Florida Criminal Justice Basic Abilities Test · overview

CJBAT test: Florida's Basic Abilities Test

The CJBAT is the test you pass before you can enter a Florida basic recruit academy, whether the academy trains police officers, deputies or correctional officers. It is 97 items of multiple choice in 1 hour 30 minutes, split into three separately timed sections and taken at a Pearson VUE center in Florida. Below: what each section measures, the two-part passing rule, who can skip the test, and 5 questions to try.

97questions in three timed sections
1 h 30 mintotal testing time
$39per attempt
4 yearsa pass stays valid

5 sample questions from Section III

0 of 5 answered · 0 correct

Question 1 of 5 · Deductive ReasoningNot answered

Cannabis possession. Possession of 20 grams or less of cannabis is a misdemeanor of the first degree. Possession of more than 20 grams is a felony of the third degree. Amounts in separate containers possessed by the same person at the same time are added together. Cannabis in a shared area of a vehicle is charged to a person only if he or she knew of it and had control over it. Cannabis found on another occupant's person is charged only to that occupant.

Officer Reyes stops a car driven by Omar Hill. Hill has a bag of 12 grams of cannabis in his jacket pocket, and a 6-gram bag is in the center console, which Hill admits is his. The passenger, Tina Ford, has a 5-gram bag in her purse and says it belongs to her. How should Hill be charged?

Answer explanations

Correct: The bags add up to 18 grams, under the 20-gram line, so it is a misdemeanor of the first degree.

Incorrect: Hill admitted the console bag was his, which shows knowledge and control.

Incorrect: A felony needs more than 20 grams, and Hill's total is 18.

Incorrect: Bags held at the same time are added into one amount, not charged one by one.

Question 2 of 5 · Deductive ReasoningNot answered

Concealed weapon exemption (department summary for this exercise). The prohibition on carrying a concealed weapon without a license does not apply to a person in his or her own home or place of business. For this purpose, "home" includes the dwelling and any yard enclosed within the property's own fence, but not common areas shared with other units, such as an apartment hallway, pool or parking lot. "Place of business" applies only to the owner or the person in charge of the business, not to an employee.

Deputy Cruz encounters four unlicensed people, each carrying a concealed pistol. Ana is standing on the front lawn of her house, inside her own fence. Ben is standing in the shared parking lot of his apartment complex. Cal is working as a cashier at the hardware store where he is employed. Dee is visiting inside a friend's house. Based on the summary, which person falls within the exemption?

Answer explanations

Incorrect: Cal is a cashier, and the business exemption covers only the owner or person in charge, not an employee.

Incorrect: The exemption covers a person's own home, not a friend's.

Incorrect: A shared apartment parking lot is excluded from "home."

Correct: "Home" includes a yard inside the property's own fence, so her fenced lawn counts.

Question 3 of 5 · Written ComprehensionNot answered

Read the following training notice and answer the question: 'MANDATORY TRAINING NOTICE: All certified officers must complete the following courses before December 31, 2023: 1) Human Trafficking Awareness (4 hours); 2) De-escalation Techniques (8 hours); 3) Implicit Bias (4 hours); and 4) Crisis Intervention for Mental Health (8 hours). Courses may be taken through the online learning portal or at scheduled in-person sessions. Officers who have not completed all four courses by the deadline will be placed on administrative duty until the requirements are met. Certificates of completion must be submitted to the Training Division.'

According to the notice, which statement is accurate?

Answer explanations

Incorrect: Courses may be taken online or in person; neither is required.

Correct: Officers who miss the December 31 deadline go on administrative duty until they finish.

Incorrect: Certificates go to the Training Division, not to supervisors.

Incorrect: The notice threatens administrative duty, not loss of certification.

Question 4 of 5 · Written ExpressionNot answered

Which word in the following sentence is spelled incorrectly? "The sergent on duty approved the overtime request and assigned two additional deputies to the checkpoint."

