ALBANY, N.Y. -- For some college students, preparing for life after school means planning ahead. And for those searching for a career, the NYPD hopes holding open exams upstate, new recruits will find their way downstate. The test is free.

“We shouldn't be limiting ourselves to just recruiting in New York City. We travel across New York State and what we do is we go to towns that have a lot of colleges, such as Syracuse Buffalo and Albany we hit all the community colleges,” said Lt. Glenn DiResto, NYPD recruiter.

To be hired at the NYPD you have at least 60 college credits or have two years of active military experience. But to take the test you only have to be between the ages of 17-and-a-half and 34.
And you can get the prep kit online.

For many students, it is their ticket to a career back home downstate. But for an upstate native, it's a new horizon.

“I'm thinking about it and it's exciting,” said Emmanuel Adomfeh from Clifton Park.

“People that are not from the city, at first they may think they'd be intimidated, but once they go through the academy, they get trained, and once the training comes in and you get put out on the street, all you have to do is be a people person and you'll acclimate very well to the position of police officer,” said DiResto.

While the starting salary is lower than many upstate departments, the job opportunities are greater. After all, if the NYPD alone were a town, it would be the size of Ithaca.

“At the high end we higher 3,000 a year. At the low end we higher 2,000 a year,” DiResto said.

The exam is Saturday at UAlbany. It's free of charge and once you take it you can hold off the hiring process for four years. To find out more about the test call 1-212-RECRUIT.