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Madison Police Department
Policing in partnership with our community

PREPARE: THE TESTS

Following a review of your application, you will be invited to take a written exam and a physical agility assessment. These tests are not intended to assess your knowledge of specific skill sets or procedures unique to policing.

WRITTEN TEST

The written exam measures reading comprehension and vocabulary skills, similar to those you have probably taken in school. TWO ESSAYS WILL ALSO BE GIVEN AT THE WRITTEN EXAM AND THESE TOPICS SHOULD BE REVIEWED PRIOR TO ARRIVAL.

PHYSICAL AGILITY TEST

Standards 1 through 4 as listed below are minimums established by the Police and Fire Commission (PFC) that must be met. Superior performance in all these areas will be considered as an overall factor in our competitive process.

  1. Abdominal Strength: Twenty-five (25) sit-ups in one (1) minute, performed while sitting on the floor, legs secured, knees bent, hands folded across the chest with the torso reaching at least a 90 degree angle with the floor.
  2. Cardio-Vascular Endurance: One and one-half (1-1/2) miles in no more than fourteen minutes, thirty seconds (14:30) running and/or walking on an indoor track.
  3. Upper Body Strength: (Candidate’s Choice) a) Bench press one-half of your body weight to a locked-elbow position from the chest, fifteen (15) times in one (1) minute; b) Fifteen (15) “perfect protocol” pushups in one (1) minute.

Physical Agility Test Video Demonstrations:

To watch these videos on your computer, you will need the FREE Basic RealPlayer installed on your computer.

Good Luck!