Ulster County Personnel Department
Civil Service Examination Announcement
NON-REFUNDABLE FILING FEE $40.00
#64521 POLICE OFFICER/DEPUTY SHERIFF
OPEN-COMPETITIVE EXAMINATION
LAST DATE FOR FILING APPLICATIONS: July 31, 2019
EXAMINATION DATE: September 14, 2019
Note: Applications bearing an original signature and date of birth must be received or postmarked no later than July 31, 2019. Applications received or postmarked after July 31, 2019 will NOT be accepted.
APPLICANTS MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENTS OF THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES: ULSTER, COLUMBIA, DELAWARE, DUTCHESS, GREENE, ORANGE, AND SULLIVAN.
Appointments from the resulting Eligible List will be made, if applicable, in accordance with Public Officer's Law Section 3.2, which concerns residency limitations for Police Officer candidates. Not all of the above residents are eligible for appointment in every local jurisdiction.
Preference may be given to Ulster County residents for Deputy Sheriff positions.
Note: If you indicate a Post Office box number on your application, you MUST also indicate your legal residence.
The eligible list established as a result of this examination will be used where appropriate to fill full-time and part-time vacancies as they occur for Deputy Sheriff positions in the Ulster County Sheriff's Department, and for Police Officer positions in the Towns and Villages in Ulster County. Vacancies are expected to occur from time to time.
SALARY: The 2019 starting salary for Deputy Sheriff is currently listed at $23.84 per hour.
The starting salary for Police Officer varies by location.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:
Graduation from high school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma or comparable diploma.
Special Requirements:
1. United States Citizenship is required at time of appointment.
2. Possession of a valid New York State Driver's license is required at time of appointment.
Special Requirements:
Age: Candidates must be at least 19 years of age on or before September 14, 2019 to be admitted to the written test. Eligibility for appointment as a police officer begins when the candidate reaches age 20. Candidates who reach their 35th birthday on or before the date of the written examination are not qualified except as follows.* Candidates may have a period of military duty or terminal leave up to six years, as defined in Section 243 (10-a) of the Military Law, deducted from their age for the purpose of meeting the age requirement. YOUR DATE OF BIRTH IS REQUIRED ON YOUR APPLICATION.
*Section 58.1(a) requires that applicants not be "more than thirty-five years of age as of the date when the applicant takes the written examination…" Candidates who may be impacted by the maximum age requirement and who are requesting an alternate test date (for active military duty, Sabbath observance or for an alternate test date situation which meets the conditions of the agency's alternate test date policy) are advised to contact the Ulster County Personnel Department to discuss their request.
Citizenship: United States Citizenship is required at time of appointment. It is not necessary for admission to the examination.
Driver's License: Candidates must possess a valid New York State Operator's License at time of appointment.
NOTE: Conviction of a felony will bar appointment, and conviction of a misdemeanor or other offense may bar appointment. A background check will be completed for all candidates prior to appointment.
Medical and Physical Fitness Tests: Applicants who successfully pass the written examination and a physical fitness test who are conditionally offered employment, will be required to participate in a medical fitness test. The medical and physical fitness standards are those established for police officers by the New York State Municipal Police Training Council, Division of Criminal Justice Services. Candidates are responsible for all fees associated with Medical and Physical Fitness Tests.
Substance Abuse Testing: All candidates for Police Officer/Deputy Sheriff will be substance abuse tested prior to appointment at the time of the medical fitness test. Evidence of substance abuse or refusal to submit to a urinalysis shall result in disqualification from appointment. Candidates are responsible for all fees associated with Substance Abuse Testing.
APPLICATION REVIEW TOLERANCE POLICY
For the purposes of this policy, "tolerance" shall mean the leeway given regarding work experience when reviewing an application. Applicants lacking a small amount of work experience when applying for promotional or open-competitive examinations may qualify under the following conditions:
1) Candidates will be given a maximum tolerance of one (1) month.
2) Tolerance will be given only when the minimum qualification requires one or more years of work experience.
3) Tolerance Policy does not apply to education or licensure/certification requirements. (See particular examination announcement for "Anticipated Eligibility" information).
4) Tolerance Policy does not apply where required work experience is set forth by law or rules.
5) Tolerance Policy does not apply to enable applicants to meet residence requirements.
For more information regarding Tolerance Policy, please contact our office at (845) 340-3550.
DISTINGUISHING FEATURES OF THE CLASS: The work involves responsibility for the enforcement of laws, ordinances and the protection of lives and property in an assigned area of the county during a specific period. The work consists primarily of routine patrol tasks, the investigation of criminal offenses and the apprehension of criminal offenders. Work is performed under the direct supervision of a higher-ranking officer whether performing patrol duties or on special assignment, with leeway allowed for the exercise of sound judgement in emergencies and when the direction or guidance of a higher-ranking officer is unavailable. Supervision over the work others is not normally a function of this position, however, advisory supervision over the work of less experienced personnel may be required on occasion. Does related work as required.
SUBJECT OF EXAMINATION:
There will be a written test which you must pass in order to be considered for appointment. Only your score on the written test will be considered when computing your final score. In addition, candidates must meet the physical fitness and medical standards prescribed by the Municipal Police Training Council. Candidates must pass the written test in order to be scheduled for the qualifying physical fitness test.
