Texas Police Officer Exam Prep: Practice Tests & Study Guide
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 What Police Exams Are Used in Texas?

Each one of Texas' local police departments uses a written exam of their choosing to screen potential police officers.

In Texas, this written exam could be the FrontLine Test (El Paso), NPOST (various), NCJOSI 2 (Fort Worth), or NPST (Austin).

These methods usually focus on skills that a police officer would find critical in their field of work:

  • Reading/Writing: This includes reading comprehension questions, vocabulary, grammar and spelling. Police officers work with the law and must be able to use reading & writing skills with fellow officers and the public.

Choose the correct option to complete the sentence:

They hoped to test how well ____ the big cats' wild ____ were by seeing if they could hunt.

A. developing, instinctive
B. develloped, instints
C. developed, instincts
D. develops, instinct
E. None of these
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

The correct answer is C. They hoped to test how well developed the big cats' wild instincts were by seeing if they could hunt.

Incorrect Answers

B has developed misspelled.
A and D have misspelled instincts.

Click here for more information about the FrontLine Test.
    • Basic Math: Working with numbers at the arithmetic level, including word problems and simple calculations. Police officers deal in sums of money, speeds, and numerical parameters within the law- so you will need to show you can do that here.

Let's try an NPOST math question next.

Which of the following is 8.1% of 27.3?

A. 2.2113
B. 22.113
C. 221.13
D. 2211.3
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

The correct answer is (A).

27.3 × 0.081 = 2.2113

Solving Tip:
This question does not require calculations. Note that 8.1% of 27.3 is definitely less than 27.3 and is expected to be close to 10% of 27.3, which is 2.73.

Click here to learn more about the NPOST exam specifically.
    • Situational Judgement Tests: Also known as SJTs, these test your behavior in a given scenario a police officer might find themselves in. Many police departments give this section a heavier weight in their scoring, since the most important aspect of police work is arguably being able to make the right call in the moment.

The NPST has situational judgement test questions. Let's try one:

Officer Jackson recently began patrolling a new beat. Her previous beat was in a relatively low populated area, and she managed to build a close relationship with the community there. Her new beat, however, is located in a heavily populated district.

How should Officer Jackson adjust to her new beat?

A. Focus on establishing connections with key personalities on the beat such as local shop owners and community leaders
B. Split the beat with her partner so that each of them spend their time and effort building relationships with one half of the district.
C. Concentrate on becoming acquaintanced with the residents of the beat
D. Focus her attention on locals with criminal records or past conflicts with the law.
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

Best response: A

Explanation: This question asks about the best way to establish relationships with the community in your beat despite the difficulties of trying to connect closely with people living in a highly populated district. You are required to show decision-making skills and to choose the best strategy for establishing your connection with the community.

Shop owners tend to be out on the street for many hours and are aware of what's happening in the area. Establishing connections with them could encourage them to pass you important information. Community leaders are also usually aware of everything that's happening in the community. In addition, they are influential. Focusing her efforts on connecting with these two groups of people (response A) is a good strategy for Officer Jackson under the circumstances.

Splitting the district (response B) means that each of the partners is familiar with only half of the area for which they are responsible. This is not a good decision.

Simply focusing on residents (response C) doesn't show good decision-making skills. Since Officer Jackson's resources are limited, it's better to choose wisely with regard to how to spend her time and efforts in connecting with the community.

As for response D, when building relationships with the community, you want to establish connections with trustworthy people and to avoid connections which may impair the police's reputation.

  • Inductive/Deductive Reasoning: These tests ask you to show your logical thinking by making correct deductions based on given information. Police officers need to be able to make deductions like this efficiently when discerning the nature of a situation in the field using their reasoning skills.

Here's a sample question for the inductive reasoning category.

While on his night patrol, Officer Kenny logged the following events:

Monday
9:00 PM – Gave two speeding tickets in District II
9:30 PM - Reported to a car crash in District II
11:30 PM – Reported to a bar fight in District III
1:00 AM – A home was broken into in District III
3:30 AM - Arrested a drunk driver in District I

Tuesday
9:00 PM – A man attacked another man with a knife in District I
10:00 PM – Gave three speeding tickets in District II
11:30 PM – Responded to a call that a neighbor was throwing a loud party in District II
12:45 AM – A home was vandalized in District III
2:30 AM – Arrested a woman for drug possession in District II

Wednesday
10:00 PM – A home was broken into in District III
11:00 PM – A man red a right light in District III
1:30 AM – Fined a bar for selling alcohol to minors in District I
3:00 AM – Arrested a man for domestic abuse in District I

Based on the events described above, Officer Kenny Should:

A. Patrol district III from 1 AM - 3 AM
B. Set up a speed trap in District II between 9 PM - 11 PM
C. Patrol District II from 11 PM - 1 AM
D. Set up a speed trap in District III between 11 PM - 1 AM
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

The correct answer is B.

