First testing in a couple of weeks

[Iowa pd hopeful]

So, I have my first agility testing & POST test in less than 2 weeks, I can pass everything now, except the running. I am 1.5 minutes outside of qualifying, and I am positive I can kick it up enough to pass.

My question is this, the letter I received said that those who pass the PT, and POST test will have an interview that day with the civil service commission to take the best 10. It says nothing about showering/changing out of PT clothes, I will have my suit in my truck, but would it be normal to interview in workout clothes? Also another person asked about taking in a binder with resumes/letters of achievements into the interview. Would this be a common thing with the CSC? Thanks all!

[covman454]

The times where I did everything in one day, the interview was after lunch. The PAT and Post were in the morning so you had a couple hours to get changed and into your suit. In one case, they had us shower and change at the rec center where the PAT was then you took the POST in your interview clothes. In another one, it was just close enough I could get home between phases. Good thing too, because they didn't offer shower facitlities, just a locker room to change in. You might not be somewhere where you can get showered, so plan for that if you can't. Generally, if I had to interview the day of the physical I just dressed in slacks and a nice shirt. The suit came when I went back for further interviewing.

With the binder idea, I took a manilla envelope with my extra documents and gave it to the interviewers when the opportunity presented itself.

Hope this helps.

Covman

[vicmackey]

I've never taken a binder or anything to an interview, so I don't know about that. Normally all that stuff is turned in with the application or in the background. As for being 1.5 minutes off the run...that would worry me man. Make sure you bring your own watch and if it looks like it's gonna be close better hit it. No pain no gain, and the pain will last a shorter period of time thatn the agony of a missed opportunity.

[Iowa pd hopeful]

I am not really sure what to I have that relates to police work to put in a binder, but I do have other accomplishments from my current job. As for the running I am busting butt every night, and I figure that when I run with a group, and being in competition with the others will boost the adrenaline enough to get me qualified. Thanks for the responses guys.

[YMAN]

Iowa LEO PD's seem to focus more on PAT than education. Push yourself for the running portion and pace yourself. 12.51 minute max. for a 1.5 mile run is plenty of time. You'll do fine if your not some fat over weight slob .... Ha...

[lcpdwannabe]

I've never heard of taking a binder with you into an interview..they should have all your info from your app when you have the interview and they ask you about any special accomplishments if they want to know.

good luck on your run and let us know how you do..if you fail...don't let it get to you and stay with it!!!

[Iowa pd hopeful]

Iowa LEO PD's seem to focus more on PAT than education. Push yourself for the running portion and pace yourself. 12.51 minute max. for a 1.5 mile run is plenty of time. You'll do fine if your not some fat over weight slob .... Ha...

Okay, so I am still a little fat (read appx 20lbs over what I should be, but already lost 32lbs.) Just one more question....has anyone ever heard of being able to retest the physical agility portion, or is it more commonly no pass, no hire kind of deal? Just was wondering because I am confident on all aspects (i.e. sit-ups/push-ups/POST test/interview) except for that damn run. well we have 3 days and counting, guess I will see how I do. Thanks All.

[Sag22]

The PAT is pass/fail from the start. If you fail any portion of it you get to go home early. I would not worry if I were you. I thought I was having trouble with the running portion as well. When I was there testing adrenaline kicked in and I ran a full 2 min faster than any time I had ever had. You will be amazed at what you can do if you really want something. Just remember throughout the testing that you want this so bad you can taste it and nothing is going to stop you

[DMS 525]

Okay, so I am still a little fat (read appx 20lbs over what I should be, but already lost 32lbs.) Just one more question....has anyone ever heard of being able to retest the physical agility portion, or is it more commonly no pass, no hire kind of deal? Just was wondering because I am confident on all aspects (i.e. sit-ups/push-ups/POST test/interview) except for that damn run. well we have 3 days and counting, guess I will see how I do. Thanks All.