WRITTEN TEST: Written test will cover knowledge, skills, and/or abilities in such areas as:
1. SITUATIONAL JUDGMENT – These questions test for the ability to identify appropriate and effective responses to work-related challenges. You will be presented with scenarios that reflect the types of challenges one could encounter in a work environment. Each scenario will be followed by several responses to the scenario. You must rate the effectiveness of each response.
2. LANGUAGE FLUENCY – These questions test for the ability to read, understand, and present a clear and accurate summary of information. For some questions, you will be given a brief reading passage followed by four statements, each summarizing the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given several sentences, one of which contains a spelling, grammatical, or punctuation error. You must then select the line that contains the error.
3. INFORMATION ORDERING AND LANGUAGE SEQUENCING – These questions test for the ability to properly identify the sequence or order of events, or to organize information to fit a timeline. You will be given a brief reading passage followed by one or more questions. You must identify the proper sequence of events in order to answer one or more questions.
4. PROBLEM SENSITIVITY & REASONING – These questions test for the ability to apply information and to identify a problem or potential problem. For some questions, you will be given information in the form of policies, rules, regulations, laws, followed by a situation. You must then identify the problem and apply the information to select the best course of action to take. For other questions, you will be given a scenario and mock witness statements. You must use this information to answer one or more questions about the scenario.
5. SELECTIVE ATTENTION: These questions test for the ability to focus on completing a task and to pay attention to important details while performing repetitive and monotonous tasks. You will be presented with a series of letters, symbols, and/or numbers. You must select the choice that contains the series of letters, symbols, and/or number that matches exactly.
6. VISUALIZATION – These questions test for the ability to imagine how something will look when it is moved around or when its parts are changed, moved, or rearranged. You will be presented with an image of a face followed by four images of faces. Each face is disguised or altered in some way. Three of the images have a difference in facial structure or facial features. You must select the choice that contains the image with the identical facial structure and facial features.
7. SPATIAL ORIENTATION – These questions test for the ability to understand how to navigate within spaces or how to get from one point to another. You will be provided with a map followed by one or more questions. You must imagine yourself at a certain location and orient yourself to the direction you would move to get to another location in the shortest (least distance) route.
The rating key for this examination will be established by the New York State Civil Service Commission prior to the date of the test, upon recommendation of a committee of police experts who will review all the questions for appropriateness and the key answers for correctness. There will be no review of the questions by candidates. This committee was selected with the assistance and endorsement of the Police Conference of New York, Inc., the New York State Association of PBA's, Inc., the New York State Association of Chiefs of Police, Inc., and the NYS Sheriff’s Association.
A Guide for the Written Test for the Entry-Level Law Enforcement Officer Series (for all municipalities except White Plains) is available at the New York State website: https://www.cs.ny.gov/testing/testguides.cfm.
NOTICE TO CANDIDATES: THE USE OF CALCULATORS/CELL PHONES IS PROHIBITED FOR THIS EXAMINATION.
QUALIFYING PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST
The three elements measured in the qualifying physical fitness test are muscular endurance, absolute strength and cardiovascular capacity. The following is a brief description of the physical fitness test.
Muscular Endurance – The requirement is for a number of bent-leg sit-ups to be performed in one minute.
Push Up – This test measures muscular endurance of the upper body (anterior deltoid, pectoralis major and triceps). The requirement is for a number of full body repetitions that a candidate must complete without breaks.
Cardiovascular Activity – 1.5 mile run; the requirement is for the attainment of a score calculated in minutes and seconds.
The Municipal Police Training Council adopted the physical fitness-screening test based on the model formulated by the Cooper Institute of Aerobics Research. The minimum passing scores, depending on age and sex, represent the fortieth (40th) percentile of physical fitness as established by the Cooper Institute. Failure on a part of qualifying test will remove your name from further consideration for appointment. Please note: Candidates may cancel or defer their physical fitness test a maximum of three times. Canceling or deferring beyond three times will result in candidates name being removed from future consideration for appointment.
Copies of the physical fitness and medical standards are available upon request from the Ulster County Personnel Department.
*FEES*: Send your check or money order for forty dollars ($40.00) (made payable to COUNTY OF ULSTER) with your application. Please include the examination number, title, and applicant’s name on your check or money order. DO NOT SEND CASH. NO REFUNDS WILL BE ISSUED, therefore, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the qualifications for admission and apply only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.
EXCEPTION TO FEE REQUIREMENT: An exception to the processing fee will be made for persons receiving Supplemental Social Security payments or public assistance (Safety Net Assistance or Temporary Assistance to Needy Families), provided Foster Care or certified Workforce Investment Act of 1998 eligible through a state or local social service agency, and for those who are currently unemployed. Individuals wishing to claim this waiver of fee on the basis of Supplemental Social Security, Safety Net Assistance or Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, must certify on their application, under number 12 Remarks, that they are receiving public assistance and must indicate the type of assistance they are receiving, the agency providing the assistance and their case numbers. Persons claiming this waiver through Foster Care or Workforce Investment Act of 1998 Certification must specify the program and name of their contact agency. Persons claiming this waiver, who are currently unemployed must certify on their application, under number 12 Remarks, that they are currently unemployed and must provide documentation that they are receiving unemployment benefits or other unemployment documentation deemed appropriate by the Ulster County Personnel Officer.Such claims are subject to later verification and, if not supported by appropriate documentation, are grounds for barring appointment.
