.

• Qualify to possess a firearm in accordance with Federal or State regulations (a condition of continuing employment).

• Not have a history of domestic violence.

DIVERSITY AND PRE-PROFESSIONAL PREPARATION

The Olympia Police Department seeks to recruit and maintain a diverse and well-rounded group of professional employees.  To that end, female and minority applicants are welcomed, as are applicants with foreign language proficiency (the City offers incentive pay for language skills).  In terms of pre-professional preparation, having a college degree in hand (in any relevant discipline) is strongly encouraged, but it is not currently required for employment consideration.  Keep in mind, though, that college degrees are required to qualify for most promotional opportunities in the Department (see OPD General Order 33.6). Computer literacy and keyboarding skills are also essential pre-professional preparation for a police career with the Olympia Police Department.  

COMPETITIVE EXAMINATION PROCEDURES

Qualifying Examination: The initial phase of the police officer testing process involves completing a three-part competitive examination. The examination takes approximately three hours and includes the following elements:

Multiple Choice Situational Decision-Making Questions: In this video-based test, candidates view a series of decision-making situations. After each scenario is presented, a candidate picks the decision he/she feels is most appropriate for the circumstance. Although these scenarios are based on potential policing situations, no prior policing experience or training is required to understand or answer the questions. The test only requires that you use your best judgment and common sense to respond to the situations that are presented.  You can take a sample test on-line or order a CD-ROM with a sample test from the vendor's web site.  There is a charge for ordering the CD-ROM or taking the sample test on-line.

Writing: In this portion of the test, candidates write a short, descriptive report. Before the exercise begins, candidates are given an example of a well-written report. Candidates are given two opportunities to watch a video clip depicting a situation. Then the candidates are asked to write a report describing what they saw. The test is a timed exercise that evaluates both written communication and observation skills. Again, no special police-related training or experience is required to be successful in the writing portion of the examination.

Reading Test: In the final portion of the test, candidates read a set of sentences and choose the best words to complete the sentences. This, too, is a timed exercise that requires no prior police knowledge.

Candidates receive notification of their test scores by mail. No test scores are provided over the telephone. Candidates must pass all three portions of the Qualifying Examination to move ahead to the next phase of the selection process.

Interview: Those candidates achieving the highest scores on the Qualifying Examination are invited to participate in the next phase of the selection process – a competitive interview. The interview is conducted by a panel selected by the Department. Candidates who successfully complete the interview portion of the process are placed on the employment register in ranked order.

VETERANS PREFERENCE

Veteran’s preference is granted to candidates, if the following qualifications are met:

I. The candidate must be a veteran, as defined by law. A “veteran” includes every person, who at the time he or she seeks the benefits of RCW 41.04.005, 41.04.010, 41.16.220, 41.20.050, 41.40.170, 73.04.110, or 73.08.080 has received an honorable discharge or received a discharge for physical reasons with an honorable record and who meets at least one of the following criteria:

A. The person has served between World War I and World War II or during any period of war, as defined in subsection (2) of this section, as either:

1. A member in any branch of the armed forces of the United States;

2. A member of the women’s air forces service pilots;

3. A U.S. documented merchant mariner with service aboard an oceangoing vessel operated by the war shipping administration, the office of defense transportation, or their agents, during the period of armed conflict, December 7, 1941, to August 15, 1945; or

4. A civil service crew member with service aboard a U.S. army transport service or U.S. naval transportation service vessel in oceangoing service during the period of armed conflict, December 7, 1941, to August 15, 1945; or

B. The person has received the armed forces expeditionary medal, or marine corps and navy expeditionary medal, for opposed action on foreign soil, for service:

1. In any branch of the armed forces of the United States; or

2. As a member of the women’s air forces services pilots.

C. A “period of war” includes:

1. World War I;

2. World War II;

3. The Korean conflict;

4. The Vietnam era, which was the period beginning August 5, 1964, and ending on May 7, 1975;

5. The Persian Gulf War, which was the period beginning August 21, 1990, and ending on the date prescribed by presidential proclamation or law;

6. The period beginning on the date of any future declaration of war by the congress and ending on the date prescribed by presidential proclamation or concurrent resolution of the congress; and

7. The following armed conflicts, if the participant was awarded the respective campaign badge or medal: The crisis in Lebanon; the invasion of Grenada; Panama, Operation Just Cause; Somalia, Operation Restore Hope; Haiti, Operation Uphold Democracy; and Bosnia, Operation Joint Endeavor.

