Bomb Squad Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Introduction
*NOW OFFERING A $10,000 HIRING BONUS*
Effective August 9, 2020, paid incrementally over 4 years.
THIS IS A NEW CONTINUOUS EXAMINATION. The eligible list resulting from this examination will cancel any existing list and may last approximately one year but can be extended. This examination may be reopened as necessary, and the names of additional candidates merged onto the existing list according to the examination score.
Supplemental Questionnaire: A properly completed Supplemental Questionnaire must be submitted with each application. Failure to submit the Application or Supplemental Questionnaire will result in disqualification.
Applications and Supplemental Questionnaires must be in the possession of the Human Resource Services Department by 5:00 p.m. on the Last Day for Filing. Applications and supplemental questionnaires will only be accepted online.
The filing deadlines for the 2026 testing cycles are as follows:

• Tuesday, August 25, 2026
• Tuesday, September 22, 2026
• Tuesday, October 27, 2026

WOMEN, MINORITIES, AND MILITARY VETERANS ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO APPLY.
Veterans who pass the examination process and provide a DD214 that meets the County's criteria will receive additional points added to their final overall score.
*If you have previously applied or started an application for the Deputy Sheriff's Recruit, Examination #25-8601-01, please contact the examination analyst, Elaine Lemi, at elaine.lemi@acgov.org to reapply. In order to reapply, you must contact the analyst to have your previous application released back to you. DO NOT SUBMIT A DUPLICATE APPLICATION. The scores and dispositions of candidates for this examination will be merged with previous exam participants. If you previously submitted an application and choose to reapply, your new score/disposition will replace your current disposition. If you do not wish to change your score/disposition, you are not required to reapply to this examination. Candidates who received a qualifying score cannot participate in the examination within six (6) months of their disposition notice. Candidates who did not qualify may reapply sixty (60) days from their disposition notice. Candidates who failed any of the exam components (i.e., written, oral exam), may reapply sixty (60) days from the exam date. *
Please read the recruitment announcement in its entirety for important dates and information.
DESCRIPTION
ABOUT THE ALAMEDA COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE
The Alameda County Sheriff's Office is a full-service law enforcement agency accredited through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) for its law enforcement services, its Regional Training Center, and its Dispatch Unit; the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors Laboratory Accreditation Board for its Crime Lab; the Bomb Squad Commanders Advisory Board for its Explosive Ordinance Unit. Additionally, the agency's health care provider, Wellpath, has experience working with the National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC).
The Sheriff's Office has a current budget of approximately $600 million and has over 1600 authorized positions, including in excess of 1000 sworn personnel. The agency's Chief Executive Officer is Sheriff / Coroner Yesenia L. Sanchez, who is assisted in the operation of the agency by Undersheriff April Luckett-Fahimi, Assistant Sheriffs Daniel McNaughton and Pace Stokes.
The Sheriff of Alameda County is responsible for a vast array of tasks and duties, including the following:

• Providing security to the Consolidated Superior Courts
• Operating the Coroner's Bureau
• Operating full-service criminalistics laboratory
• Performing Civil Process
• Operating a County Jail (Santa Rita)
• Operating the County Office of Emergency Services
• Providing patrol and investigative services to the unincorporated areas of Alameda County
• Pursuant to contractual agreements, providing patrol and investigative services to the City of Dublin, Oakland International Airport, Highland County Hospital, Social Services, and to the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District
• Conducting a basic academy pursuant to Police Officer Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) requirements. [Sheriff's Academy website]
• Providing Fish and Game enforcement
• Project Director of the Narcotics Task Force
• Serving as the Executive Director of the Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement (SAFE) Task Force

For more detailed information about the agency, visit: Alameda County's Sheriff's Office.
THE POSITION
Deputy Sheriff Recruit is the entry-level law enforcement position for Alameda County. This classification exists solely for those attending the Sheriff's Office Peace Officers Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) certified Basic Academy.
The Deputy Sheriff Recruit is a classification characterized by assignment to a P.O.S.T. Certified Academy. Under close supervision during this Academy, the Recruit will receive intensive academic instruction in law enforcement combined with rigorous physical fitness training. Upon successful completion of the Academy, recruits will be sworn in as Peace Officers and promoted to Deputy Sheriff I.
For more detailed information about the job classification, visit: Deputy Sheriff's Recruit (#8601).
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
Education:
Graduation from high school or possession of an acceptable equivalency certificate, such as the General Educational Development Certificate (State of California). *
License:
Valid California State Motor Vehicle Operator's License by the time of appointment to Deputy Sheriff I.
Age:
Must be at least 21 years of age at the time of appointment to Deputy Sheriff I.
Citizenship:
Candidates are not required to be a US citizen but must be legally authorized to work in the United States under federal law. (SB 960)
*According to the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST), the minimum education is a United States high school graduation or passage of GED, or other approved equivalency test.
NOTE: The Civil Service Commission may modify the above Minimum Qualifications in the announcement of an examination.
KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
The most suitably qualified candidates will possess the following competencies:
Ability to:

• Read, understand, interpret, and apply complex policies, rules, laws, and ordinances pertaining to law enforcement work.
• Write clear, concise, comprehensive reports.
• Accurately observe and remember names, faces, numbers, and events.
• Establish and maintain effective working relations with others.
• Use good judgment in emergency or critical situations.
• Communicate clearly and concisely, verbally and in writing.
• Perform routine clerical and record-keeping duties.