If you're a straight, white male, no. If you're a female from a minority class, you can, and will get on the DMPD! That still torques my onions to this day.

[scott72]

I've never heard of taking a binder with you into an interview..they should have all your info from your app when you have the interview and they ask you about any special accomplishments if they want to know.

good luck on your run and let us know how you do..if you fail...don't let it get to you and stay with it!!!

I've always taken a binder in with me for interviews. What I bring are letters from people I've accumulated over the years thanking me for various things, pictures of me in classrooms, grants I've applied for and received, and any other things that would surely impress an oral board. It really shows them you'll pull out all the stops to get the job.

As far as the 1.5 mile run, if your running on a quarter mile track, make sure you run no slower than 2 minute laps and your home free. Check your time each lap and know if your falling behind or not. You'll do it. Have confidence and just tell yourself failing is not an option. It's a long damn drive home when you miss it by a few seconds. Don't let it happen.

[YMAN]

If you're a straight, white male, no. If you're a female from a minority class, you can, and will get on the DMPD! That still torques my onions to this day.

Not sure what you meant by that comment, but it sounds ignorant!!!
You can't blame women and people of color for your failure to get hired with a LEO agency. It was probably the right decision not to hire you. We have enough of ignorant and culturally insensitive officers in this country to deal with. It sickens me that we have people like yourself applying to be peace officers. GROW UP!!!!!!

[DMS 525]

Not sure what you meant by that comment, but it sounds ignorant!!!
You can't blame women and people of color for your failure to get hired with a LEO agency. It was probably the right decision not to hire you. We have enough of ignorant and culturally insensitive officers in this country to deal with. It sickens me that we have people like yourself applying to be peace officers. GROW UP!!!!!!

First off, I was a police officer about the time you were getting out of diapers, so I don't need you telling me to grow up, nor passing rash judgement on me. I don't do that to others, so I don't think I'm asking too much that no one do it to me.

Let me enlighten you on what happened, and perhaps then you may understand what made me mad:

This was back before that Cooper test came about. The PD used the P/A test that included climbing a ladder, dragging a dummy, carrying weights up and down stairs, as well as the "backyard pursuit."

If you are not aware of what that was, it was a run where you crawled under a net 3 feet from the floor, jumped over a three foot wall, and jumped over a three foot "ditch" drawn on the floor. You had to make three laps of this course in a limited time.

Anyways, this gal was ahead of me for that test. First thing she does is dives under that net like an idiot, not watching what she was doing, and bonked her head against the floor, just about knocking herself out. Medics checked her out, and after a while, they let her do the test again, and she passed it.

When it was my turn, I ran the three laps, and they marked my score card, whereupon I went to the next event. A few minutes later, one of the proctors from that backyard pursuit test came up to me, telling me there was an error in my score, that I missed the line on my third pass of the course. She then changed the score on my card, which cost me 12 points, which cost me the test. I asked the proctor(some old gal who probably couldn't run 10 feet without getting a heart attack) that since it was her initial oversight, if I could retake that event. She said we only got one try. I asked her what the deal was when they let that gal I mentioned earlier retake that event for nothing more than her own carelessness; she stuck her nose in the air and walked away.

Never gave it much thought, until a few months later, when I saw that this gal had got on the department. I wrote the Civil Service commision, telling them what I thought of their double standards, in their push to keep Affirmative Action quotas filled, so the city could get the funds they needed from the Federal government. This gal I mentioned was an American Indian(Native American). Add her into those other AA babies who have made more trouble for the PD and the city than anyone else over the last 15-20 years, I think you may see my point. (Go back into General Topics on this web site, and read those postings about Affirmative Action).

I also told the Civil Service folks something else. That gal's carelessness; in the P/A test, it just gave her a headache. On the street, such a mistake could cost her her life!