Answer explanations

Incorrect: "Additional" is spelled correctly, with a double d.

Incorrect: "Approved" is spelled correctly.

Correct: "sergent" drops the "a" after "serge"; the right spelling is "sergeant."

Incorrect: "Checkpoint" is spelled correctly.

Question 5 of 5 · Written ExpressionNot answered

Which of the following sentences is punctuated correctly?

Answer explanations

Incorrect: In "opened, the trunk" the comma cuts the verb off from its object.

Incorrect: The semicolon in "trunk; he" needs a full sentence on both sides, and the opening clause is not one.

Correct: The comma in "trunk, he" closes the opening clause, and nothing else is needed.

Incorrect: In "found, two" the comma splits the verb from its object, and the opening clause gets no comma.

Answer every question to see your score

Ours are text only. The memorization questions on this site work from a written scene, while the real Section II shows you pictures. The practice test has the rest of the set, with a filter for each ability.

What the three sections measure

Section I, behavioral attributes: 47 items that ask how you tend to act and work. There is no answer key in the usual sense, and a failing report doesn't show this section, but it is part of the overall score. More in the study guide.
Section II, memorization: 10 items. You study a picture of a scene, it goes away, and you answer questions about what was in it.
Section III: 40 items on four abilities: written comprehension, written expression, deductive reasoning and inductive reasoning. The handbook doesn't say how the questions split among the four.

Timing by section: Section I 20 minutes; Section II 1 minute per picture plus 1½ minutes for its questions; Section III 1 hour. Unscored field-test questions are mixed in and not marked, so treat every question as if it counts.

Key facts

Checked Oct 21, 2026 against each source linked in the table. More on each row: exam facts and cost.
Fact	Detail	Source	Checked
Run by	Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission	Florida Administrative Code R. 11B-35.0011 (Basic Abilities Test) · Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025)	Oct 21, 2026
Also called	Florida Basic Abilities Test (BAT); it replaced the older FBAT in August 2019	Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025) · Miami Dade College Testing: FBAT	Oct 21, 2026
Who uses it	Required before entering any Commission-certified basic recruit training program in Florida, law enforcement or corrections	Florida Administrative Code R. 11B-35.0011 (Basic Abilities Test) · Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025)	Oct 21, 2026
Versions	Two disciplines: CJBATLEO (law enforcement officer) and CJBATCO (correctional officer)	Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025)	Oct 21, 2026
Sections	Section I behavioral attributes; Section II memorization; Section III written comprehension, written expression, deductive and inductive reasoning	Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025) · Pearson VUE: CJBAT exam description	Oct 21, 2026
Questions	97 items47 behavioral, 10 memorization, 40 in Section III; the exam also contains unscored field-test items	Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025) · Pearson VUE: CJBAT exam description	Oct 21, 2026
Testing time	1 hour 30 minutesSection I 20 minutes; Section II 1 minute per picture plus 1½ minutes for its questions; Section III 1 hour	Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025)	Oct 21, 2026
Where you test	Pearson VUE test centers in Florida only	Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025) · Florida Administrative Code R. 11B-35.0011 (Basic Abilities Test)	Oct 21, 2026
How it is scored	Pass/fail only; no score number is given to candidates, academies or agenciesa grade and diagnostic information on a failing report, with a bar graph for Sections II and III	Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025)	Oct 21, 2026
Passing score	A score of 70 or higher across all three sections, plus at least 30 of the 50 Section II and III questions correctthe handbook describes the 70 as a score across all three sections, not a percentage correct	Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025) · Pearson VUE: CJBAT exam description	Oct 21, 2026
Test fee	$39 per attempt, paid by card when you book; non-refundable	Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025)	Oct 21, 2026
Retake rule	At most 3 attempts per discipline in any 12 months; book a retake 24 hours after a fail and pay the fee again	Florida Administrative Code R. 11B-35.0011 (Basic Abilities Test) · Pearson VUE: FDLE Basic Abilities Test candidate handbook (August 2025)	Oct 21, 2026
Score valid for	4 years from the test date	Florida Administrative Code R. 11B-35.0011 (Basic Abilities Test)	Oct 21, 2026
Who can skip the test	Veterans and holders of an associate degree or higher need not take the BAT before a law enforcement academy; there is no exemption for correctionsthe degree exemption applies to applications on or after July 1, 2022	Florida Administrative Code R. 11B-35.0011 (Basic Abilities Test)	Oct 21, 2026

