Confused about what the difference is between a Civil Service Exam for Police and a Police Officer Selection Test? This page will explain. Read also this general description of the Police Officer Selection Test (POST.)

Bottom-line, if you are a job applicant, there is NO difference.

Civil Service is a term that refers to any job within a sector of government (local, state, national and international.)

Law enforcement job postings will refer to the entry-level exam using these different terms for various reasons. Many times, the reasons are political in nature. For example, most police departments prefer to manage their own entry-level testing, meaning they want to choose what topics are included on the test and how to conduct the test administration. However, it is also likely that they will “outsource” the test administration to the city or county human resources department.

Most police departments refer to the entry-level exam as the Police Written Test or Police Officer Selection Test (POST.)

Sometimes, due to mistrust for police hiring that may develop within a local government, the task of choosing entrance standards and testing is taken away from the police department and delegated solely to the HR/Recruiting department. Since the centralized HR department handles many job classifications, they will typically refer to the entrance exam as the Civil Service Exam.

Within any jurisdiction, there will be several different versions of Civil Service Exams based upon the different job classifications. Therefore, if you are looking for information about what the civil service exam for law enforcement positions is, you need to make sure you narrow your search for that topic with additional search terms like “police” or “sheriff,” etc. For example, the civil service exam for police dispatcher is different from the entry exam for police officers.

If you are seeking a career in law enforcement, don’t let these two terms confuse you.

Click Here for a great way to determine what exam your targeted agency is using by state.

Better yet, here is the best online prep course for ANY Police Officer Selection Test you will find in the U.S. - PoliceExam911.