The City of Kent is actively recruiting experienced lateral police officers. We do our best to ensure that the hiring and onboarding processes for lateral police officers are smooth and easy to navigate. For any questions not covered here, please contact Kent PD Recruiting Sergeant Eric Tung at ETung@kentwa.gov.

KENT PD APPLICATION & HIRING PROCESS

From start to finish our hiring process can vary in length from 2 to 4 months.

Come work at a place where you have a direct impact on the quality of life for Kent residents, business owners and visitors alike. Apply by clicking link below!


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A recruiter will contact you to schedule online testing (this testing can be proctored remotely if candidate is outside of western Washington and generally takes about 45 minutes)

Candidates submit a Kent Police Department Personal History Statement and other required documents

Eligible candidates are assigned to a Kent PD background investigator to begin the background process

Chief’s interview (This step can also be conducted remotely using an emailed link to a video conference.)

Travel! Lateral officers have their required instate appointments condensed to one trip to Washington. Expect this to take about 2 days.

  • Polygraph examination
  • Psychological evaluation (may be conducted remotely)
  • Medical examination
  • Ride along

On-site. Your assigned background investigator travels to you to conclude your process.

Start date. We start officers for Day 1 on the first business day of each month. We understand that a move can require some time, and we are reasonably flexible with start dates.

COST

All uniforms, equipment and training expenses, including the cost of attending Basic Law Enforcement Equivalency Academy, are covered by Kent PD.

Travel

We understand that traveling for interviews can be expensive, and it may not be easy to take time off from your current role, so we’re able to conduct much of our hiring process remotely. In most instances, candidates will only be required to travel once in the later stages of the testing process.

PAY

Lateral police officer starting pay is dependent upon experience. We can front-load both sick time and vacation time with up to 200 hours each.