Applying to the German Police: Process and Requirements

When you apply to a company, you send a cover letter and CV and hope for an interview. Applying to the police in Germany works fundamentally differently: you do not apply to a firm, you enter a formal selection process run by one of the 16 federal states or by the federal government — with fixed deadlines, several examination stages and clear admission requirements. If you understand the process and prepare for it deliberately, you are in a far stronger position than someone with a beautifully written letter.

Unlike any company application

At the police, no HR department decides based on your documents alone — a standardised procedure does: all candidates take the same tests, and whoever fails a stage is out, regardless of how good their paperwork was. Your application is the ticket into the process, not the decision itself. That has a pleasant side: connections play no role. And a demanding one: you have to deliver in sport, language and logic on test day.

Career tracks and employers: your options

Two questions come before the application: which career track — and which employer?

	Intermediate service (mittlerer Dienst)	Higher service (gehobener Dienst)
Entry	Vocational training (usually 2.5 years)	Dual study programme (usually 3 years, bachelor's degree)
School qualification	Usually intermediate secondary certificate, or lower certificate plus vocational training	Abitur or Fachhochschulreife (university entrance qualification)
Typical duties	Patrol and station duty, riot police units	Patrol duty with leadership tasks, investigations, route into CID
Where offered	Federal Police and some states	All states and the federal level; some states recruit only at this level

Then choose your employer: the 16 state police forces (responsible for policing and crime within their state), the Federal Police (railway stations, airports, borders, nationwide operations) and the BKA, the Federal Criminal Police Office, with its own degree programme. Each authority runs its own procedure — parallel applications are allowed and sensible.

Requirements: what is expected

The criteria are similar across Germany, but the details differ from state to state — only the current job posting of your recruiting authority is binding. Typical criteria:

• Age: minimum and maximum limits, varying by state and career track
• School qualification: matching the career track (see table)
• Fitness: a sports test is mandatory everywhere; some authorities require the German sports badge or proof of swimming ability
• Medical suitability: police medical examination, including eyesight and hearing; rules on tattoos and BMI differ by state
• Personal suitability: clean criminal record, orderly financial circumstances
• Citizenship: usually German or EU; exceptions possible depending on the state — relevant for international applicants
• Language: very good German is essential; the written test usually includes a language component

Check every point on your target authority's careers page before applying — outdated claims from forums can cost you a whole application round.

How the selection process works

1. Online application via the careers portal: form, CV, certificates, sometimes a letter of motivation
2. Written test: German (often as dictation or a language test), logic, concentration, general knowledge — usually computer-based today
3. Sports test: endurance, strength, speed; each authority publishes its disciplines in advance
4. Oral stage / assessment: individual interview, group exercise, sometimes role plays — presence, teamwork and motivation count here
5. Police medical examination: at the very end, as it is elaborate and only carried out once all previous stages are passed

Several months often pass between application and enrolment — plan for that, especially if your school or training finishes on a fixed date.

The letter of motivation: what it has to deliver

Where a letter or motivation questions are required, this is not about elegant prose but about two things: credible motivation for the office and evidence of resilience and teamwork. Asserting is not enough — prove it:

Why the police? At a traffic accident outside our school I watched two officers bring order to the scene within minutes — since then I have not let go of the idea of being the person who brings calm in moments like that. I know resilience from four years of shift work alongside school in the care home where my mother works, and team responsibility as captain of my handball team, keeping the group together even when we are behind.

❌ “I am resilient, a team player and looking for a secure job.” → ✅ A concrete experience as the trigger, plus one piece of evidence each for resilience and teamwork. Everyone thinks about job security — you should not write it as your main motive.

Preparing for the entrance test

• Sport: train early and specifically for your authority's published disciplines — endurance takes months, not weeks
• Language/dictation: practise dictations regularly and summarise newspaper articles; spelling errors are a common knockout criterion
• Logic and concentration: get to know the format with practice questions — many authorities provide samples
• Oral stage: follow current topics in domestic security and practise saying your motivation out loud

The most common mistakes

1. Missing deadlines — intake dates are fixed; if you are late, you wait a year
2. Applying to only one state — parallel procedures with states and the federal level significantly improve your odds
3. Underestimating the sports test — many fail here although it is entirely plannable
4. Relying on outdated forum posts — only the recruiting authority counts
5. Naming job security as your main motive — legitimate as a thought, weak as an argument

Checklist before you apply

• Career track chosen and requirements checked with the target authority?
• Application deadlines and intake dates noted?
• Applied to at least two authorities (states/federal) in parallel?
• Sports training aligned with the test disciplines?
• Motivation formulated concretely — with an experience and evidence?
• Criminal record certificate and documents complete?

If your target authority requires a letter of motivation and you are facing a blank page: our AI cover letter generator drafts a structured first version from your profile and the posting — you add the personal experiences that make your letter credible.