Become a Police Officer and earn while you learn  

With a starting salary of over £40k, become a police constable and start a career where you can make a real difference.

Join the Metropolitan Police Service as a Police Constable (PC) on our Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship (PCDA) pathway and start a career unlike any other, in one of the most diverse cities in the world and help keep Londoners safe.

We offer a varied and rewarding career with excellent pay, benefits, development and opportunities for progression. Right from the start, you’ll be playing a vital role in helping to protect Londoners.

Change Needs You

As a PC, you’ll have the opportunity to make a positive difference to the lives of Londoners every day. The role of an officer is much more than blue lights and fast cars. You’ll build relationships with local communities, support victims and keep people safe.

The Met is working hard to restore Londoners trust and confidence, reduce crime and maintain high standards. To do this we recognise the need to change. Whilst that change takes time, we want people like you to join and help to make a big difference.

We’re building ‘A New Met for London’ where communities know their local officers, help to shape their policing priorities, and work with them to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour; and when victims call us for help, they’re satisfied with our response.

We’ve reset our values and guiding principles on how we want our people to be, how we want them to behave and the culture we want to build.

We’re looking for people who share our values of integrity, courage, accountability, respect and empathy who are committed to working hard to bring offenders to justice, protect vulnerable people and deliver the change needed for London and its communities.

Change your potential  

Policing is a challenging but rewarding career like no other. With your determination, we will help you reach your full potential as a Met police officer to be the best you can be for yourself, your community and London.

As a police constable in London’s Met, you’ll join over 30,000 colleagues working across 32 boroughs, dedicated to serving over nine million residents. Every day brings a fresh challenge, the chance to learn something new and help others.

Become a police officer, unlock your potential, support London’s communities and help make London a safer city for all.

PCDA route 

Our Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship (PCDA) means you can earn as you learn, gaining a (BSc) Hons degree in Professional Policing Practice. The Met covers all qualification fees so there’s no cost to you, it’s all fully funded.  

It’s a three-year programme, which combines learning with policing London’s streets. The three years count as your probation. On successful completion, you graduate from both the degree and probation.  

The starting salary is over £40,766. On successful completion, you’ll earn £45,828. All salaries include allowances. 

To join the PCDA Route you’ll need to have the following:  

• Level 2 qualification in English language and Maths at a GCSE grade C or above, or grades 4 to 9. Whilst you don’t need GCSE Maths to apply, if you don’t have this you’ll need to take it during your PCDA.  

• We’ll also consider an English language equivalent overseas qualification.  

 

You must also hold, or be working towards:  

• 64 UCAS points (visit UCAS tariff calculator)  

• An academic or vocational qualification gained outside England and Wales, which is considered by the UK National Recognition Information Centre to be equivalent to 64 UCAS points  

Who we are looking for

London is one of the most diverse cities in the world. That’s why in the Met we welcome applications from people from all backgrounds who are committed to making a difference for the communities we serve. You can come and join the thousands of dedicated, honest, committed, hard-working officers and staff in our team.   

We are looking for people who share our values of integrity, courage, accountability, respect and empathy. And who share our high standards of behaviour.  

Policing is a 24-hour job and that means once you join you’ll need to work shifts, including through the night and at weekends.  

You’ll also need to meet our standard eligibility criteria:  

• Age: You can apply at 17 but will need to be 18 to join us.  

• Criminal convictions: Ideally, you shouldn’t have a criminal conviction or cautions record. If you do have one, it will depend on the age and nature of the offence. We assess this as part of vetting. If you are in any doubt about whether to tell us something, disclose the information. If you don’t tell us about something your application may be refused simply as you weren’t up front.  

• Fitness: You don’t need to be an Olympic athlete but you do need to be fit and healthy to cope with the demands of the job.  

• Nationality and residency: If you’re not from the UK, you must be a resident in the UK. You must also be free from restrictions with indefinite leave to remain. If you’re from the UK you’ll need to have lived in the UK for the last 3 years unless you’ve been serving with the Armed Forces.  

• Tattoos: If you’ve got a tattoo, you’ll need to tell us about it when you apply. Sometimes we’ll tell you to cover some tattoos for policing events, such as state funerals or ceremonial duties.  

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