Entry requirements for protective services officers (PSOs)

Victoria Police conduct extensive background checks on all applicants during the selection process.

Illicit drug use

We have no tolerance for illicit or illegal drug use. This includes in both work and personal life.

Employees may be required to undertake workplace testing for alcohol or a drug of dependence.

Code of conduct and prior behaviour

All Victoria Police employees follow a code of conduct.

You need to align with the code of conduct. The application process involves a thorough assessment to identify any:

• prior misconduct
• corruption, and
• any form of improper conduct.

The expectation is that you understand and avoid misconduct. You must immediately report any misconduct should you become aware of it during your employment with Victoria Police.

This ensures Victoria Police remains a safe workplace for its employees and delivers a professional, ethical, high performing service to the community.

Prior offences and Voluntary Disclosure Form (VDF)

Your previous history will be continually checked and assessed.

Failure to declare information may result in automatic cancellation of your application.

Check our guidelines to see if a prior offence will affect your application:

Check the prior history guidelines

If you have concerns regarding your prior police involvement, complete a Voluntary Disclosure Form before you apply.

You can apply if you are 18 years of age or older.

There are no education requirements to apply for Victoria Police.

There are no specific pre-requisite subject requirements. You also do not need an Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR).

The Victoria Police Act stipulates that to join Victoria Police, you must:

• be an Australian citizen, or
• hold Australian permanent residency.

You need to provide proof of citizenship or permanent residency in your application.

New Zealand citizens

If you are a New Zealand citizen, you can apply for Victoria Police.

You can submit an application before you live in Australia.

Before you start your employment you will need to:

• provide proof of New Zealand citizenship
• live in Australia, and
• hold a Special Category Visa.

PSOs need to maintain a healthy level of cardio fitness and physical strength. This will help you to meet the physical requirements of the job.

As part of the recruitment process, you will need to undertake a fitness test.

The fitness test includes the following components:

• beep test (to level 5.01)
• grip test (30kg in each hand)
• Illinois agility run (20 seconds or less)
• push-ups (five successive push-ups on toes)
• prone bridge (hold for 60 seconds).

Once employed with Victoria Police, you will need to undertake regular fitness testing.

We recommend regular exercise to maintain your fitness.

Prepare for the fitness test

The POLICE FIT app is a free tool to help prepare you for the fitness test and improve your chances of passing.

Visit the POLICE FIT app page to find out more.

You must have a current First Aid certificate.

Before induction, you must have a Level 1 First Aid Certificate with CPR. The course code is:

• Level 1 HLTAID010, or
• Level 2 HLTAID011.

This certificate must be valid:

• at the time of training, and
• be valid for 12 months post-graduation from the Academy.

Regular renewal of the CPR component of the First Aid Certificate will be required.

You will pay for all costs associated with the First Aid certification.

You must meet the minimum medical and psychological requirements to safely and effectively perform the role of a PSO.

Medical assessment

Your nominated General Practitioner (GP) or treating health professional will be required to conduct an examination to assess whether you meet the requirements to be a PSO.

If you would like to know more about this stage, please read our medical information for applicants.

Psychological screening

Applicants must complete a psychological screening test. The results of the test will be reviewed by a Victoria Police psychologist.

Learn more about the psychological gateway in our recruitment process.

A key skill of a protective services officer is the ability to communicate well.

Your communication needs to be clear, effective and professional. You also need to be able to negotiate with confidence.

You will have to give and receive verbal information in stressful situations.

We will assess your verbal and written communication skills at various points.

If we feel that you have room to improve in your communication skills, we will encourage you to seek out situations to help build your skills.

During the selection process, we will ask you to declare your associations.

An association of interest is an association with a person or organisation:

• suspected of unlawful activity
• known to be involved in unlawful activity
• with a history of unlawful activity
• of poor character of reputation in the view of Victoria Police.

During the application you must disclose any such associations.

An association of interest may impact community perceptions about your integrity. Your association to them may also pose a reputational risk to the organisation.

They might pose an information security risk, and compromise your integrity as an employee of Victoria Police.

It is important that Victoria Police are aware of any association or potential conflict of interest.

These associations could be:

• family
• friends
• members of recreational clubs, or
• other people you associate with.

If you disclose any associations of interest, a management plan may be put in place. In other cases, your relationship to the associate may need to cease.

Failure to disclose an association of interest may adversely impact your application or employment with Victoria Police.

To apply for a protective services officer position, you must have an Australian driver’s licence.

The following applies:

• Your driver’s licence can be either manual or automatic.
• A probationary licence is acceptable.
• Learner permits are not accepted.
• You must not have more than 7 demerit points at the time of your application.

Find out more about driving history requirements on our prior history guidelines page.