Polk County Criminal Justice Selection Center

Now accepting applications for the next day and evening academies.

Fill out the pre-screening application on the right today.

Selection Center Coordinator:
Tommy Holland
863.669.2914
tholland@polk.edu
Center for Public Safety

Polk State College’s Kenneth C. Thompson Institute of Public Safety is an approved State of Florida selection center that conforms to Florida State Statute requirements. The center actively attracts, screens, and selects applicants for its full-time and part-time law enforcement academy training programs.

Florida State Statue 943 and Florida Administrative Code Rule 11B require applicants for all Florida Criminal Justice Standards and Training criminal justice academy programs to complete an in-depth application, which includes a background investigation, prior to their admission into any basic training course or program.

(See the Related info section on the right.)

  • Academy Entrance Requirements
  • Academy tuition and fees information
  • Academy Physical Agilities Test
  • Basic Abilities Test
  • Prescreening Application

Selection of Applicants for Academy
The selection of applicants for an academy will be based on graded scores from the Basic Abilities Test, PERT, the Physical Abilities Test, and the Oral Interview Board. There are 30 seats available for academies. Agencies who have employed and sponsored applicants have first priority on academy seats. Walk-in applicants compete for the remaining seats.

Fees for Law Enforcement Applicants
Payment of the following fees are required of the applicant at this stage:
(1) Basic Abilities Test………….$45.00 (payable to Polk State College)
(2) Application Screening Fee……….$100.00 (payable to Polk State College)
(3) Drug Screen and Physical………$125.00 (payable to Medi-Test)
(4) Criminal History Check………..$56.25 (payable to Polk State College)
(5) Driving History Check…………(varies by state)
(6) Polygraph……………………$115.00 (payable to Polk State College)

The Institute of Public Safety is currently accepting applications for a full-time day law enforcement academy class and a part-time evening class. For more information, call Tommy Holland, Selection Center Coordinator, at 863.669.2914.