PSNI Recruitment (Archived)

It's just a sit-down type of test so don't worry about it.

There's a fairly helpful book called "How to Pass the New Police Selection System" by Harry Tolley, Catherine Tolley and Billy Hodge. It's full of examples of things you'll be faced with in the test, verbal logical reasoning and psychometric being the 2 big ones.

From the feeback I've received, it's helped people who had no experience with this type of testing to prepare for what's ahead.

They are usually very quick in letting you know whether you are through to the next stage or not. You should know by the following week whether you are through.

If you are, you can expect your date for the assessment centre to be between 6 and 8 weeks from the date of your initial selection test.

Chatmaster wrote:

My test is soon enough. :cool:

Hi PSNI. Do you need to wear a Suit? Or are there any parts of the recruitment you're expected to wear a suit?

If say, we passed everything and we are now in the PSNI two year probation period... and you don't feel you like the job.. is it OK to be trying to recruit with the Gardaí whilst you're still working for the PSNI?

Do we act in the roleplays or just watch people roleplay?

Do you wish you were with An Garda Siochana or do you prefer or are you just as happy with the PSNI?

It makes no difference if you wear a suit or not to the initial selection test. All you do is sit a test and there is nobody there paying attention to what you're wearing. I would be advising that you wear a suit to the assessment centre for the role plays if you get through.

Yes, you can be trying for the Gardai while in the PSNI. They don't recognise your service though, so you'd have to start all over again from scratch.

You act in the roleplays. You don't get a chance to observe. The second you walk into the room, the actors make themselves known to you.

I am absolutely delighted with being in the PSNI, and have no desire to be in the Gardai whatsoever. The pay is far better, the policing plans are far superior and the prospects for us Southerners joining are FAR better than if we were in the Gardai. We can thank Patten for that, while those from the Protestant community despise him for it!

Finally, yes - all PSNI officers carry a handgun and CS incapacitant. Some even covertly carry the gun around off-duty just in case.

You need a firearms licence on you at all times if you are carrying a firearm, and even then it can't just be for your own security. You need to be out hunting game or clay pigeon shooting etc.

The laws are very different than the Republic. You can't ever bring your service issue firearm across the border. Ever.

You have exactly 5 minutes in each role play, which starts the second you walk into the room. The role actor starts the digital countdown timer as soon as they see your first footstep through the door. You have 5 minutes to bring each situation to a satisfactory conclusion, or put another way, to shut the role actor up.

The situational interview lasts about 5-10 minutes but it could be longer depending on your answers to the interviewers.

The written test is about 30 minutes. I'll check up with some people who recently sat it, but I don't believe that's changed.

Keep the questions coming!

There are 2 assessors watching you, listening to you, writing stuff down and ticking boxes. There's an independent observer sitting somewhere at the back of the room to make sure the whole thing is done by the book and impartially. There's the role actor, and there's you.

You go into the room and they are the only 4 people that are there. Sometimes the independent observer moves from room to room during roleplays and may not be present during your roleplays.

You are alone in the roleplays. It's just you and the actor. There is no audience or viewing area. It's all done in hotel rooms.

All you have to do is be natural and be yourself. The rest is a piece of cake.

Chatmaster wrote:

Are you required to swim at anytime of being an officer? I asked the same on the thread for the Gardaí. =]

No swimming at all.

The role actors never ever get physical. If you feel the need to get physical with the role actor, then policing may not be for you!

The role plays are designed to test your competency in 7 areas, namely Respect for Diversity, Teamworking, Community & Customer Focus, Effective Communication, Problem Solving, Personal Responsibility and Resilience.

Each role play will be testing a combination of different competencies, so you may get an angry role actor where you would need to demonstrate Resilience - you may get a role actor with a problem where you would need to demonstrate your Problem Solving ability, or you may get a role actor who is difficult to work with where you would need to demonstrate your Teamworking skills.

Consensia have many different situations in a pool to dip from. They always change them to keep previous applicants on their toes, so I can't tell you which situations are most commonly used for this reason.

The day itself is long, and you are given a booklet to read about who you are for the day, for example, a manager of a large shopping centre like The Square in Tallaght. The role actors that will be coming to you will either be customers, shop owners within the centre you manage, colleagues on the management team with you, and so on. This is just an example of a scenario that has been used in the past, so please don't go preparing for it!

Just think of someone saying: "Well it's about bloody time..." when you walk in the door. Another role actor may come out with: "Oh thank GOD you've arrived..." and another may say something like: "John is out again today, it's the third time this week...".

Your non-verbal reactions to these statements are watched just as closely as your verbal responses are listened to, so that's why I say "be yourself", because the assessors can detect if you are a phoney a mile away.

I hope this kinda/sorta answers your questions.

paul666 wrote:

could u explain to us some of the role plays that an applicant may come across, also does the role play get physical!? what are the situations most commonly used when one walks in that door?

If only I were getting paid! The amount of PMs I get is nearly a full time job in itself!

I'm generally a positive person and there's a lot to be positive about. Northern Ireland is a changed place. Just look at how peacefully the parades went off today compared to just 2 years ago. People are loving the peace and now that the Assembly is up and running again, both communities have won a situation that was thought impossible to resolve.

Don't get me wrong, we're still not liked by certain groups of people who would like us dead, and the job is dangerous as long as people like that are around. I talk to people who are still bitter from the old RUC days and quite frankly I agree with most of what they say regarding what went on back then. But I didn't join the RUC and I make that plain and clear every time it comes up. I always tell these people that the only way they can make sure things like that never happen again is to get involved.

The more Irish people up here in the PSNI, the more the Irish communities will feel they will be treated equally and fairly. It's happening now. I see it every day.

Rihanna wrote:

psni are you getting paid to recruit through boards.ie cause your so positive about the whole thing, i think i might be a little disheartened by the an garda siochana campaign that it feels like ill never get to the place i really really want to be, all this waiting and hoping and dreaming and not being able to plan anything for the near future just bugs me. i got my psni exam date yesterday, hopefully the psni recruitment will be a better experience then the gardai.

East Belfast. Right across the road from the Belfast City Aiport.

Here you go: http://www.psni.police.uk/index/the_college.htm

Chatmaster wrote:

Lol OK Mr.

I'm going to have a Google at Garnerville Lol. I'm assuming it's right in the centre of Belfast lol.