The best way to approach a question like this is to create a table to easily see what is happening when, and in which districts.

District I

District II

District III

9 PM - 11 PM  Knife attack Speeding
Car crash
Speeding tickets
Break-in
11 PM - 1 AM   Loud party Break-in
Red light
Bar fight
1 AM - 3 AM Alcohol to minor
Domestic abuse
Drugs Break-in

As we can see from the table, there seem to be a lot of speeding violations in District II from 9 PM – 11 PM. Based on this information, it would make sense for Officer Kenny to set up a speed trap in District II from 9 PM – 11 PM, to patrol District III from 11 PM – 1 AM, and to patrol District 1 from 1 AM – 3 AM.

  • Report Writing: Some tests even allow law enforcement agencies to evaluate your report writing skills, which any police officer will be required to do as part of their work.

The NCJOSI 2 includes deductive reasoning questions like this one.

Arson involves the use of fire or explosives to damage or destroy buildings, occupied structures, and other property including, in certain instances, one’s own. Arson offences range from first to fourth degree and from a Class 3 Felony to a Class 3 Misdemeanor.

First-Degree Arson
First-degree arson occurs when a person knowingly burns another person's occupied building or structure without that person's permission. The types of buildings or structures that are covered by first-degree arson law include houses, apartment buildings, barns, and even doghouses. These buildings are covered by first-degree arson as long as they belong to someone other than the person who set fire to them and as long as they are occupied by a person or animal when the fire occurs.

First-degree arson is a Class 3 felony with a maximum prison sentence of up to 12 years for those who are convicted. If the fire was started with explosives, the prison sentence may be longer, and heavier fines or other penalties may be imposed.

Second-Degree Arson
Second-degree arson occurs when someone knowingly burns someone else's property without that person's consent. The property must also be anything other than an occupied building or structure. Burning someone's personal property without permission falls under this law.

Second-degree arson is a Class 4 felony if the property burned was worth more than $100.00. It is considered a Class 2 misdemeanor if the property was worth less than $100.00. Since the difference between the penalties for Class 4 felonies and Class 2 misdemeanors is substantial, establishing the value of any property burned can become a key issue in a second-degree arson defense.

Third-Degree Arson
Third-degree arson occurs when a person intentionally uses fire or explosives to damage property with intent to defraud. This charge often applies to cases in which a person is accused of burning property to get insurance money. A person convicted of third-degree arson faces the penalties imposed for all Class 4 felonies.

Fourth-Degree Arson
Finally, fourth-degree arson occurs when a person knowingly or recklessly creates a fire or explosion that puts another person's life or property in danger. If a person is put in danger, fourth-degree arson is a Class 4 felony. If only property is endangered, fourth-degree arson is a Class 2 misdemeanor if the property is worth more than $100.00 and a Class 3 misdemeanor if the property is worth less than $100.00.


QUESTION: Mathew, a student at San Diego University, experimented with fireworks in his backyard. Consequently, a firework that exploded sparked flames in the grass. He managed to control the fire with water and no one was at risk. However, his neighbor's laundry was damaged from the sparks. Which type of arson is best suited to classify this occurrence?

A. First degree arson
B. Second degree arson
C. Third degree arson
D. Fourth degree arson
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

The correct answer is D.

Mathew created an explosion in his own backyard that caused damage to his neighbor's property. This could well be defined as "when a person knowingly or recklessly creates a fire or explosion that puts another person's life or property in danger." This is precisely the definition for fourth-degree arson.

Answer choices A and B are incorrect. In both first-degree arson and second-degree arson, the arsonist deliberately sets fire to someone else's property without their consent. What Mathew did is better described by the fourth-degree arson definition.
Answer choice C is incorrect. Third-degree arson "occurs when a person intentionally uses fire or explosives to damage property with intent to defraud." Mathew's actions were caused more by recklessness than by a deliberate intention to defraud. He did not set fire to his own property in order to receive insurance money.

Click here for a full page on the NCJOSI 1 & NCJOSI II.

 

The preparation pack offered on this page will give you everything you need to prepare for any police exam in texas. This includes the categories listed above, as well as additional ones to make sure you have everything you need to pass.

If your Texas police officer exam in not mentioned here, please let us know through ask_asif@jobtestprep.com!

 

If you want to practice some more questions, here's our main police exam sample question page- with more free practice questions.

 


TX Police Exam Prep with JobTestPrep

We provide you with the information you need about various Texas police tests to prepare you for the exam. Familiarizing yourself with the test format will improve your score and better your chances of becoming a Texas police officer. Start preparing for your exam today with our custom-made packages. These packs include over 1,500 questions, answers, and explanations.


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