Traffic Patrol Officer

The purpose of these questions is to measure the candidate’s judgment and moral resolute. When deciding the appropriate response, it is common to be torn between violating department policy and potentially being insubordinate. Operational policy is designed to give officers direction regarding acceptable behavior in compliance with established legal and professional standards.

History is filled with instances of individuals who claimed they “were just following orders.” The correct answer is to advise the supervisor that he/she perceives the directive to be a violation of department policy. This gives the supervisor the opportunity to clarify the issue or change the directive. If the supervisor insists on violating policy, the officer must decide between refusing and complying with an improper directive. When responding to the follow-up question regarding an order that violates the law, the candidate should always respond that he/she would not follow the order.

Each department in a company has different cultures and procedures. So when applying for a special position the company, candidates should show their passions for which department they are interested in. What the interviewer expects is a persuasive answer given by candidates. It is a good suggestion for candidates to show their true desire to the department which they want to apply in order to let the interviewer know their interest.

I do not hesitate to apply for the position of police officer. Because I want to show my passion for your department where brings me a lot of chances to earn money and I can achieve my goals. Moreover, I am fully confident of having ability in investigating and arresting robbers.

Physical fitness is one of the key attributes of a good police officer. The job may require you to chase a suspect, forcefully apprehend a subject or defend yourself from an attacker. These occurrences do not happen every day, but you must be physically prepared for them. The job of a police officer can be very stressful. Stress can lead to several ailments including heart disease. Studies have shown that a body that is in good physical condition is better prepared to handle stress. Therefore, law enforcement agencies are looking for individuals who have developed a healthy and fit lifestyle.

From your general appearance, the panel will be able to assess to a certain degree your physical condition. You will want to provide them with more detailed information on your current level of fitness. You do not have to be a person who works out everyday performing all kinds of cross training exercises. Even if your exercising program has been limited, tell them what you have been doing. It shows them that you care about yourself, and you are doing something to stay in shape. If you have not been exercising, then it would be wise to begin a doctor-approved program. Not only will this help you at the interview, but it will also help you in other stages of the hiring process.

Many candidates may not be able to provide a clear-cut answer to this question. For example, they may have known they wanted to be part of something important, but were not sure about law enforcement as a possible career choice. Regardless, they worked hard in school, developed a strong character, and avoided behavior that would be perceived as bad by a potential employer.

As they matured, they recognized law enforcement was a viable career for them. Others may have taken a more direct path including participation in law enforcement Explorers, criminal justice classes in college, and possibly service in the military. In the end, assessors are seeking to determine whether applying with the department was a passing fancy, to simply get a job, or a step toward a meaningful and rewarding career.

Usually this refers to your goals in law enforcement. However, they may ask you about your goals in life. The key is to give them some specific goals which are obtainable. Saying that your goal is to be the best police officer or agent that you can be is too vague. Is your goal to be the Director or Chief? This may be your goal and one day you may achieve that status. However, at this point in time, you should start with smaller goals. Tell them your first goal is to get into law enforcement. Your second goal may be to join a specialized field within the department. Perhaps you want to be on the SWAT team or serve as a canine officer or become a supervisor. If you are able to articulate your goals, this makes you a more desirable candidate.

Despite the perception portrayed in the media, law enforcement is not about the lone hero. Rather, officers are required to coordinate their activities throughout the shift as they respond to and investigate activities. During this time, they not only work with a partner, but other officers on their own shift. In addition, they are frequently required to interact with officers in other divisions as a well as other criminal justice agencies, local, state and federal organizations, and private companies.

The successful candidate should be able to describe not only how they worked well with others to successfully accomplish a goal, but also how they played an active part in the process.

Nowadays, there are not many people doing something bad for society because they have their conscience guided. Focusing on such things as conscience or loyalty will not help you with this question as such things have become rather vague in daily life and if someone wishes to do something for the society, practical actions would be better than just words.

For example, to answer this question, you may tell the interviewer that you want to become a police because you always dream of protecting the innocent from bad things and those evil or bad things will never win over good things because there are a lot of people like you. If you were a police officer, you would fight against them.

This is a behaviorally based question that is founded upon the premise that past behavior is the best predictor of future performance. These types of questions focus on competencies that are critical for performing as an officer such as conflict resolution, problem solving, teamwork, and integrity.

When responding to a behavioral question, the candidate should provide a three-part response that includes a description of the situation, the action the candidate took in response to the situation, and the results of their action.

For example, in response to this question, a candidate may describe how he/she was working at a fast-food establishment. A customer came in who was very angry and confronted him/her about ketchup being on his hamburger when he specifically asked for ‘no ketchup.’ The angry customer went on to make a number of unflattering comments about the quality of service he had received and the inadequacies of the staff. As customer voiced his complaint, he became very loud and was starting to disturb the other customers.

The candidate respectfully responded, “Yes, Sir. I remember you placing your order and the request. I am sorry for the mix-up. Either the cooks did not see the request or I picked up the wrong items. Regardless, I am very sorry. I will fix the mistake and include a couple of desert pies for the inconvenience.” Before he left, the customer apologized for being rude and thanked the candidate for his/her efforts to resolve the issue.

There are an unlimited number of responses to this question. But in this example, the candidate spoke of a situation when a person who was angry and acting very hostile. He/she initiated action to address the problem and resolve the conflict. In the end, the result was a happy customer.