The application process involves several steps. This process takes at least four weeks to complete.
- Review this entire web site. Unless you read everything on the site, you run the risk of missing an important step or information. The site should answer most of your questions.
- Review the Employment Standards for Michigan Law Enforcement Officers on the MCOLES website. These are the official state standards that every applicant must meet to be admitted to any academy in the state.
- In order to begin the application process you will need to fill out the MCOLES Personal History Statement and Affidavit and MCOLES Waiver and Authorization to Release, both of which can be found under the "Application Forms" section below. Complete the forms in full detail, adding additional sheets if necessary, and send it with a copy of your driver's license to [email protected]. Please note: signatures must be legible. Any signature that is a scribble line will be rejected and the application will not be considered.
- Once your application documents have been received and reviewed, you will receive an email from Sr. Director VanMeter with additional instructions.
- Be aware, the screening process for entry into the academy is lengthy, as we must meet all of the MCOLES entry standards. There will be a monetary investment necessary on the part of the applicant to complete the full screening process. We do everything we can to minimize costs, but you can reasonably expect to spend a few hundred dollars, including the mandatory medical exam.
- Once the steps listed in the email noted in point 4 are complete, you will take part in an oral board panel in order to be eligible to receive a conditional offer of a seat in the academy.
- If you are given a conditional offer, then you will receive the medical screening requirements and information how to proceed.
- The final offer of a confirmed seat in the academy comes after the medical documents are received.
Application Forms
As part of the recent MCOLES changes with the Candidate Personal History Statement and Affidavit (PHSA), the Commission requires users to download and complete the affidavit electronically. Also, users are required to use of the “additional pages” functionality within the form. Once completed, the PHSA shall be printed and notarized.
In the recent past, Commission staff has received handwritten PHSA’s with near illegible writing and various means of adding additional information. Consequently, they will no longer be accepting handwritten PHSA’s and/or PHSA’s that include additional pages in any other format. To use the form properly, the user is required to download the PHSA from the MCOLES website and open it in Adobe. If they do not have adobe, please let them know they can download a free version of Adobe Reader or by going directly to download Adobe Acrobat Reader: Free PDF viewer.