Unit 4: Selection and Crime Scene Process

The Application

The application form or resume is one of the most important sources of information about the candidate. It will be used to determine the candidate’s eligibility, it will be used again to provide much of the material for the oral interview, and it will provide the information used to conduct the background information. The application form or resume will include: personnel data, marital status, educational background, military service, employment record, financial history, foreign travel, criminal and juvenile record, motor vehicle record, family background, references, and willingness to undergo a polygraph examination.

For many years, federal agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), required the applicant to fill out a lengthy application which was time consuming and costly to review. Often it would be determined that the applicant lacked some basic requirement, such as minimum age or education. Now, the FBI requires that applicants complete a shorter, preliminary application, which is less time consuming to complete and review, but which covers many of the requirements that might disqualify an applicant.