Recruitment
The Town of Kearny follows the employment laws of the New Jersey Civil Service Commission. Interested candidates for police officer positions should take the New Jersey Civil Service examination for police officer to be ranked on a hiring list for future consideration. More information on examinations can be found at the NJ CSC website.
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The Kearny Police Department looks to hire the best and brightest candidates to serve our citizens. The first step to becoming a Kearny Police Officer is to lead an honorable life that shows respect for the law and one's fellow citizens. A solid employment and education history commensurate with the applicant's age is another strength that we look for in our candidates.
Currently, applicants must live in Kearny or Newark from the closing date of their Civil Service exam to be considered for employment. We hire recruits from all backgrounds and hope to attract a diverse pool of talent.
We've hired officers with educational backgrounds that range from high school graduates to doctoral degrees. Employment histories have ranged from finance, law, and engineering, to chefs and tradespeople, to military and prior public servants, to recent graduates.
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All of our recruits are sent to a police academy for basic training after they are hired. The police academy training environment consists of a boot camp-like atmosphere for approximately 5 months. See the YouTube video at right for a montage of one class's experience (minus the yelling).
New Jersey police academies now have mandatory physical fitness entrance requirements. Interested candidates should start a regular, physician-approved fitness regimen months before their anticipated hire date in order to prepare for their mandatory physical fitness assessments.
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Photo and video credits to the Bergen County Law & Public Safety Institute and Vincent Resciniti.
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