Basic Law Enforcement Training, Certificate

C55120  

Total credit hours: 37

Basic Law Enforcement Training (BLET) is designed to give students essential skills required for entry-level employment as law enforcement officers with state, county, or municipal governments, or with private enterprise.

This program utilizes State commission-mandated topics and methods of instruction. General subjects include, but are not limited to, criminal, juvenile, civil, traffic, and alcoholic beverage laws; investigative, patrol, custody, and court procedures; emergency responses; and ethics and community relations.

Students must successfully complete and pass all units of study mandated by the North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commission and the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Education and Training Standards Commission to receive a certificate. Students must pass the state comprehensive exam in order to become a sworn law enforcement officer.

Program Director: Mark Sink

Program Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this program, the student should be able to:

1. Model proper law enforcement officer communication and interaction with victims, witnesses, suspects, and the public through real world scenarios. 
2. Apply North Carolina law and appropriate law enforcement procedures in various simulated patrol encounters.
3. Model appropriate investigative techniques while investigating various types of crime scenes and traffic crash scenes collaboratively in small teams.
4. Demonstrate proper techniques of firearm qualification, law enforcement driving, compliance and control techniques, and physical training.

Program Requirements

The requirements for admission into a BLET course are:

• Must be a citizen of the United States.
• Must be 20 years of age.
• Priority admission is given to individuals holding full‑time employment with criminal justice agencies.
• Must provide to the School Director a medical examination report, properly completed by a physician licensed to practice medicine in North Carolina, a physician’s assistant, or a nurse practitioner, to determine the individual’s fitness to perform the essential job functions of a criminal justice officer.
• Must have a high school diploma or GED. High school diplomas earned through correspondence enrollment are not recognized toward the educational requirements.
• Must take a standardized reading comprehension test and score at the tenth-grade level or higher within one year prior to entrance into Basic Law Enforcement Training.
• Must provide to the School Director a certified criminal record check for local and state records for the time period since the trainee has become an adult and from all locations where the trainee has resided since becoming an adult. An Administrative Office of the Courts criminal record check or a comparable out-of-state criminal record check will satisfy this requirement.
• Must have not been convicted of any of a felony or:
  • a crime for which the punishment could have been imprisonment for more than two years; or
  • a crime or unlawful act defined as a “Class B misdemeanor” within the five year period prior to the date of application for employment unless the individual intends to seek certification through the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Education and Training Standards Commission; or
  • four or more crimes or unlawful acts defined as “Class B Misdemeanors” regardless of the date of conviction; or
  • four or more crimes or unlawful acts defined as “Class A Misdemeanors” except the trainee may be enrolled if the last conviction occurred more than two years prior to the date of enrollment; or
  • a combination of four or more “Class A Misdemeanors” or “Class B Misdemeanors” regardless of the date of conviction unless the individual intends to seek certification through the North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commission

Every individual who is admitted as a trainee in a presentation of the Basic Law Enforcement Training Course shall notify the School Director of all criminal offenses which the trainee is arrested for or charged with, pleads no contest to, pleads guilty to or is found guilty of, and notify the School Director of all Domestic Violence Orders (G.S. 50B) which are issued by a judicial official and which provide an opportunity for both parties to be present. The notifications must be received by the School Director as soon as practicable or within 30 days of the date the case was disposed of in court whichever is sooner.

Additional Admission Requirements

The following are additional admissions criteria for applicants to the Basic Law Enforcement Training (BLET) program. Applicants for admission to the BLET Program must:

1. Have completed and submitted to the Admissions Office a college application for admission.
2. Have completed the BLET program’s application process and submitted all required documentation..
3. Be sponsored for Basic Law Enforcement Training by a Law Enforcement Agency. NOTE: Sponsorship must be retained throughout the BLET program for the student to remain enrolled and can’t be changed to another agency if the student is employed by an agency.
4. Priority admission is given to individuals holding full‑time employment with criminal justice agencies.
5. Be interviewed by the Director of the BLET Program, or the appropriate academic administrator, or their designee.
6. Have signed and submitted the BLET Certificate of Understanding and agree to follow all BLET Rules and Code of Conduct.
7. Possess and maintain a valid North Carolina driver’s license.

NOTE: Meeting all admission requirements does not guarantee placement into the BLET program.

Special legal requirements exist which may limit the ability of an individual to obtain pre-employment experience, employment, or licensure in this field. Prospective students should obtain additional information from a BLET Program Director or Coordinator prior to seeking admission.

Students enrolled in Basic Law Enforcement Training must agree and adhere to supplemental Student Code of Conduct specific to the program.

Students who have successfully completed Basic Law Enforcement Training will receive up to19 semester hours of credit toward the Associate in Applied Science degree in Criminal Justice at Davidson-Davie for successful completion of BLET in NC that started prior to January 1, 2025 or 34 semester hours of credit toward the Associate in Applied Science degree in Criminal Justice at Davidson-Davie for successful completion of BLET in NC that started on or after January 1, 2025.

Technical Standards

In addition to Davidson-Davie requirements and course objectives, there are technical standards that encompass communication, motor skills, sensory and cognitive ability, and professional conduct that are essential for the competent study and practice of Basic Law Enforcement. These technical standards are available from the academic advisor or the director for BLET. Basic Law Enforcement Training Technical Standards (PDF opens in new window)