Law Enforcement Training

The Training Division offers a wealth of training opportunities in support of the FBI’s mission to provide leadership and criminal justice services to federal, state, municipal, and international agencies and partners. Training coordinators are available in each field office to help develop solutions to our partners’ training needs. Below is a list of formal training opportunities open to law enforcement. If interested, please contact the training coordinator at the FBI field office nearest you. International law enforcement agencies should contact their closest FBI legal attaché office.

Leadership Training

National Academy: A professional course of study for leaders and managers of state and local police, sheriffs’ departments, military police organizations, and federal law enforcement agencies from the U.S. and more than 150 partner nations. Participation is by invitation only through a nomination process. During each session, approximately 250 students take undergraduate or graduate courses in the following areas: behavioral science, forensic science, terrorism, leadership development, communications, and health and fitness.

National Executive Institute (NEI): Described as the “Director’s own program” and the crown jewel of the FBI’s executive training initiatives, the NEI was established in August 1975 when FBI Director Clarence Kelley tasked the FBI Academy with developing a proposal for a law enforcement executive training program. Topical areas selected for the program, which now trains domestic and international law enforcement leaders, included: national and international political, economic, and social trends affecting the policing function; ethics and integrity; the effects of affirmative action on hiring and promotional policies; media relations; labor relations; the future structure of police organizations; financing of police operations; training and legal issues; and the impact of criminal activity on policing. During most of its 36 years, each session of the NEI has been three one-week cycles, usually held in March, July, and September. Nominations for new participants are solicited annually by the Training Division through our local FBI offices and overseas legal attaché offices.

Law Enforcement Executive Development Seminars (LEEDS): A two-week program designed for chief executive officers of the nation’s mid-sized law enforcement agencies—those having between 50 and 499 sworn officers and serving a population of 50,000 or more. Executives are provided instruction and facilitation in the areas of leadership, strategic planning, legal issues, labor relations, media relations, social issues, and police programs. Participants have the opportunity to exchange plans, problems, and solutions with their peers, develop new thoughts and ideas, and share successes.

Law Enforcement Instructor School (LEIS): An intense 40-hour practical, skill-oriented course designed to provide fundamentals in adult instruction and curriculum design. State and local law enforcement attendees participants learn and practice a variety of teaching strategies to deliver effective instruction. Participants incorporate different instructional methodologies for effective delivery to a variety of audiences in different learning environments, and engage in public speaking exercises to hone their presentation skills. The LEIS has been aligned to meet POST (Police Officer Standards and Training) Commission instructor certification requirements in many states throughout the U.S.

Leadership Fellows Program: Through this program, senior police managers and executives from around the world are offered the opportunity to enhance their leadership skills by teaching, networking with staff and students, addressing leadership issues in their sponsoring agencies, attending a variety of courses, and developing a blueprint for personal growth. The first six months of the program is in full residency where fellows work closely with Center for Police Leadership & Ethics (CPLE) instructors to develop and instruct leadership curricula, address challenges or prospective issues in their host agencies having a beneficial impact upon their return, and attend leadership development courses in accordance with their individual development plans. The second six months consists of fellows continuing to support the CPLE instructional mission domestically and internationally while serving as adjunct instructors and providing instruction in accordance with CPLE needs.

Other Training Opportunities

Active Shooter Program: After the Newtown shooting in December 2012, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the FBI were specifically tasked by a White House working group with training law enforcement and other first responders to ensure that protocols for responding to active shooter initiatives are consistent across the country. With DOJ and its Bureau of Justice Assistance, we work with the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) program for first-responding officers. ALERRT has trained more than 40,000 law enforcement first responders, and FBI tactical instructors are cross-trained as ALERRT instructors to assist with ALERRT training throughout the nation. FBI field offices also host two-day active shooter conferences with senior state, local, tribal, and campus law enforcement executives. These conferences are followed by tabletop exercises with other first responders.

Firearms Training: The Training Division delivers a comprehensive and consistent firearms training curriculum that provides new agent trainees, special agents, and police officers the skills needed to safely and effectively use firearms, if necessary, while performing their duties. The experienced firearms training instructors assigned to the division also offer certification and recertification training to all FBI firearms instructors who provide training to agents in the field and support our state and local law enforcement partners.

Law Enforcement Bulletin (LEB): An FBI/Department of Justice publication available on the FBI’s public website that provides a forum for the exchange of information on law enforcement-related topics. The LEB solicits articles written by nationally recognized authors and experts in the criminal justice field and delivers relevant, contemporary information on a broad range of law enforcement issues. Its audience includes criminal justice professionals, primarily law enforcement managers, but is also widely considered a valuable training tool at all levels.

Virtual Academy for Law Enforcement: A web-based means of accessing and acquiring the essential knowledge, skills, and competencies (through relevant and consistent training and materials) needed to support the worldwide criminal justice community. Thousands of training topics are available through the Virtual Academy; all that is required to access them is agency registration on the Virtual Academy website.