Police Officer Interview Questions and Assessment Guide

Becoming a police constable in England and Wales means passing a national, standardised assessment designed by the College of Policing, plus the checks and interview your chosen force runs itself. Every stage is scored against the Competency and Values Framework (CVF), the behaviours expected in policing.

This page explains each step from the College's candidate guidance, gives practice items in the style of the situational judgement test, and lists interview questions with example answers built around the CVF. Police Scotland and the PSNI run their own processes.

Entry routes

The College lists four entry routes: the three-year Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship (PCDA), the two-year Police Constable Entry Programme (PCEP), the two-year Degree Holder Entry Programme (DHEP) for graduates, and a route for holders of the Professional Policing Degree. Forces decide which routes they offer, and on every route you earn a salary from day one. You must be at least 17 to apply and 18 to start training.

The police recruitment process, step by step

Steps vary by force. A typical sequence, based on College guidance and force pages such as Dorset Police:

1. Registration, eligibility and application

You register with your chosen force, which checks your eligibility. Ask about reasonable adjustments at this stage if you need them.

2. The sift

You complete either an in-force sift or the national sift, depending on your force. The national sift has two exercises.

Situational judgement test (SJT). You read scenarios that reflect challenging situations a constable may face. Each has four possible actions, and you rate every action on a five-point scale: counterproductive, ineffective, slightly effective, effective or very effective. You rate each action independently and can give the same rating more than once. The test is untimed, but the College expects it to take about 45 minutes.

Behavioural styles questionnaire (BSQ). Statements about your typical behaviour at work, rated on a seven-point scale from completely disagree to completely agree. It is untimed and the College expects about 20 minutes. The College's advice is to be as honest as possible.

You get a seven-day window and unscored practice questions in the platform. No policing knowledge is needed.

3. The online assessment process

The College's online assessment has three exercises, completed on the Tazio platform with a webcam and microphone:

  • Competency-based interview (CBI): five questions about how you have dealt with situations in the past, or how you would deal with them. For each question you get 60 seconds of thinking time and five minutes to record your answer, guided by on-screen prompts. About 40 minutes in total. Assessed on courage, public service, respect and empathy, we take ownership, and we are innovative and open-minded.
  • Written exercise: you act as a police constable completing an urgent written task for your line manager, using four items of information. Allow about 10 minutes to read the instructions and around 40 minutes to write, with a two-hour limit. Spelling and grammar are not assessed, and you must not add or invent information.
  • Briefing exercise: you act as a constable dealing with issues in a scenario, with about 10 minutes of unassessed preparation and then three parts of four questions each, 12 in total. Each answer has 60 seconds of thinking time and three minutes to respond. About an hour in total.

Prepared notes or scripts, a second device, or pasting a written response can lead to an automatic fail. Results come with a personalised feedback report.

4. Force interview

Many forces hold their own interview. Dorset Police, for example, lists a force interview after the online assessment centre. Some forces hold it before the online assessment, so check your force's pages.

5. Fitness test, medical and vetting

The fitness test is a 15-metre multi-stage shuttle run, the "bleep test". The official joining the police site describes the recruit test as 35 shuttles over 3 minutes 35 seconds, and level 5.4 is the standard widely cited by forces. After that come medical checks against national medical standards, background and vetting checks, then your start date. Read more in our guide to aptitude tests for police recruitment.

Practice questions in the style of the police SJT

These are our own items, not real College of Policing questions. The real SJT asks you to rate every action; here you pick the most effective one, and the explanation shows how the others would rate.

Practice question 1

You are on patrol when a shop owner tells you a teenager has just taken a drink without paying and is walking away. The teenager is still in sight. What is the most effective first action?

A. Ignore it because the value is small B. Shout across the street that the teenager is a thief C. Approach the teenager calmly, explain why you have stopped them and listen to their account D. Tell the shop owner to report it online later

Answer: C. It deals with the incident promptly, fairly and respectfully. A fails public service, B is unprofessional and could escalate things (counterproductive), and D passes the problem back when you could act now (ineffective).

Practice question 2

A colleague makes a joke about a member of the public's ethnicity in the station canteen. Others laugh. What is the most effective response?

A. Laugh along so you do not stand out B. Say nothing and avoid that colleague C. Challenge the comment calmly at the time and, if appropriate, report it in line with policy D. Post about it anonymously on social media

Answer: C. This shows courage and respect and empathy, two CVF values. A is counterproductive, B is ineffective, and D is unprofessional and could breach standards of professional behaviour.

Practice question 3

You are called to a noise complaint. The resident who called is upset and says the police never do anything. What is the most effective approach?

A. Tell the resident the police have more important things to deal with B. Listen, acknowledge their frustration, explain what you can do now and what will happen next C. Promise the neighbour will be arrested D. Leave quickly because the noise has stopped

Answer: B. It builds trust and manages expectations honestly. A damages confidence in the police, C is a promise you cannot keep, and D leaves the caller unheard.

Practice question 4

You notice you made an error in a statement you submitted yesterday: you recorded the wrong time for an incident. What should you do?

A. Leave it, as nobody will notice B. Change the time without telling anyone C. Tell your supervisor, and correct the record through the proper process D. Wait to see if the defence spots it

Answer: C. This is we take ownership and integrity in action. A and D risk a miscarriage of justice, and B is altering evidence improperly, which is counterproductive.

Practice question 5

You are first at a minor road collision. Nobody is injured, but traffic is building and both drivers are arguing. What should you do first?