II. To receive Veterans Preference point’s candidates must present a valid DD-214 Form. The DD-214 Form should be attached to your application. Candidates advancing to the interview phase of the selection process should be sure to inform the City’s Human Resources Department of eligibility for Veterans Preference points.

EMPLOYMENT REGISTER

The Civil Service Commission establishes an employment register which contains the names of those candidates who successfully complete both phases of the examination process. Candidates are ranked in order of their scores on the interview phase of the process. The employment register remains in effect for one year. The Civil Service Commission may extend the list for an additional year, or may determine at any time that another examination is required to establish a new list.

Appointments are made from among the top candidates on the employment register. The Department may consider a number of candidates equal to the number of position openings plus four (one position opening = five candidates for consideration). Revisions to Civil Service Rules that would modify the number of individuals referred is currently under consideration and may be implemented.

As a condition of appointment, successful completion of the following examinations is required:

• Chief's interview

• Extensive personal and criminal background investigation

• Physical ability test (Pass/Fail)

• Medical evaluation (Pass/Fail)

• Psychological evaluation

• Polygraph examination

Details regarding the medical (physical) evaluation and physical ability examination are as follows:

Physical (Medical) Examination: Prior to appointment, candidates are required to undergo a complete physical examination. Due to the fact that law enforcement is strenuous and stressful work, the examination is quite extensive. If you have any of the conditions listed below, you may not be eligible for appointment to a position as a Police Officer. (Please note, this is not a complete list but contains the most commonly encountered medical disqualifiers.)

• Vision less than 20/20 corrected or 20/100 uncorrected. (Contact lenses are permissible.)

• Chronic back problems which would prevent performance of essential functions of a police officer.

• Heart disease.

• Untreated high blood pressure.

• Physical disabilities which would prevent performance of essential functions of a police officer.

• A continuing problem with drug or alcohol abuse.

Physical Ability Examination: The City of Olympia has adopted the Physical Fitness Ability Test required by the Criminal Justice Training Commission (CJTC) for entry into the Washington Basic Law Enforcement Academy program as a pre-employment qualifying examination. Candidates are required to complete and pass the elements of the adopted test, which consists of the following exercises:

• 300 meter sprint

• Maximum push-up test

• 1 minute sit-up test

• 1.5 mile run/walk

To download a printable copy of the CJTC Physical Ability Test and suggestions for test preparation click here.

BASIC LAW ENFORCEMENT TRAINING

Candidates who are appointed as Recruit Police Officers are required to attend and successfully graduate from the Washington Basic Law Enforcement Academy. The Academy is located in Burien, Washington and consists of 770 hours of intensive training (19.25 weeks). During this period, candidates are paid at Step A of the Recruit Police Officer salary range. On satisfactory completion of Academy training, Recruit Police Officers advance to Step B of the Recruit Police Officer salary range. Recruit Police Officers advance to Step A of the Police Officer salary range in 18 months after satisfactory completion of a probationary period.

POLICE TRAINING OFFICER PROGRAM

All new officers, on completion of the Academy, participate in the OPD Police Training Officer (PTO) program. This program is an in-service mentoring and training program that is designed to complete the pre-professional preparation of new police officers. Successful completion of the PTO program is required to move from probationary to regular status.

LATERAL ENTRY OF EXPERIENCED POLICE OFFICERS

The Olympia Police Department does not actively recruit experienced police officers. However, exceptionally qualified experienced officers meeting the following criteria are welcome to apply for lateral entry:

• The applicant's prior law enforcement experience must be full-time, paid experience as a fully commissioned, general service police officer or deputy sheriff in a municipal or county agency;

• The applicant must be certified as a police officer in Washington State or have completed a basic law enforcement training program in another state that is recognized by the Washington Criminal Justice Training Commission as equivalent to the training provided by the Washington Basic Law Enforcement Academy;

• The applicant must have completed probation and have a minimum of one full year of full-time, paid experience with his/her previous agency.

• The applicant's work history must demonstrate exemplary behavior and performance.

Lateral applicants with prior experience in - and a strong commitment to - applying the principles of community/problem-oriented policing are strongly preferred.

The selection process for experienced police officers is the same as for entry-level officers. Lateral applicants from out of State who are appointed to Police Officer positions are required to successfully complete the Washington Basic Law Enforcement Equivalency Academy within one year of appointment as a condition of continued employment.