Rockland County Deputy Sheriff Civil Exam

At the time of application submission, you must have: graduation from high school or possession of an equivalency diploma and either:

 a. Two (2) years of paid work experience*, or two (2) years of active military service or a combination of the two; or

 b. An Associates degree or equivalent college credits (minimum of sixty (60) credits) or higher; or

 c. Completion of thirty (30) college credits and one (1) year of paid work experience*, active military service or a combination of the two.

 *Work experience while a full-time high school student is not qualifying.

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT:

Candidates must be legal residents of Rockland, Orange, Putnam, Westchester, Dutchess, Sullivan, Ulster, Nassau, Suffolk, Bronx, New York, or Queens counties at the time of application submission for the examination and must reside in one of these counties at the time of appointment. Eligibles must remain a New York State resident to retain employment.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

 1. Possession of a valid New York State driver’s license at the time of appointment and throughout the duration of employment in this title. The appointing authority shall have the responsibility for the verification of the driver’s license which may be checked throughout the course of employment in this title. 

2. Prior to appointment, candidates must meet minimum physical, medical, and psychological standards as prescribed by the Municipal Police Training Council of the State of New York.

 3. Prior to appointment, candidates must successfully complete a pre-employment drug screen, background and fingerprint check.

 4. Candidates must be at least 19 years old on or before the date of the examination to be admitted to the written examination for this position. Eligibility for appointments as a Deputy Sheriff (Civil) begins when the candidate reaches age 20. Candidates who reach their 43rd 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, not to exceed seven (7) years, as defined in Section 243 (10-a) of the Military Law, deducted from their age for purposes of determining whether they meet the age requirement.

 **Section 58.1 of the New York State Civil Service Law requires applicants not be “more than 43 years of age as of the date when the applicant takes the written exam”.

5. Satisfactory completion of the municipal police basic training program, as required by the New York State General Municipal Law (Section 209-q). See also, Rockland County Civil Service Rule XVI, paragraph 10, which provides that the appointment of a Police Officer or Correction Officer shall not become permanent unless and until he/she has satisfied such requirements.

6. Must be legally authorized to possess a firearm throughout the course of employment in this title. 

7. At the time of appointment and continuing throughout the course of employment in this title, the candidate must meet all applicable requirements of Section 3 of the Public Officers Law, including, but not limited to: being at least 20 years of age, a citizen of the United States and residency requirements.

TRANSCRIPTS:

College transcripts must be sent directly by the educational institution to the Rockland County Department of Personnel at rcexams@co.rockland.ny.us no later than two (2) months after the last filing date. Student transcripts are not accepted. Failure to meet this deadline may result in application disapproval and/or disqualification from an eligible list. Degrees and/or college credits must be awarded from a college or university accredited by a regional, national, or specialized accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education/U.S. Secretary of Education. If your degree or credits were earned outside the United States or its territories, you must submit an independent equivalency evaluation. Candidates are responsible for all evaluation fees. Information on foreign education evaluations, including a list of approved evaluation services, is available here: https://rocklandcountyny.gov/departments/personnel/applicant-candidate-resources-forms.

ANTICIPATED ELIGIBILITY - AGE AND EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

According to Civil Service Law, section 54 which became effective September 4, 2024, applicants who are within 12 months of meeting the minimum age or attaining the minimum educational requirements following the date of examination, may take the civil service exam, but will be restricted from certification until such a time that the minimum age or educational requirements are met. Candidates will be required to provide proof of qualifying age and/or education within 12 months of exam date in order to be eligible for appointment from a certified list.

APPLICATION DOCUMENTATION:

Must be submitted to the Rockland County Department of Personnel no later than two (2) weeks prior to the exam date. Failure to meet this deadline may result in the disapproval of your application; disqualification from sitting for the examination; and/or disqualification from a resulting list of eligible candidates. Deadlines are subject to change with notice from the Rockland County Department of Personnel.

This examination will consist of two parts:

A. a written multiple-choice examination; and  
B. a qualifying Physical Fitness Test.

A. SUBJECT OF WRITTEN EXAMINATION: 

1. Advising and Interacting with Others – These questions test for the ability to interact with other people in order to gather and present information and to provide assistance and advice in a courteous and professional manner. 

2. Preparing Written Material – These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately, and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order. You must then choose, from four suggestions, the best order for the sentences. 

3. Applying Written Information (Laws, Rules, Regulations, Procedure, Etc.) in Civil Law Enforcement and Court-Related Situations – These questions test how well you can apply written information, in the form of rules, to given situations similar to those typically encountered by civil law enforcement employees, court attendants, and court security officers. All information needed to answer the questions is contained in the rules, regulations, etc., which are cited.

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Candidates can refer to the exam announcement and the Supplemental Information to Examination Announcements and Instructions to Candidates for Completing an Application for Examination or Employment (Supplement "A") for for most questions about completing the application and preparing for the written exam and qualifying physical fitness test.  Any other questions about this examination should be directed to the Rockland County Department of Personnel.