Becoming a police officer: An inside look at the physical abilities test

What does it take to become a police officer?

The recruitment process for the Saskatoon Police Service (SPS) not only tests an applicant’s mental abilities, but their physical abilities as well.

Const. Pam Fouquette, the police service’s Indigenous recruiter, said applicants hoping to be accepted into police college are required to take the Police Officers Physical Abilities Test (POPAT).

The test includes a 400-metre sprint that simulates a chase, a struggle, and fence jumping.

The test starts off with an obstacle course that includes stairs, jumping a hurdle and running through pylons.

Applicants then complete what Fouquette described as one of the most challenging parts of the test: The “push-pull,” where participants push and pull 80 pounds in an arc on a machine.

The Push Pull is one of the most challenging parts of the Police Officers Physical Abilities Test (POPAT)

Last week I watched Kimberly Esau challenge the test

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Then the participants are faced with a vault, where they start on their stomachs, jump over a pole and then lay on their backs five times on each side.

The last part of the test includes carrying a 100-pound bag without dropping it.

What may look like a regular obstacle course, the test is not as easy as it may seem.

“At the very end, all of our applicants are very exhausted,” Fouquette said, adding the test can be challenging for both men and women.

Kimberly Esau does the vault during the Police Officer Physical Abilities Test. (Mia Holowaychuk/650 CKOM)

Not only do applicants need to complete the test, but they also need to pass with a time under four minutes and 45 seconds.

The process is competitive, Fouquette explained, and recruiters like to see times lower than the minimum requirement. Those selected to go to police college will have to run the POPAT again but with a passing time of four minutes and 15 seconds.

“When you go to (police) college, it’s very strenuous, it’s very physical, and it’s probably 10 times more than what you see here at the POPAT,” Fouquette explained.

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Last Thursday, 30 hopeful applicants ran the test at the University of Saskatchewan’s gymnasium. Fouquette said the passing rate for the POPAT is around 50 per cent.

One of those applicants was Kimberly Esau, an emergency dispatcher for the SPS who is hoping to become a police officer.

After a year of training, she passed with a time of four minutes and 30 seconds on her second attempt.

“I feel pretty good about it. I mean, I wish I would have done it at a better time, and I’m going to keep working to do a better time,” she said.

“It is a hard test, for sure.”

Kimberly Esau, an applicant challenging the Police Officer Physical Abilities Test, performs the push-pull. (Mia Holowaychuk/650 CKOM)

Esau said the push-pull after the obstacle course was the biggest challenge for her.

“I’m not going to give up, because it’s something I really want to do,” she said, adding she is optimistic about being selected for police college.

“It’s a lot of work, especially for women … It’s hard, but keep going and keep pushing through because it is a job that women can do, 100 per cent.”

When applicants fail the test, Fouquette said it’s usually due to slower times on the obstacle course or generally not being prepared. She said it’s important to show up in the best shape possible when challenging the test.

“You need a lot of endurance to run this,” she said.

She suggested training for three to five months before taking the test.  Workouts including pushups, situps, burpees, sprints and stairs are some of the best ways to prepare, she added.

Fouquette said the skills applicants learn when taking the POPAT can be applied to their careers as police officers.

“You’re going to hit the street and there’s going to be situations where you might have to chase after someone. You might have to jump a small fence. You might have to perhaps go hands-on where you’re struggling with someone,” she said.

Recruiting women is a challenge for police forces, Fouquette explained, but they’ve seen an increase in women showing an interest in policing and challenging the POPAT.

To encourage more women to get into policing, Fouquette said the SPS runs an annual program that invites women to come into police headquarters and connect with female officers to learn about what the position requires.