Females in Testing

[mcar1936]

This is just a general question...does anyone know if the physical agility test requirements for many of the SoCal agencies are for both male and female or do females having different physical testing requirements to meet. For example the 515 yard run...is the time diff. for male and female or is it the same across the board? Thanks.

[Ducatista]

The Standards are set by POST for the state and I believe they are the same, regardless of gender, unless the department your applying to sets their own (very few do that).

I've been to two test cycles and the women seem to do fine. The 6' wall gives the women the most trouble, but most all get over. IF you can do just one pull-up you should be able to get it.

The 500 yd run time give you a score to compile with the other events which give a PAT T-score. That aggregate score will determine your pass/fail status.

Bare in mind, these events are a very low minimum of what it will take to compete in the academy AND graduate. For instance I believe you will need to run 1.5 miles in 12mins or less to graduate.

[08duramax]

they have been the same at all agencies i have tested at. except maybe LAPD

[hbliam]

The Standards are set by POST for the state and I believe they are the same, regardless of gender, unless the department your applying to sets their own (very few do that).

I've been to two test cycles and the women seem to do fine. The 6' wall gives the women the most trouble, but most all get over. IF you can do just one pull-up you should be able to get it.

The 500 yd run time give you a score to compile with the other events which give a PAT T-score. That aggregate score will determine your pass/fail status.

Bare in mind, these events are a very low minimum of what it will take to compete in the academy AND graduate. For instance I believe you will need to run 1.5 miles in 12mins or less to graduate.

Actually no. The agencies that use the POST test (dummy drag, 99 yard obstacle, 6' wall 6' chain link, and 500 yard run) may require more of you in the academy per their agency standards but POST requires nothing but 40 hours of PT and passing the job related work sample (the exact test we are talking about).

And some clues for those taking these tests. Each event is scored differently. The two highest scores you can get are the 99 yard course and the 6' wall. If you excel at those two you get nearly all the points you need to pass the entire test. You must COMPLETE all events but I learned to bust *** on those two, work hard on the dummy drag and chain link, and then cruise the 500 yard. I saw the scoring and taking 1 second off of your wall climb gave you say 50 more points. Taking 10 seconds off your 500 yard run gave me something like 2 more points. No thanks.

[417Lt]

Check to see exactly what your target agency requires. There are slight differences. For example, we require a swim test and perfect color vision; two things that aren't always tested for.

[mcar1936]

Thank you all for your responses. It helps me to understand more that I need to just get in there and try my hardest to roll with the guys. I am planning on testing with Newport Beach PD and their physical agility test is a pass or fail, they don't keep track of your scores(at least that's what they say) I've been practicing at Rio Hondo on the weekends and am able to get over the 6 ft. wall, it's just a matter of speeding up my time. I am so worried that I won't be able to finish the obstacle course in 2:03. Failure is not an option for me. :D

[Ducatista]

Thank you all for your responses. It helps me to understand more that I need to just get in there and try my hardest to roll with the guys. I am planning on testing with Newport Beach PD and their physical agility test is a pass or fail, they don't keep track of your scores(at least that's what they say) I've been practicing at Rio Hondo on the weekends and am able to get over the 6 ft. wall, it's just a matter of speeding up my time. I am so worried that I won't be able to finish the obstacle course in 2:03. Failure is not an option for me. :D

You should be fine. The testers I talked with this last W/E said that 2mins for the women on the o-course was a good time.

[MidnightBlue]

You should be fine. The testers I talked with this last W/E said that 2mins for the women on the o-course was a good time.

2 minutes for the 99-yard course? Must be a different course than the ones I've done. Ours was around 17 seconds. What did yours involve?

[mcar1936]

2 minutes for the 99-yard course? Must be a different course than the ones I've done. Ours was around 17 seconds. What did yours involve?

An approximate 3’ vault, a serpentine pattern through offset barricades, a 6’ smooth painted wooden fence, a balance beam, three hurdles, a 6’ cinder block wall, monkey bars, an elevated approximate 3’ X 3’ window, and an approximate 80 yard sprint. Maximum time limit 2:03.

[MidnightBlue]

An approximate 3’ vault, a serpentine pattern through offset barricades, a 6’ smooth painted wooden fence, a balance beam, three hurdles, a 6’ cinder block wall, monkey bars, an elevated approximate 3’ X 3’ window, and an approximate 80 yard sprint. Maximum time limit 2:03.

Oh I see, so the two walls are incorporated into the o-course. Sounds a little more interesting than what I'm used to:

1) 99 yd o-course with 3' vault, simulated curbs and sudden changes in direction. No monkey bars or windows.
2) 6 ft solid wall
3) 6 ft chain-link fence (sometimes)
4) 500 yd run
5) 32 ft dummy drag

All are separate events. May just be the way they do it in NorCal. I like your way better because it seems a bit more realistic.

[08duramax]

That Newport obstacle course is easy. I ran it at a slow jog and still got a decent, passing, score. Do they still do the car push as well? I would worry about that. That is where the girls struggled when I took it.

[Ducatista]

An approximate 3’ vault, a serpentine pattern through offset barricades, a 6’ smooth painted wooden fence, a balance beam, three hurdles, a 6’ cinder block wall, monkey bars, an elevated approximate 3’ X 3’ window, and an approximate 80 yard sprint. Maximum time limit 2:03.

Yeah, that's totally different than what we were doing. Bon Chance!

[mcar1936]

That Newport obstacle course is easy. I ran it at a slow jog and still got a decent, passing, score. Do they still do the car push as well? I would worry about that. That is where the girls struggled when I took it.

Yeah, they still have the patrol car push as a requirement. 10 feet in 10 sec. or less. I practiced on my Sequoia with my 210 lb dad in the driver seat and was able to push over 10 feet in 8 sec. I'm not sure if it's easier to push an SUV because of the height or if it doesn't matter, but it was fairly easy. Now, I just need to find someone 165 lbs that I can drag. :p

[08duramax]

Dragging a real person is easier tha the dummy drag. With the dummy, the legs just dangle there and trip up a lot of people. One guy split his head open at one of the tests for Santa clara sheriffs.

[Copp'rPenny]

This sounds like the O course at OCSA. 10 seconds is a long time to push a car 10 feet. As a female (and I AM a female who has done this course and passed) I would be more worried about the walls. Especially because they are two walls, you can do one and get too physically tired to do the next if you haven't practiced your technique and built up the muscles (especially lats) to help you get over.

[LAC_LE]

Yeah, they still have the patrol car push as a requirement. 10 feet in 10 sec. or less. I practiced on my Sequoia with my 210 lb dad in the driver seat and was able to push over 10 feet in 8 sec. I'm not sure if it's easier to push an SUV because of the height or if it doesn't matter, but it was fairly easy. Now, I just need to find someone 165 lbs that I can drag. :p

You could try dragging your 210 lb dad. Once you get that down, the 165 lb drag would be a cinch. Not sure if your dad would be too thrilled with this, though. ;)