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National Police Officer Selection Test (NPOST)
The National Police Officer Selection Test (NPOST) is an entry-level basic-skills written test developed, published, and centrally scored by Stanard & Associates, Inc. for law enforcement officer selection. It is one bounded 75-question assessment in four timed sections — mathematics/arithmetic, reading comprehension, grammar, and incident report writing — administered in parallel forms at proctored testing centers and agency sites used by municipal, county, state, and federal agencies across the United States (mandated statewide in Iowa; the official test of 29 state police chief associations).
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Questions75 questions across four sections: Mathematics/Arithmetic 20, Reading Comprehension 25, Grammar 20, and Incident Report Writing 10
Testing time75 minutes of total section time: Mathematics 20 minutes, Reading Comprehension 25 minutes, Grammar 15 minutes, Incident Report Writing 15 minutes
ScoringNo universal passing score — each administering agency sets its own rule; Utah agencies commonly require 70% or higher in each of the four sections (not an overall average), and Utah Tech University's POST program requires at least 70% in all areas
Exam feeSet by the administering test center (no publisher-published candidate fee); official Utah testing centers currently post USD 40.00–60.00 — Davis Technical College USD 40.00, Utah Valley University USD 46.00, Salt Lake Community College USD 50.00, Utah Tech University USD 55.00, Southern Utah University USD 60.00
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Exam overview
What to know before choosing your prep
- Who runs it
- Stanard & Associates
- Category
- Law Enforcement & Corrections
- Current version
- Current specification; multiple parallel forms (publisher states four different forms are available; administering agencies document alternate forms lettered A, B, and C) — Stanard & Associates publishes no dated edition label
- Where it applies
- United States — national
- Exam languages
- English
- Testing provider
- Administered at college/university and agency testing centers nationwide; all scoring is provided centrally by Stanard & Associates, Inc., with the incident report writing section hand-scored
- Format
- Proctored paper-and-pencil or online testing at college, university, and agency testing centers; online remote testing (e.g., via Zoom at Southern Utah University) offered where the administering site provides it
- Availability
- By appointment at administering testing centers (many run Monday–Friday appointment-only); the test is not offered all day every day at every site, so candidates must contact the center in advance
- Results
- Answer sheets are mailed to Stanard & Associates for scoring; results are returned to the testing facility and then mailed or emailed to the candidate — approximately 2 weeks per Utah Highway Patrol and Utah Tech, or up to approximately 4 weeks per SLCPD
- Remote testing
- Varies by jurisdiction
Exam structure
Four separately timed sections: Mathematics (20 questions, 20 minutes — general and financial math, no algebra/geometry), Reading Comprehension (25 questions, 25 minutes — short essay passages), Grammar (20 questions, 15 minutes — identify misspelled words and improper punctuation), and Incident Report Writing (10 questions, 15 minutes — write a clear, concise report from given facts)
Where rules vary
A single U.S.-wide exam used voluntarily by individual law enforcement agencies in many states; Iowa has mandated it as the statewide entry-level test, and it is the official test of 29 state police chief associations. The exam form is uniform nationally, but administering agencies set their own passing rules, fees, and administration dates
Retake policy
Alternate forms A, B, and C exist: a candidate may not retake the same form until 60 days have lapsed and may test on the same form only twice in a 12-month period, but may take an alternate form at any time after the original attempt; individual agencies may permit unlimited retakes overall