CSO HIRING PROCESS

To be considered for a Community Service Officer (CSO) position, each applicant must first submit an employment application.

The CSO hiring process consists of three steps:

The Application
The Oral Interview
The Background/Reference Checks

All three steps are completed before the final hiring decisions are made.  However, applicants may be rejected during any of the three phases due to unsatisfactory qualifications.

I.     The Application
The application is scored utilizing a standardized point scale in which certain general requirements must be met.

The general requirements include:

• Being a currently enrolled full-time UCLA student  (UCLA Extension students do not qualify).
• Having at least one academic year remaining at UCLA.
• Having a current GPA of at least 2.0 (use your high school GPA if you do not have a UCLA GPA at this point).
• Having a valid Class C driver's license.
• The ability to work a minimum of 15 hours per week.
• Completing the attached essay.

Additional points are awarded based on the applicant's hours commitment and flexibility, work history, related job experience, current certifications, and attached letters of recommendation.  Adequate points qualify applicants for the next phase of the hiring process, the oral interview.  Please note that it takes one to two weeks after turning in the application to receive notification of your application status.  Immediate disqualification will occur if you are employed with another department at UCLA and you intend to continue working at that department while employed at the CSO Programs.  However, dual employment with the CSO Programs and ASUCLA is permitted.   You may click here or go to the bottom of this page to download a UCLA Application form.

II.     The Oral Interview
The oral interview is formal, and is scored on a standardized point scale.  The applicant is rated on problem solving skills, communication skills, public relations skills, and other general requirements.  An interview board asks various questions and poses a hypothetical situation designed to test the above mentioned skills and basic qualifications.

III.    The Background and Reference Checks
The final phase of the hiring process consists of a background investigation and reference checks.  A minimum of two former employers will be contacted, thus it is very important to be extremely accurate when providing work history information on the application.  The inability to contact former employers greatly delays the hiring process.  If you know that a specific employer cannot be contacted, you may attach or submit a letter of reference from that employer to speed up the process.

Available positions will be offered to the most qualified applicants based on the number of points attained in the oral interview, the background investigation, and reference checks.  Overall, the hiring process takes about two to three weeks to complete.  Newly hired CSOs undergo an intensive two week training program, after which they are placed on probationary status pending completion of specific requirements.

For more information please follow the links below:

 
Duties you will perform as a Community Service Officer

Frequently Asked Questions about being a CSO

If you still have unanswered questions, contact the Hiring Supervisor at (310)825-2148 during normal business hours or email to receive a response via email.

The UCLA Employment Application Form:

To apply for employment at the CSO Programs, click here to view and fill out the form. Once you have completed the form, print and deliver it to the CSO Programs Office at the UCLA Police Department, 601 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles. If you would like a hard copy of the form or need further information, contact us at (310) 825-4774.