Frequently Asked Questions

College is waived for certified peace officers and for candidates that have verifiable military service with an honorable discharge.

An applicant must be at least 21 years of at the time of taking the police licensing exam. 

There is not a maximum age limit. Each applicant must meet all the hiring criteria and be able to perform the essential job functions with or without a reasonable accommodation to be considered.

If the City of Burleson recruits you prior to or while in the police academy, you will be paid while attending the police academy from your hire date forward with the City, which is set as soon as all pre-employment hiring steps are successfully completed.

The City will pay for the police academy if you are recruited and sent to the academy by the City. An employee must work for the City for two (2) years in order not to repay a portion of the academy tuition. 

The NCTCOG Police Academy is 22-24 weeks depending on holidays during the academy.

The academy is generally Monday thru Friday 8am to 5pm and the two we use are located either in North West Fort Worth or Arlington. Cadets are not required to live at the academy, but must be able to transport themselves there each day. There are also some evening classes for night time practical exercises. The police academy is a paramilitary training environment with strict guidelines on uniform appearance, discipline, teamwork, and ethics. Cadets will be expected to perform physical tasks such as running, jumping, climbing, defensive tactics training, firearms training, and emergency driving training. Academic tasks will include classroom lectures to cover the various legal issues officers must comprehend. There is a lot of memorization of legal statutes and tables. The police academy classroom portion of the training is similar to that of college academics. Cadets will have to pass numerous exams and quizzes with minimum standards set by the state during the academy concluding with a state licensing exam.  

Currently the patrol division works 9 hour shifts.  Five on two off, four on three off; however, patrol schedules are subject to change depending on the needs of the department.  The department is currently evaluating a variety of 12 hour schedules. 

Yes, the City’s TMRS plan includes prior service credit, which is granted once the applicable TMRS prior service credit application is completed and approved. Two options are available, and TMRS and the City can assist in reviewing your options:

• Restricted Prior Service Credit - provides time credit for your active-duty military service or previous full-time employment with any U.S. public employer, including federal, state, county or city. There is no limit on the amount of time credit you can be granted.
• Military Service Credit - Military service credit grants you time credit for prior active-duty military service. The maximum time credit you can receive is five years.