IN State Police common mistakes
IN State Police · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
On reading comprehension items, selecting an answer that matches the candidate's general knowledge about policing rather than a statement supported by the passage.
Police-candidate material often feels familiar, so the brain fills gaps with prior experience and stops checking the text under time pressure.
What to do instead
Before choosing, point to the sentence or paragraph that supports the option. Eliminate any choice that cannot be tied to specific passage language, even if it sounds operationally true.
Missing scope and qualifier words in the question stem, such as EXCEPT, NOT, primarily, best, or according to the passage, and answering the opposite of what was asked.
Candidates skim for topic words and pattern-match to an answer they remember, especially when the passage is long or the clock is visible.
What to do instead
Circle or underline the qualifier in the stem and rewrite the task in plain words before reading the options. Check every option against that rewritten task, not against the passage topic.
In grammar items, choosing the option that sounds conversational, such as a comma splice, inconsistent tense, or a pronoun with an unclear referent, because it is the most familiar phrasing.
Spoken English habits carry into formal editing tasks, and candidates often rely on what sounds right rather than applying standard written English rules.
What to do instead
Isolate the subject and verb, check punctuation between independent clauses, and verify pronoun reference and tense consistency. Read the full sentence with the chosen option inserted and reject any option that creates a run-on or agreement error.
In percent and rate problems, calculating with the wrong base, reversing old and new values, or adding percentages directly instead of computing the change from the original amount.
Familiar numbers trigger quick arithmetic, and candidates skip the setup step that identifies what the percentage is taken from.
What to do instead
Write the formula and label the base before calculating. For percent change, compute difference divided by original amount; for rate problems, write the units and cancel them. Sanity-check whether the answer should be larger or smaller than the starting value.
Spending too long on one multi-step math or reasoning item, then rushing or blindly guessing the remaining questions in the section.
Perfectionism and the belief that every item must be solved in order cause candidates to lose pacing control.
What to do instead
Use a two-pass plan: answer clear items first, flag hard ones, and return only after completing the section. Set a rough per-item time limit and practice with a timer so flagging becomes automatic.
In conditional reasoning, treating a necessary condition as sufficient, for example concluding that because B happened, A must have happened from the statement if A then B.
Everyday reasoning tolerates loose conditionals, and candidates often reverse the direction of the rule without noticing.
What to do instead
Diagram the conditional in the form if A then B and test the converse and inverse separately. Pay special attention to only if, unless, and no A without B, which often reverse the expected order.
Over-inferring motive, emotion, or unstated facts from a short logical reasoning scenario and choosing an answer that could be true rather than one that must be true.
Candidates with life or police-related experience add context beyond the premises, and answer choices with dramatic explanations feel plausible.
What to do instead
Separate the conclusion from the evidence and restrict yourself to stated premises. Ask whether the choice is proven by the facts given; if it requires an assumption, reject it when the question asks what must be true.
Trying to memorize every visual detail in an observation or memory item, then confusing similar details such as clothing color, hand position, or sequence of events.
Without a scanning schema, candidates encode random details and anxiety reduces working memory.
What to do instead
Use a structured scan: count people, note hands and weapons, clothing, exits, vehicles, and direction of movement, then rehearse the details in chunks. Answer only from what was shown and avoid changing an initial clear memory without a specific reason.
Losing answer-sheet alignment after skipping an item, or missing a select-all-that-apply or choose-the-best instruction because of rushed section transitions.
Skipping creates a numbering gap, and time pressure encourages candidates to start answering before reading the section directions.
What to do instead
Mark skipped items in both the booklet and the answer sheet, verify numbering every five questions, and read the section directions before answering. For select-all items, count the chosen responses against the requirement before moving on.
On situational judgment items, choosing the most punitive, fastest, or most authoritarian response instead of a lawful, proportionate response that addresses safety, communication, and procedure.
Candidates may equate decisiveness with aggression or assume the test rewards a strong enforcement image rather than sound judgment.
What to do instead
Apply a priority order: immediate safety and backup, lawful procedure, de-escalation and clear communication, then documentation and supervisor notification when required. Reject extreme absolutes and options that skip safety or policy steps.