A. Take statements from both drivers immediately B. Make the scene safe, separate the drivers and manage the traffic C. Decide who was at fault and tell them D. Wait in the car for backup

Answer: B. Safety comes first, and calming things down makes the rest possible. A is premature, C is not your call at that stage, and D leaves the public at risk.

Practice question 6

Written exercise style: a line manager asks you to propose actions to reduce anti-social behaviour in a local park, using only four documents supplied. Which approach is best?

A. Use your own experience of the area to add extra detail B. Base every recommendation on the documents and say which document supports it C. Write as briefly as possible to save time D. Focus only on enforcement

Answer: B. The College tells candidates to use only the information provided and not to invent anything. A breaks that rule, C risks missing points, and D ignores partnership options such as youth services that the documents may suggest.

The police interview: format and example answers

The online CBI asks five questions linked to CVF competencies and values, and force interviews often use a similar style, though formats vary. The College recommends the STAR method and suggests one detailed example per question rather than several short ones. Examples can come from work or personal life. Our guide to competency-based interview questions has more on this style.

1. Why do you want to be a police officer?

Example answer: "I have worked in customer service for six years, and the part I find most rewarding is sorting out a problem for someone who is having a bad day. I want to do that where it matters most. I volunteered as a special constable for a year, and seeing how much a calm officer helps people at their worst moment confirmed it for me."

2. Tell me about a time you challenged inappropriate behaviour. (Courage)

Example answer: "At my warehouse job a team leader kept making comments about a new colleague's accent. I spoke to him privately and said it was making her uncomfortable. When it carried on, I reported it to HR with dates. The comments stopped, and the colleague told me later she had nearly quit."

3. Describe a time you helped someone vulnerable. (Public service)

Example answer: "An elderly customer came into the bank confused and wanting to transfer savings to a 'safe account'. I recognised the signs of a scam, sat with her somewhere quiet, and called her daughter with her permission. We stopped the transfer and reported it to the fraud team."

4. Tell me about a time you showed empathy to someone you disagreed with. (Respect and empathy)

Example answer: "A customer shouted at me because his refund was late. I let him finish, said I understood he had been waiting a long time, and checked his case while he was there. It turned out the bank details were wrong. By the end he apologised for shouting."

5. Give an example of when you took responsibility for a mistake. (We take ownership)

Example answer: "I sent a delivery to the wrong address. I told my manager straight away, called the customer and drove the order there myself after my shift. I then suggested we add an address check to the dispatch list, which we still use."

6. Tell me about a time you found a new way of doing something. (Innovative and open-minded)

Example answer: "Our team logged complaints on paper and they often got lost. I set up a simple shared spreadsheet, showed everyone how to use it in ten minutes and asked for feedback after a week. Response times improved because we could see what was outstanding."

7. Describe a time you worked with others to solve a problem. (We collaborate)

Example answer: "Our youth football club was losing players. I set up a meeting with coaches and parents, and we found that training times clashed with buses. We moved sessions by 30 minutes and arranged lift sharing. Numbers recovered by the next season."

8. How would you deal with a situation where your friend was breaking the law?

Example answer: "I would have to treat them like anyone else. As an officer my duty is to the law and the public, and integrity matters more than friendship. I would declare the conflict of interest to my supervisor so the matter could be handled properly."

9. What do you understand by the Code of Ethics?

Example answer: "It sets out the principles and standards of professional behaviour expected of everyone in policing, such as honesty and integrity, fairness and respect. To me, it means doing the right thing even when nobody is watching."

10. How do you cope with stressful situations?

Example answer: "I focus on what needs doing first and keep my voice calm. When I was first on scene at a car crash, I called 999, made sure nobody approached the road, and stayed with the injured driver until paramedics arrived. "

Practical tips for police recruitment

  • Read the College's candidate guides in full, including the conduct rules.
  • Learn the CVF and map two or three strong examples to each competency and value, but rehearse them out loud rather than as scripts.
  • Set up your space: quiet, stable internet, no second device.
  • Common mistakes: inventing information in the written exercise, using notes, giving short or generic answers, and not reading the briefing material carefully.

Pay differs by force and entry route, so check the figures in your force's advert. Our interview and test training package includes situational judgement and interview practice. See also our guide to prison officer interview questions.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is in the police national sift?

The College of Policing national sift has two exercises: a situational judgement test, where you rate four actions per scenario from counterproductive to very effective, and a behavioural styles questionnaire. Both are untimed; the College expects about 45 and 20 minutes.

What happens in the police online assessment process?

The College of Policing online assessment has three exercises: a competency-based interview with five questions, a written exercise in the role of a police constable, and a briefing exercise with 12 recorded answers. You need no prior knowledge of policing.

Can I use notes in the police online interview?

No. The College of Policing says you must not use notes or scripts prepared before the assessment, and evidence of this may lead to an automatic fail. Prepare your examples well enough to talk through them naturally.

Is there a final interview after the online assessment?

Many forces hold their own interview, often called a force or final interview. Some hold it after the online assessment and some before it, so check your force's recruitment pages.

What fitness test do police recruits take?

Recruits take a multi-stage shuttle run over 15 metres, often called the bleep test. The standard widely used by forces for recruits is level 5.4, but check your force's current requirements.

About the author

Ingmar van Maurik is a specialist in test and interview preparation who helps candidates perform better in recruitment processes.

References