The reform will open up new training and development paths. New applicant groups with a high affinity for investigative work and the criminal investigation department can thus be addressed more easily.
Applicants for the 2026 recruitment year already choose one of the areas "Operations" and "Investigations" during the application process. Those who choose "Investigations" will receive a commitment to work in the criminal investigation department and a regional location guarantee in the area of recruitment and training authorities. The focus areas then prepare the students specifically for their later assignments, in particular for the challenges in the criminal investigation department.
Those who work in the criminal investigation department should first get to know the work on the street. For this reason, all new recruits will continue to have a one-year initial assignment in the security service. The subsequent period with the CID will then be at least three years. The almost 300 places per year earmarked for the "Investigations" specialization, as well as the associated regional location and assignment commitments, will be allocated among those interested based on the ranking value.
The 2023 recruitment cohort will choose between "Operations" and "Investigations" in their third, i.e. final, year of study in December 2025. The 2024 and 2025 recruitment cohorts will also be given the opportunity to choose their specialization during their studies. The changes are also necessary due to the upcoming re-accreditation of the "Polizeivollzugsdienst" degree course, but are primarily aimed at strengthening the criminal investigation department in North Rhine-Westphalia. Companies and authorities are increasingly competing for the best "brains" on the job market.
The changes to the course will have an impact on all police authorities. The Ministry of the Interior is accompanying the reform with the working group "Verwendungsoffensive K". It is shaping and supporting the necessary change process.