Applications may be obtained at the Ulster County Office Building, Personnel Department, 244 Fair Street ‑ 5th Floor, P.O. Box 1800, Kingston, NY 12402‑1800 OR by mail (INCLUDE A STAMPED SELF‑ADDRESSED, LEGAL‑ SIZE ENVELOPE) OR from our website at: http://www.co.ulster.ny.us/personnel/index.html. Applications must be received by the Ulster County Personnel Department or postmarked no later than the ‘LAST DATE FOR FILING APPLICATIONS’ stated on page one of this announcement.
For those applications submitted in person on the last file date, please submit no later than 4:30 PM. All applications must be in our office no later than 5:00 PM on the last file date. Applications postmarked by the last file date will also be accepted.
This examination is being prepared and rated by the New York State Department of Civil Service in accordance with Section 23‑2 of the Civil Service Law. The provisions of the New York State Civil Service Rules and Regulations dealing with the rating of examinations will apply to this test.
CRIMINAL BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION POLICY: In accordance with Ulster County Local Law Number 14 of 2007, a criminal background check (including fingerprinting) will be initiated by the Ulster County Personnel Department upon initial employment or re-hire to Ulster County positions, and conducted by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), the New York State Office of Court Administration, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services Verification Information System (IMAGE Program), or any law enforcement agency.
SPECIAL NOTE: All public agencies are required by law to provide full and equal opportunities for minorities, women and to people with disabilities. All qualified candidates are encouraged to compete without regard to race, creed or national origin. Applicants requesting special testing arrangements as a Saturday Sabbath Observer, alternate test date candidate (in accordance with Alternate Test Date Policy), or an active member of the military away from the area on the scheduled test date must clearly indicate this fact on the application. All such requests must be supported by appropriate documentation.
VETERANS: Non-disabled and disabled veterans who wish to claim additional credits MUST request a Veterans Credits application from our office. This form must be completed and submitted along with a war service (DD214) form prior to the establishment of the resulting eligible list. Veterans credits may only be added to a passing score and may only be used for appointment once. Candidates currently in the armed forces may apply for and be conditionally granted veteran’s credits. Any candidate who applies for such credits must provide proof of military status to receive the conditional credits. You may not claim additional Veterans Credits after the eligible list has been established. It is the candidate’s responsibility to request the Veterans Credits application forms and submit these forms and any required supporting paperwork before the eligible list is established.
On November 5, 2013, New York State voters approved an amendment to Article 5, section 6, of the New York Constitution regarding the award and use of additional credits for certain disabled veterans on open competitive and promotion civil service examinations for positions with New York State and local governments.
For eligible lists established after January 1, 2014, disabled veterans may be entitled to additional credits on a civil service examination. Every situation is different. If you have specific questions or concerns, please contact our office.
ADDITIONAL CREDITS FOR CHILDREN OF FIREFIGHTERS AND POLICE OFFICERS KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY: In conformance with section 85-a of the Civil Service Law, children of firefighters and police officers killed in the line of duty shall be entitled to receive an additional ten points in a competitive examination for original appointment in the same municipality in which his or her parent has served. If you are qualified to participate in this examination and are a child of a firefighter or police officer killed in the line of duty in this municipality, please inform this office of this matter when you submit your application for examination. A candidate claiming such credit has a minimum of two months from the application deadline to provide the necessary documentation to verify additional credit eligibility. However, no credit may be added after the eligible list has been established.
APPLYING FOR CIVIL SERVICE EXAMINATIONS IN MULTIPLE JURISDICTIONS WHEN EXAMINATIONS ARE SCHEDULED ON SAME DATE: If you have applied for any other Civil Service examinations for employment with any other local government jurisdiction, you must make arrangements to take all the examinations at one test site. Please indicate your intentions under #12 remarks on the application for examination.
If you have applied for both State and local government examinations, you must inform the Ulster County Personnel Department of your intent to participate in both exams no later than two weeks before the date of the examinations. When taking local and State examinations on the same day, all of these examinations must be taken at the State test site. You will be informed by letter when and where to report for the examinations and you should bring the Ulster County admission notice with you to the State test site along with the State admission notice you will receive from the State.
If you have applied for other local government examinations, you must inform all local government civil service agencies of the test site at which you wish to take your examination(s) no later than two weeks before the date of the examinations.
For this examination write your intentions under #12 Remarks on the last page of the Ulster County Examination Application OR write a letter to the Ulster County Personnel Department, 244 Fair Street – 5th Floor, PO Box 1800, Kingston, NY 12402.
*If candidates have not received notification of this examination within four (4) days of the examination, they should contact this office immediately.
#64521
ORIGINAL COPY: YELLOW
ISSUED: June 26, 2019
