How to Ace Your Interview After NYC Police Exam: An Expert’s Guide

Cleared your written exam for NYC Police Officer? Congratulations! The next phase of the process can be stressful because you have to face a panel of experienced officers and psychologists during the oral interview.

While you can pass the exam using books and notes, you need specific skills and expertise to ace your interview. These interviews are designed to test the mental and emotional abilities required to perform the job successfully. You need to prepare thoroughly for the interview questions because if you give ill-prepared or disproportionate answers, the officers will think you’re not right for the job (no matter how well you did in the exam).

Our Suffolk Police Exam experts have prepared a detailed guide to help you prepare. Read on:

Do Your Research

Just like your written exam, you also need to do thorough research for the interview.

Set aside time to learn about the department, its news and developments, policies and procedures, and history. Look into the profession and job role, and ensure you know what to expect. When you’ve done your homework, the interview panel will know you’ve given your time and effort for the interview and are willing to do the same for the job.

Reach Out to Experienced Professionals

While researching, don’t just search the internet and visit the local police department. Talk to different officers there. Hearing directly from the source will uncover more facts you may not find in books or the internet. You can also organize a ride-along with an officer; this will give you an idea about what it’s like to be in that position and what your day-to-day activities will look like.

Going the extra mile will help you give more well-thought and knowledgeable answers during the interview. With thousands of candidates applying and passing the written exam, your better-quality answers will increase your chances of selection.

Practice Common Interview Questions

Although police office interviews are quite difficult, and you can’t predict what they’ll ask you, you should still practice common questions to ease the pressure. They usually ask personal questions like, why have you chosen this field, have you done something illegal in the past, etc.

They also ask scenario-based questions, which are quite tricky. For example, “You found your brother stealing at a departmental store; how will you react?” This question shows a conflict of interest, and you’ll hear a lot of such questions.

Moreover, these interviews also include a dynamic question format where each question will depend on your answer. They ask such questions to judge how quick you can think on your feet, your ability to handle pressure, and how rational and logical your thinking is. For such questions, you need to stay calm and offer rational responses. The clearer and more honest your answers, the easier it would be to respond to the next questions.

You can find a lot of examples of dynamic question series on the internet. Use those examples to learn how to articulate your answers.

Avoid Being Negative

This interview will discuss your previous experiences, which can be both good and bad. While talking about bad experiences, avoid being negative because it leaves an impression of immaturity. For example, if you’ve had a bad experience with your former employer, give positive explanations instead of speaking ill of them.

The interview panel asks such questions on purpose to see how well you respect people around you to judge your character. Use your skills to shape answers diplomatically, even when discussing issues and problems.

Keep Your Answers as Direct as Possible

While preparing your answers is important, don’t make them sound scripted or pre-prepared during the interview. Many candidates don’t offer a direct answer to the question; instead, they give pre-prepared answers that often sound scripted.

Take your time in understanding the question and shape your prepared answers accordingly. Due to the pressure, you may fear giving a simple answer and start waffling. Your interviewer may not get the answer they were looking for. If you try to be as direct as possible, it will leave a better impression on the panel. For example, if they ask you if you’ve ever shoplifted, rather than getting intimidated and giving a speech about you’ve never stolen anything, a simple no would work.

Be Honest

It’s obvious that you need to answer honestly during interview questions, but many candidates blatantly lie without realizing they can be caught. Your interview panel will consist of experienced professionals and psychologists. Their years of interviewing experience let them know when someone is lying. Dishonesty isn’t always outright lying; it has many forms, such as: deliberately leaving out important details, giving a false impression of a specific event, telling white lies to avoid the truth, and giving half-true, half-false statements, etc. The interviewing panel will know when you’re lying because they focus on your speech and body language.

This is not your usual job interview where you can get away with lying or pretending to be the person they’re looking for. Police exam interviews are designed specifically to judge how honest you’re with the job. If you tell a lie during the interview, it reflects poorly on your future role as a police officer.

Pay Extra Attention to Your Body Language

Body language experts on the panel will monitor every move as soon as you enter the interview room. If your answers and body language aren’t in-line with each other, it will raise concerns. For example, don’t flinch or show discomfort when asked a tricky, personal question; try to stay calm and positive. Meditating before the interview is a good way to keep your body relaxed. It will clear your mind, and you’ll feel less pressured.

Besides testing your knowledge about the job, this interview tests your skills and ability, which requires good preparation. Register for our NYC Police Exam Prep Classes to make sure you don’t miss a single thing. We have over 40 years of experience in offering preparatory classes for civil service exams and interviews. Our experts and instructors will help you prepare for your exam.

At Civil Service Success, you can also get prep classes for the NYC Sanitation exam, NYC Firefighter Exam, and DCAS Exams. Contact us to get started.