Special Requirements

• A thorough background investigation and psychological examination will be made of all prospective Deputy Sheriff's Recruits. A record of any felony conviction will result in disqualification.
• Hearing must be normal in each ear.
• Using both eyes must have far vision of at least 20/100 without glasses, correctable to 20/20 with glasses. Must be free from color blindness and permanent abnormality in either eye.
• These standards are confined to far vision and color vision. There are additional standards which may apply to other possible specific visual deficiencies.
• Applicants must be in excellent physical condition with above-average strength, endurance, and agility and must meet California POST-approved safety member physical standards.

EXAMINATION COMPONENTS
***IMPORTANT TESTING INFORMATION - PLEASE READ IN ITS ENTIRETY***
Applicants must complete the POST Entry Level Law Enforcement Test Battery (PELLETB) or the National Testing Network (NTN) Frontline Test. The acceptable pass point for the POST PELLETB is 42. The acceptable pass point for the NTN Frontline Test is 60% Video, 85% Reading, and 80% Writing. Scores should be dated no more than one year ago. Valid PELLETB t-scores or NTN scores must be on the agency's letterhead and reflect the date of the test. Scores must be uploaded under the "resume" tab and submitted along with the application or submitted to the recruitment analyst, Elaine Lemi, at elaine.lemi@acgov.org.
In addition to the PELLETB or NTN, applicants must complete the Physical Abilities Test (PAT). The acceptable pass point for the PAT is 220 when taken with the Alameda County Sheriff's Office. For WSTB PAT scores taken with outside agencies/jurisdictions, the acceptable pass point is 320*. Valid WSTB/PAT scores must be on the agency's letterhead and reflect the date of the test. Scores are valid for one year from the test date. Valid PAT scores must be submitted to the recruitment analyst, Elaine Lemi, at elaine.lemi@acgov.org.
*Updated 2/3/2026
In order to be invited to the oral examination, applicants must submit both a valid t-score or NTN score and PAT score. Failure to submit both scores will prevent applicants from moving forward in the recruitment process.
Applicants who have not taken either the PELLETB and/or PAT exams may take the exam with the Alameda County Sheriff's Office. To view upcoming test dates and register, visit: PELLETB and PAT Test Registration.
Passing scores must be submitted to the recruitment analyst, Elaine Lemi, at elaine.lemi@acgov.org.
THE EXAMINATION WILL CONSIST OF THE FOLLOWING STEPS:

1. A review of applications and supplemental questionnaires to verify possession of minimum requirements. Those applicants who possess the minimum requirements for the class will move on to the next step in the examination process*.
2. An ORAL EXAMINATION which will be weighted as 100% of the applicant's final examination score.
3. A thorough BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION and PSYCHOLOGICAL EXAMINATION will be made of all prospective Deputy Sheriff Recruits. A record of any felony conviction will result in disqualification.

*Applicants must submit a valid PELLETB or NTN score and PAT score in order to move forward in the recruitment process.
CANDIDATES MUST ATTAIN A QUALIFYING RATING ON EACH PORTION OF THIS EXAMINATION
Alameda County utilizes a Civil Service Selection System founded on merit. Such a system is competitive and based on broad recruitment efforts and equal opportunity for qualified applicants to test in an examination process designed to determine the qualifications, fitness and ability of competitors to perform duties of the vacant position. Many of our recruitments are targeted and specific to the needs of a current vacant position, in which case, the eligible list may be exclusively used for that current vacant position. Other recruitments may be more broadly used for both current and future vacancies, or for other alternate jobs with comparable scopes of work.
For more information on the Civil Service Selection process, please visit the "What You Need to Know" section of our website, www.acgov.org/hrs.
Selection Plan
Applicants will be informed via e-mail with reasonable notice in advance of any examination process which will require their attendance. The following dates are tentative and subject to change based on the needs of the Agency:
TENTATIVE SELECTION PLAN - For applications submitted by August 25, 2026, filing deadline.
Deadline for Filing
Continuous
Review of Applications and Supplemental Questionnaires for Minimum Qualifications
Continuous
Oral Boards
Week of September 28, 2026
Continuous: All applications must be completed according to the instructions. Incomplete applications, and resumes in lieu of properly completed applications, will not be considered. Applications and supplemental questionnaires will only be accepted electronically, via the County's online application system by 5pm on the deadline for filing. Please note that completing an application template is not the same as submitting an application for this position. To apply for the position, select the "Click Here to Apply" link on the announcement.
IMPORTANT: Applicants must submit a valid PELLETB or NTN score and PAT score in order to move forward in the recruitment process.
This is a new continuous examination. This examination may be reopened as necessary, and the names of additional candidates merged onto the existing list according to the examination score.
For upcoming academy dates, please visit: ACSO Basic Academy.
Veterans' Preference
Each applicant entitled to veterans' preference as provided in the Alameda County Civil Service Rules who has served in the armed forces of the United States during a war or campaign as defined by Section 1897 of the Government Code of the State of California and who has been discharged or released under honorable conditions and wishes to claim such preference shall do so by presenting proof of his/her honorable discharge (DD214) from the armed forces of the United States, showing the dates of his/her military service. Each applicant entitled to Disabled Veterans' points as provided in the Alameda County Civil Service Rules, who wishes to claim such preference shall additionally present proof of military-connected disability from the United States Veterans Administration.
U.S. military veterans (including applicants already employed by the County of Alameda) intending to claim preferential consideration pursuant to Alameda County Civil Service Rules must present proof of honorable discharge or release (DD Form 214) concurrent with this application but in no event later than the final step in the recruitm