Where do public safety applicants drop out before testing or academy start?

Start with one role and one hiring window

Pick a role, an application deadline and a date for your review. Count each person once per stage, even if they book twice. Keep the same group as it moves through the process. Someone applying this month may test next month.

• Application to test booking. Of the people your hiring team invited to test, how many booked? Review applications still awaiting a decision separately. For an invitation with no booking, check delivery and whether the signup window is still open.
• Booking to attendance. Of those scheduled for a test date, how many checked in? Match names against the roster and record reschedules, withdrawals and unresolved absences separately.
• Seat acceptance to academy start. Of those who accepted a seat for this class, how many checked in on day one? Reconcile deferrals and withdrawals with the academy coordinator.

Worked example: 40 scheduled, 30 checked in

In this fictional hiring cycle, 40 applicants originally booked Saturday’s test and 30 attended. Attendance for that original group was 30 ÷ 40, or 75%. What happened to the other ten?

• Six moved to another test date. Keep their new appointments open and count each applicant once when reporting attendance for the full cycle.
• Two told the recruiter they were withdrawing. Record the date and close their follow-up.
• Two had no check-in or recorded explanation. Ask the test coordinator to confirm the roster before assigning follow-up.

At the review date, two withdrawals are confirmed. Calling all ten withdrawals would hide six upcoming appointments and the two people who may still need help.

Repeat the check when the academy starts

Suppose 12 people accepted seats, nine checked in, two deferred to the next class and one is unaccounted for. Report nine starts for this class. Give the two deferrals a new class date and ask the coordinator to resolve the last record.

At your weekly review, choose one gap to investigate. If several invitees say the booking link expired early, have the hiring office test it and assign someone to correct it. If the reason is unknown, record that and give the next check an owner and a date.

Carry these counts into a monthly recruiting scorecard to report attendance and unresolved records together.

Use the recruiting lead follow-up guide for a handoff example and a missed-appointment message.