Prison officer : Entry requirements

A degree is only essential for entry on to the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) Graduate Programme . For further details, see below.

To become a prison officer:

• you must pass an entrance test (Prison Officer Selection Test), irrespective of any academic qualifications you hold. In Scotland, candidates also need five Standard Grades (1-3) including mathematics or arithmetic and English, or equivalent, or experience within a people-facing role.
• you must be capable of undergoing some physical exertion. As part of the recruitment process, you are required to pass a medical examination and fitness test. If your vision is corrected, it must meet Snellen 6/12 or better on each eye. (HM Prison Service  operates a guaranteed interview scheme for disabled people, as defined by the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, who meet the minimum criteria for entry.)
• you must be a British or Commonwealth citizen, a British Protected Person, a European Union (EU) national or a national of Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein or Switzerland. Some family members of EU nationals, who are not themselves EU citizens, may also qualify. You must be free from immigration control and have indefinite leave to remain in the United Kingdom. For some posts, you may need to have been resident in the United Kingdom for at least three years.

In addition, you must not be an undischarged bankrupt or belong to a group or organisation that the Prison Service considers racist. Appointed prison officers must be aged between 18 and 62 (63 in Scotland).

The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) Graduate Programme in England and Wales is designed to attract high-calibre candidates who have the potential to develop quickly and to rise to the highest levels in the service. (There is no such scheme in Scotland.) Recruitment to the scheme is challenging, with only around 20 to 25 graduates recruited each year. Applications are invited each autumn, with places offered by April. If candidates pass the application form stage, they are invited to complete a series of ability tests. Those successful at that stage are invited to a two-day assessment centre with aptitude tests, practical exercises and personal interviews.

NOMS for in-service staff is open to serving prison officers who have been identified by their manager as demonstrating passion, commitment and ability as officers. Selection procedures and organisation of the scheme are identical to those for graduates. Applicants for the in-service scheme do need to have a degree.

All candidates need to show evidence of the following:

• strong interpersonal skills, including assertiveness and self-motivation;
• an aptitude for responsibility;
• leadership potential;
• the ability to learn from others;
• integrity and a commitment to working with social issues;
• organisational skills;
• excellent communication and people skills;
• the ability to work well in a team;
• an awareness of how prisons fit within the wider criminal justice system and the community in general.

For more information, see work experience and internships and search courses and research.