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What is an FTO?

Well, you should already know by now because you should have gone through an FTO program when you hired on the job. You mean you didn’t have an FTO program? You mean they just handed you the keys to the car, a map, and said call me if you have any problems?

Unfortunately, this is all too familiar.
Now what do we mean by Field Training Officer Program? It is simply an on-the-job training program that assists with the on-boarding and training of brand-new officers to the police department. It does this by having the new officers ride every day with a trained trainer called a Field Training Officer or FTO who teaches, mentors, trains, evaluates, councils, facilitates, and leads the new officer until they have proven they are capable of doing the job by themselves. The Field Training Program ensure that every new officer on the department has the skills and training necessary to do the job. Many people look at this as the first step in a police officer’s career, but the reality is it’s the last step in the selection process. There is no better way to ensure that someone can do the job then having them do the job.