Police Recruiting

Peace Officer Standards & Training (POST) certified and lateral police officers are eligible to receive a higher starting salary than non-certified officers.

• Non-POST Certified Entry Level - $85,789
• Post Certified Officers - $99,504
• Lateral Officer Pay Program - $106,413
• Top level - $116,760

Additional benefits:

• Take-home car for officers living in the approved 15 mile radius of the city;
• College incentive reimbursement program;
• Clothing allowance for plain clothes assignments;
• Uniform dry cleaning;
• Overtime pay;
• Vacation leave;
• Sick and short-term disability leave;
• Health, life and dental insurance available;
• Pension plan, and a voluntary deferred compensation plan.

The initial requirements for sworn officers with FCPS are:

• Must be a citizen of the United States by either birth or naturalization or lawfully in the United States and legally authorized for employment within the United States.
• Must be 21 years old to apply.
• Must have a minimum of 60 semester credit hours or 90 quarter hours at an accredited college/university; military waiver can count for 30 credits.
• Cannot have a felony conviction.
• Cannot have a misdemeanor conviction involving domestic violence.
• Must possess a valid driver's license from state of residency.
• Cannot have been dishonorably discharged from the military.
• Must pass a mandatory drug screening test.

The applicant screening process is multi-phased and consists of the following steps:

• Preliminary application
• Written examination
• Oral interview
• Physical fitness test
• Truth Verification Exam
• Background investigation
• Medical examination
• Psychological examination
• Drug screen
• Board approval

POST Academy

The FCPS POST Academy is completely in-house, with expert instruction from FCPS employees. The hours are primarily 7:45 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, with a few night or weekend classes. Cadets get to go home each night.

Peace Officer Standards & Training (POST) certified and lateral police officers are eligible to receive a higher starting salary than non-certified officers.

• Non-POST Certified Entry Level - $85,789
• Post Certified Officers - $99,504
• Lateral Officer Pay Program - $106,413
• Top level - $116,760

Additional benefits:

• Take-home car for officers living in the approved 15 mile radius of the city;
• College incentive reimbursement program;
• Clothing allowance for plain clothes assignments;
• Cniform dry cleaning;
• Overtime pay;
• Vacation leave;
• Sick and short-term disability leave;
• Health, life and dental insurance available;
• Pension plan, and a voluntary deferred compensation plan.

An officer is eligible for the Lateral Entry Pay Program if they meet the following criteria at the time of hiring:

1. They are fully POST certified in the state of Colorado; or another state and are able to meet the Colorado POST requirements for certified officers; and
2. They have served as a full-time police officer for a minimum of two years; and 
3. They have been employed in good standing within one year of application date as a full-time police officer.

Lateral Academy

The FCPS POST Academy is completely in-house, with expert instruction from FCPS employees. The hours are primarily 7:45 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, with a few night or weekend classes. Cadets get to go home each night.

Lateral officers are eligible for a shortened 15-week academy upon hire; they also retain the option to attend the full 22-week academy. 

The following is not an all-inclusive list of instances that may disqualify you from being a police officer with Fort Collins Police Services. Other standards may make you subject to disqualification as well.

• Felony conviction
• Conviction, deferred prosecution or deferred judgment of a misdemeanor within three years of application date.
• Any driving arrest or conviction within three years of the candidate's application that involve alcohol, controlled substances, drugs, or other illegal substances
• Any pending or prior convictions of, deferred prosecution or deferred judgments for, reckless driving or careless driving resulting in injury within three years prior to application deadline date.
• Release or discharge from the Armed Forces of the United States under dishonorable conditions.
• Certain misdemeanor criminal convictions, as defined by P.O.S.T., which would affect peace officer certification in Colorado.
• Tattoos on head, neck, and hands (excluding wedding band tattoo).