Myth: you need 70% of the questions right

The passing rule has two parts. A score of 70 or higher across all three sections, plus at least 30 of the 50 Section II and III questions correct. Note that the handbook describes the 70 as a score across all three sections, not a percentage correct. The result is pass/fail: no score number goes to you, the academy or an agency. Sites that say "answer 70% of the questions correctly" have flattened two conditions into one the handbook doesn't contain.

Two versions: law enforcement and corrections

Two disciplines: CJBATLEO (law enforcement officer) and CJBATCO (correctional officer). You pick the discipline when you book, and each costs $39. Per the candidate handbook, the law enforcement version is mostly set in police work such as collecting evidence or writing citations, and the corrections version mostly inside jails and prisons. Neither expects you to know law or procedure: you answer only from what the question gives you.

The retake limit counts per discipline, and the degree and veteran exemption covers only the law enforcement side. The corrections version has its own page.

Formerly the FBAT

If an older guide or a recruiter says FBAT, they mean the old test. The CJBAT replaced the older FBAT, which was last given on August 14, 2019. The Pearson VUE handbook calls the current test the Basic Abilities Test (BAT); it is developed by Industrial/Organizational Solutions, Inc. (IOS) and delivered by Pearson VUE. Study material written for the FBAT can still help with reading and grammar, but check its section list against the one above.

Where the BAT fits in a Florida career

Pass the BAT for the discipline you're aiming at, or qualify for the exemption, which covers law enforcement academies only.
Enter a basic recruit academy within 4 years of the test date, which is how long a pass stays valid.
Pass the State Officer Certification Exam (SOCE) after the academy. That is a separate exam you become eligible for through basic recruit training, so don't confuse the two.
Clear the hiring agency's own steps. The BAT gets you into an academy, not into a job, and an agency can add its own written test: Orlando PD uses FrontLine as its civil service exam.

The state-level rules, sourced, are on the Florida page. For departments in other states, see which test each department uses.

BAT practice on your phone

CJBAT practice app

More CJBAT practice questions with explanations, in a study app. Not affiliated with FDLE.

Get the practice app Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play

Florida and department pages

Florida Florida: the CJBAT before the academy, the SOCE after it

Other police written tests

PELLETB The four sub-tests, T-scores, the 30-day retest rule and who takes the score
FrontLine National The three sections, who sets the pass mark, retakes and where it is used
NPOST What the four sections test, who uses it and who sets the pass mark

CJBAT, quick answers

What does a BAT test for?

The minimum abilities Florida's Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission set for academy entry: written comprehension, written expression, memorization, deductive and inductive reasoning, plus behavioral attributes. It doesn't test law, procedure or fitness.

Is the CJBAT the same as the FBAT?

No. The CJBAT replaced the older FBAT, which was last given on August 14, 2019. People still search for FBAT, but the test you book now is the CJBAT, through Pearson VUE.

Do I have to take the CJBAT if I'm a veteran or have a degree?

Not for a law enforcement academy. Veterans and holders of an associate degree or higher need not take the BAT before a law enforcement academy; there is no exemption for corrections. Note that the degree exemption applies to applications on or after July 1, 2022. Exemption details.

Is the CJBAT the same as the SOCE?

No. The BAT comes before the academy. The State Officer Certification Exam (SOCE) is the state certification exam you take after it, with different content and its own rules.