Potential Police Interview Questions

Short Answer Questions

Tell us about yourself.

Why do you want a career in law enforcement?

Have you applied to other law enforcement agencies? Which? Where do you stand?

Why do you want to work for our department?

What are 2-3 qualities that would make for a good police officer?

What are 2-3 of your best qualities/strengths?

What motivates you?

How would your friends describe you?

What are some of your weaknesses?

Are you participating in any kind of personal fitness program?

Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years?

Have you been involved in any car accidents? How many driving infractions have you received?

Who is the Mayor and Chief of Police in the region?

What are some of your career goals?

Do you work well with other people?

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Personal Experience Questions

What makes you a suitable candidate as a police officer?

What is your greatest failure and what did you learn from it?

What is your greatest accomplishment in life?

Give us an example where you did NOT lose your cool in spite of the circumstances.

Tell us about a time when you had to resolve a conflict with someone.

Give us a situation when you had to deal with someone who was irate and/or hostile towards you.

What are the sources of stress in your personal and professional life. How do you manage such stress?

When have you had to take charge of a situation in order to resolve a problem?

What have you learned from mistakes on the job?

When was the last time you were criticized? How did you handle it?

Tell us a time when you faced a major obstacle at work. How did you work through it?

Tells us about your military experience (if applicable).

Situational-Based Questions

You are investigating a crime scene and notice a wad of cash missing. You assume your partner took it. What do you do?

A concerned citizen is upset that there are frequent speeders in the neighborhood and he/she wants you to do something about it. How do you respond?

You are called to a school and when you arrive a man is pointing a gun at you. What do you do? What if it was a 12 year old pointing it at you?

A superior officer orders you to do something that goes against policy and/or breaks the law. How do you react?

There is a block party going on with about 200 people there. You receive an anonymous loud music complaint, in addition to a tip that there are gang members attending and they may be armed. How do you proceed?

You are called to the scene of an accident in the middle of the freeway involving multiple vehicles. One of the persons involved is bleeding and appears to be seriously injured. How do you approach this situation?

You pull over a car for not stopping at a stop sign. As you approach the vehicle, the person inside claims that the only reason that you pulled him/her over is because of their race. How do you respond?

You and your partner are called to the scene of an armed robbery. As you investigate your partner gets shot and appears to be unconscious. The armed assailant take off on foot. What would you do next?

You and your partner are responding to a call at a local convenience store. As you finish up the investigation and on your way out, you notice that your partner is eating a candy bar. You didn't see him pay for it. What, if anything, would you do?

You and your partner are on patrol. As you are driving around, your partner is trying to make conversation, and continually uses racial slurs/derrogatory terms towards people of different races. How would you respond?

You are on patrol at night a notice a car driving erratically. You pull the vehicle over and find out that the person is intoxicated. This person happens to be the chief of police. How would you handle the situation?

You pull over a driver and ask to see his license. The driver refuses. What do you do next?