• Written Testing
• Oral Interview
• Job Suitability Evaluation
• Integrity Interview
• Truth Verification Exam
• Physical Agility Test (PAT)
• • Video: PAT Overview
  • Physical Readiness Handbook(PDF, 595KB)
  • Fitness Standards(PDF, 100KB) 
  • Fitness Test Instructions(PDF, 407KB)
  • Fitness Waiver(PDF, 35KB)

  These documents are provided for printing purposes. For assistance viewing or reading the document, please contact the City's ADA Coordinator via email at adacoordinator@fortcollins.gov or phone: 970-416-4254.

• Background Investigation
• Final Interview
• Psychological Assessment
• Medical Assessment
• Drug Screen

Out of Area Testing

Applicants who are invited to test, and reside over 200 miles from the City of Fort Collins may be offered the opportunity to participate in an out of area testing week in which several testing components are offered during a condensed time period. If the applicant successfully continues in the process and is invited for a final interview, another week would be scheduled at that time for additional testing components. Ideally, the out of area applicant would only have to travel to Fort Collins twice if they continue to the end of the hiring process. Further information will be provided to out of area applicants who are invited to test with the agency during the open application period.

A 24/7/365 police agency requires a skilled team of professionals to ensure consistent, high-quality service to our community. In addition to 230 sworn officers, FCPS also employs more than 100 professional staff. We frequently hire positions in Dispatch, Records, Community Service Officers and other units. These skilled teams do mission-critical work to keep our agency running smoothly.

• FCPS Fitness Program: employees receive up to 20 hours of award time twice yearly. 
• FCPS Stress Awareness and Management Program: employees receive up to 10 hours of award time twice yearly.
• Zero Sick Time Program: employees receive up to 10 hours of award time twice yearly.
• New Hire One Time Bonus: employees receive 20-80 hours of award time. 
• Holiday Time: employees receive 80 hours of holiday time each year in addition to earned Vacation time. 
• Worked City Holidays: employees can be paid 2.5 times their normal pay.
• Entry Level Officer: receives 15 vacation days a year.
• Money Purchase Plan (401k): employee contribution of 8.5% with City contribution of 11%, fully vested after 3 years.
• Deferred Compensation Plan(457): with matching funds up to 3%.
• Retirement Health Care Savings Plan.
• Comprehensive Medical/Dental/Vision coverage for family.
• Life Insurance, with optional family coverage.
• Uniforms and dry cleaning provided (sworn).
• All equipment provided, including firearm (sworn).
• Tuition reimbursement of up to $1,500 a year for college courses at accredited schools.
• One to one take home car program.

Our volunteers generously share their time and talents to support police services and serve our community. Open volunteer positions at FCPS will be listed below.

• Victim Advocates
• Reserve Community Service Officer
• Explorer

To learn more about all volunteer opportunities in the City of Fort Collins, visit Opportunities.

Job description and duties: Integrate your knowledge and theory you’ve learned in the classroom with practical application assisting our agency in managing and growing its digital presence. Responsibilities include creating and scheduling branded social media content, ensuring ADA compliance, and aligning messaging with the agency’s communication strategy. You will monitor engagement across platforms, track analytics, support public safety campaigns, and help produce digital media content such as our monthly Chief Chat video.

You will also assist with our agency’s media relations and public communications. Duties include drafting and distributing press releases, coordinating with internal departments and external partners, and managing media inquiries. You will help monitor public sentiment, assist with media interviews, and contribute to case-related social media content.

Required quals: Strong writing, communication, basic design, social media and organizational skills required.

Preferred quals: Interest in public safety communications preferred.

Compensation: Academic credit (90 or 130 hours)

Duration: 14 weeks (flexible)

Accepting applications on rolling basis, to accommodate academic schedules. Please submit a letter of interest and resume to FCPS Director of Communications, J Gilmore; jgilmore@fortcollins.gov.

Our Hiring and Recruitment Unit is happy to assist with questions about our hiring process, Academy, lateral entry, and more! Please contact Officer Meagan Robinson via email at mrobinson@fortcollins.gov, or phone at (970) 416-2127.