Finally, I resent your remarks about being "culturally insensitive." I worked security and special LE work in this city for about 11 years, and I worked right in among a lot of minorities and inner city types, right in some of the roughest parts of town. I even worked for a black man for over 6 years! I established a good rapport with a lot of those people, and had much less trouble with them than a lot of others did. Not that I didn't do my job, and crack down when I had to, but I did it without playing favorites, nor trying to make it look like I was better than any of them.

[YMAN]

First off, I was a police officer about the time you were getting out of diapers, so I don't need you telling me to grow up, nor passing rash judgement on me. I don't do that to others, so I don't think I'm asking too much that no one do it to me.

Let me enlighten you on what happened, and perhaps then you may understand what made me mad:

This was back before that Cooper test came about. The PD used the P/A test that included climbing a ladder, dragging a dummy, carrying weights up and down stairs, as well as the "backyard pursuit."

If you are not aware of what that was, it was a run where you crawled under a net 3 feet from the floor, jumped over a three foot wall, and jumped over a three foot "ditch" drawn on the floor. You had to make three laps of this course in a limited time.

Anyways, this gal was ahead of me for that test. First thing she does is dives under that net like an idiot, not watching what she was doing, and bonked her head against the floor, just about knocking herself out. Medics checked her out, and after a while, they let her do the test again, and she passed it.

When it was my turn, I ran the three laps, and they marked my score card, whereupon I went to the next event. A few minutes later, one of the proctors from that backyard pursuit test came up to me, telling me there was an error in my score, that I missed the line on my third pass of the course. She then changed the score on my card, which cost me 12 points, which cost me the test. I asked the proctor(some old gal who probably couldn't run 10 feet without getting a heart attack) that since it was her initial oversight, if I could retake that event. She said we only got one try. I asked her what the deal was when they let that gal I mentioned earlier retake that event for nothing more than her own carelessness; she stuck her nose in the air and walked away.

Never gave it much thought, until a few months later, when I saw that this gal had got on the department. I wrote the Civil Service commision, telling them what I thought of their double standards, in their push to keep Affirmative Action quotas filled, so the city could get the funds they needed from the Federal government. This gal I mentioned was an American Indian(Native American). Add her into those other AA babies who have made more trouble for the PD and the city than anyone else over the last 15-20 years, I think you may see my point. (Go back into General Topics on this web site, and read those postings about Affirmative Action).

I also told the Civil Service folks something else. That gal's carelessness; in the P/A test, it just gave her a headache. On the street, such a mistake could cost her her life!

Finally, I resent your remarks about being "culturally insensitive." I worked security and special LE work in this city for about 11 years, and I worked right in among a lot of minorities and inner city types, right in some of the roughest parts of town. I even worked for a black man for over 6 years! I established a good rapport with a lot of those people, and had much less trouble with them than a lot of others did. Not that I didn't do my job, and crack down when I had to, but I did it without playing favorites, nor trying to make it look like I was better than any of them.

Working with and living as a PERSON OF COLOR is two different things. So, working with people of color gives you the right to make asinine comments regarding affirmitive action. You worked with a black man for six years, whoop de doo!!! This reinforcecs why you were not hired as LEO. Affirmative Action is a positive thing for women and for people of color in this nation. It's obvious you wouldn't understand because you are so angry and you were beat out by a female. You need to enlighten yourself on racial EQUALITY.

[Ted]

Affirmative Action is a positive thing for women and for people of color in this nation.

YMAN, I can agree with you about most of what you are saying to DMS 525. However, I don't think that Affirmative Action is a positive thing for men or women of any color anymore. At one time it was. It helped to bring about much needed changes in this country. But now it just divides us. We will never be a color-blind or gender-blind country with Affirmative Action around.

[YMAN]

As long as racism still exists in this country then Affirmative Action should be enforced. Folks who are against AA are those who have benefited from past and present inequalities that women and people of color have endured. As a person of mixed race, I have experienced racism as young child growing up and as a police officer. The nay sayers are those who have not experienced racism first hand. Affirmative Action is not enough. AA didn't get me my first cop job. It was because I was the best candidate for the job.