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    Municipal Police Officers' Education and Training Commission

    Apply to Take the Partial Waiver Assessment Test

    Apply for a waiver if you are an officer transferring from out of state or with former federal or military service.

    Access the TACS site

    Overview

    Applying to become a municipal police officer in Pennsylvania? You may be able to waive some training requirements if you served in another state, the military, or the federal government. 

    Military and federal officers

    Military police and federal officers can apply to take the waiver assessment test if they:

    • Have completed at least 760 hours of basic and in-service law enforcement training
    • Have completed a law enforcement training course resulting in certification as a law enforcement officer authorized to carry a firearm and make arrests
    • Served at least two years of full-time duty as a law enforcement officer within the past seven years
    • Are eligible for employment as a law enforcement officer

    Out-of-state officers

    Officers transferring from out of state can apply to take the waiver test if they:

    • Have completed a basic officer training course
    • Have been employed as a full-time police officer
    • Have met the certification standards of that state

    The Municipal Police Officers Education and Training Commission (MPOETC) defines full-time service as 32 hours per week or more. It doesn’t need to be continuous or with a single agency.

    Apply and prepare for testing

    The waiver assessment test contains 200 multiple-choice questions scored in three sections. They follow the first three modules of the basic municipal police training program.  

    Find more information about the test in the Assessment Testing Protocols (PDF). 

    Officers who meet the above standards may apply for assessment testing using the Training and Certification System (TACS).

    Create a partial waiver assessment test application under My Profile. Then provide the following three documents as PDFs, using your own name in place of “applicant name.”

    1. The completed and signed application form (PDF). Name it Applicant Name - Application. Make sure your document contains all the requested information before you send it.
    2. A single document named Applicant Name - Certificates. It contains copies of certificates for courses listed on the application form.
    3. A single document named Applicant Name - Employment. It contains documentation of your employment as a law enforcement officer.

    For help with your TACS login, read the Keystone Login Guidelines (PDF).  

    Applicants who use the study guide have greater success in passing the waiver test. Review the materials below to prepare for testing.

    After testing

    If you do not pass the assessment test, you must enroll in an academy and complete the required training within two years of taking the test. Otherwise, you must take the assessment test again. You can't take the test more than once in any two-year timeframe.

    If you pass the assessment test, the results are valid for up to two years to become employed and certified as a police officer.

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    Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
    Municipal Police Officers’ Education and Training Commission

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