Are you healthy in mind and body? Well, if you are, no problems in this stage of hiring. I have had some candidates discover some medical issues they didn’t even know they had, such as heart problems. Included in a complete medical exam are sight, hearing, and a treadmill test. Some businesses exist for the medical screening of applicants for all types of jobs that require it, not just Law Enforcement. The medicals are typically scheduled for all day, not necessarily including the treadmill. Sometimes that is scheduled for a separate day and overseen by a doctor…you know, in case you have a heart attack or similar, which has been known to happen even with younger people. If you recently completed the academy, you will likely breeze through it.
Three common problems crop up during the medical. Eyesight is one of them. Hearing is another, usually with older or lateral candidates. For more senior lateral candidates, you will lose some hearing on the job. However, POST regulations allow for a department to make an exception for experienced law enforcement in relaxed hearing standards.
One issue that kept on cropping up was Diabetics. Can you be a Diabetic and be a cop? Yes? The problem arises when the medical facility won’t pass you until you show that it is under control for a certain amount of time, usually months, before they will medically clear you. So that is a considerable delay.
The psychological, known as the psych, is administered by a POST qualified psychologist or psychiatrist. It is a strange process. It usually takes half of the day at the psychologist’s office. You start by filling in multiple bubble answer questionnaires asking all kinds of questions. Some of the questions seem like they are the same but worded differently. Then, after grueling hours of filling those out, they are sent through a grading computer.
The psychologist reviews the results and then meets with you in person for the psych interview. She will ask you all kinds of questions, some based on the results of your answers, some standard, some just about you and your background, life, etc. I enjoyed that part because I got to talk about my favorite subject, me.
You will not be given any information about the results. Instead, you will be graded on a numbered scale, and the psychologist will recommend to the agency whether or not you should be hired. You still won’t ever get the results.
A common misconception is that the test is to determine if you are crazy or not. No, that’s a given since you want to go into law enforcement. Instead, the report is about maturity, fit for the department, personality, whether you will likely be a complaint generator, etc.
Any idea what the most common reason for people to fail the psych? No, guess again. It is a lack of maturity. So come back in a few years and try again.
Hint: Answer the questions honestly. Do not answer the questions like you think they want to hear. You will answer some that seem not to be flattering about you, but be honest, and you will likely pass. You are human (theoretically) and, as a human, not perfect. Somehow it is flagged if you are answering them as you think they want to hear. It’s magic.
Good luck and relax.
Scattered Thought 