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In 1998, the Delaware State Police Cadet Program was authorized under the enabling legislation of House Bill # 478, which passed both houses during the 139th Session of the General Assembly.

 

 

Minimum Qualifications:

• Age – Must be between the ages of 18 to 21 to apply and enter the Cadet Program.
• Residency – Must be a citizen of the United States and a Delaware Resident.
• Education – Must be enrolled in a Delaware accredited university or college in an undergraduate program (full-time or part-time).
• Driver’s License – Must possess a valid driver’s license.

Applicants interested in the Cadet Program must have a sincere interest in the position and a continuing interest in the law enforcement profession. Cadets may remain employed with the Division as a Cadet while actively pursuing an undergraduate degree, either full or part-time, up until their 24^th birthday.

 

Selection Process:

Applicants will be required to undergo the successful completion of:

• Physical Fitness Test
• Oral Board Interview
• Polygraph Examination
• Background Investigation
• Medical Testing*

*Following an offer of employment, the selected applicants will be examined by the Division’s health providers for compliance with Hearing, Vision, and Weight requirements, and will be given a complete medical examination to determine if the applicant is able to perform essential job functions.

 

Duties and Responsibilities:

The primary function of the Cadet Program, under enabling legislation of House Bill 478, is:

• Enforcement of Handicapped Parking under Title 21, Chapter 41, Section 4183.
• Enforcement of Fire Lane Parking under Title 21, Chapter 70, Section 7004.
• Assisting with targeted enforcement efforts (i.e., red light enforcement)
• Assisting with traffic control at Division-sponsored events. (i.e., Delaware State Police graduations, promotional ceremonies, etc.)
• Assignment of various administrative tasks at troop/section level.

 

Notice

Delaware State Police Cadets are NOT Troopers and are limited in the scope of enforcement as listed above. Cadets are considered to be casual seasonal employees of the Division and thus are not entitled to benefits. Cadets will receive forty (40) hours of training at the Delaware State Police Training Academy prior to being assigned to a Troop.

 

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Citizenship

Applicant must be a United States citizen.

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Age

Applicants must reach their 21st birthday prior to completion of the Academy training, and must not be older than 39 on the first day of the Academy.

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Education

Applicants must have a high school diploma or GED, and must have attained a minimum of 60 semester credits, or 90 quarter credits, from an accredited college or university OR one that is recognized by the U. S. Department of Higher Education OR 30 college credits along with two years of active duty military service.

 

An applicant with 30 college credits and any of the below-listed experience will be eligible for an accelerated Academy curriculum:

• two years (post-training) as a full-time, Delaware-certified police officer.
• or two years of full-time (post-training) experience as a state trooper from another state, having completed a paramilitary live-in state training academy.

 

(To compete for the rank of Sergeant, 60 college credits are required. A Bachelor’s Degree is required to compete for the ranks of Lieutenant and above.)

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Residence

There is no residency requirement at time of application. However, Delaware residency is required by the completion of the academy training, prior to field training. Troopers are subject to assignment in any part of the state.

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Driver’s License

Applicants must have a current valid driver’s license and at least one year of driving experience. An applicant with a prior driving suspension or revocation must have one year of reinstatement in order to be eligible to apply. Any alcohol-related driving arrests and overall driving history will be subject to review.

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Gender

Applicants will test based upon the gender specified in the latest issued government identification at the time of testing.

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Criminal Record and Activity

Any felony conviction is an automatic disqualification. Any criminal activity that would be considered a felony under Delaware law, federal law, or the law of the state in which the activity occurred is a disqualification. Applicants must have all prior criminal arrests expunged before being hired.  (Arrest or conviction for all other crimes and offenses are subject to evaluation).

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Weapons

Applicants must not be prohibited from possessing a firearm and must demonstrate an acceptable level of proficiency with Divisional-issued weapons during the recruit training program.

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Drug Usage

Any use of an illegal drug will be subject to review at the time the application is submitted, any prior use of a hallucinogenic drug, will be an automatic disqualification. All other drug use, including illegally using prescribed drugs, is subject to review.

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Medical Marijuana

The Division recognizes federal guidelines/laws in reference to marijuana, therefore Medical Marijuana use is not permitted by applicants.

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Weight*

Weight must be in compliance with the Delaware State Police weight chart or maximum allowed body fat percentage. (View Weight Standards and other important recruiting documents)

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Hearing*

Normal hearing.

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Vision*

Visual acuity can be no worse than 20/40 in each eye, uncorrected, and must be corrected to 20/20 with glasses or gas permeable contacts; or no worse than 20/200 in each eye uncorrected and must be corrected to 20/20 with soft contacts lenses only. The applicant shall have the ability to distinguish between the colors of red, green and amber; shall have normal depth perception and no pathology of the eyes.

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