NextGen Public Safety Cohort Information Session - Summer 2026

A Summer Internship with San Francisco's Opportunities for All Program.

Program Overview

What is Public Safety?

Public Safety professionals serve the community and keep San Francisco safe. They include:

• Police officers
• Firefighters
• Paramedics/EMT
• 911 dispatchers
• Deputy Sheriffs
• Park Rangers

What is this NextGen Public Safety internship?

Our goal is to attract the next generation of public safety professionals for San Francisco.

• This summer, we are working in partnership with the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) to give interns a good understanding of what a career as a police officer would be like, and how you can prepare to apply for the police profession.
• Police Officers are one of the most in-demand jobs we need to fill in San Francisco. The City is short at least 400 police officers.
• Working as a police officer is an excellent career path for people who want to serve their community and make it a safe and welcoming city for all San Francisco residents and visitors.
• Choosing police work gives you a career with a great salary and lots of opportunity for career growth. The starting salary of a new San Francisco police officer is over $119,000, plus benefits. This makes the police professional great career choice for someone to earn a good income to support their family.

Partners

The NextGen Public Safety summer internship is a collaborative project between these key partners.

• City College of San Francisco
• Crankstart
• Department of Human Resources
• San Francisco Police Department
• San Francisco Human Rights Commission - Opportunities for All

This internship is for YOU if you've ever wondered...

• How can I make a difference and help my community in a meaningful way?
• What do police officers actually do? Is it exactly like I see on TV?
• What skills do I need to become a police officer?
• What is the application process like? How do I start?
• What if I didn't study Criminal Justice in college? Can I still choose this career path? What if I didn’t go to college?
• What are police officers like in their regular lives? Are they like me?
• Do I have what it takes to become a police officer? How do I get ready?

What will you experience in this internship?

Learn about the variety of police work within SFPD.

• Hear directly from police officers about their career journeys, ask them questions and build mentoring relationships.
• Learn about the Q2 Police Officer application process and how you can prepare; understand why some people don't make it through.
• Observe Police Academy training and learn about expectations for new police recruits. Participate in some training activities at the Police Academy, including physical fitness and scenarios.
• Learn and practice foundational skills to be a strong candidate for the Police Academy, including communication and writing skills.
• Visit different San Francisco neighborhoods: visit the local police stations, meet with community organizations to learn about their resources, and talk to community members about their hopes and concerns for public safety.

*Physical fitness activities will be an important part of the program.

Work locations

• Dept. of Human Resources (DHR):1455 Market Street, 12th Floor
• SFPD Police Academy: 350 Amber Drive
• Community locations throughout the City – announced later

Transportation

• Interns must be able to get to various locations around the City on your own throughout the program. Please plan to drive and/or use public transportation

Application Tips

How to Become a NextGen Public Safety Intern

We will be hiring up to 20 interns. To become a NextGen Public Safety summer intern, you must apply and be selected as a finalist for this cohort. We anticipate a large number of applications, and unfortunately, we will not be able to select everyone who applies.

• Application opens: March 9, 2026. Apply now.
• Application closes: April 3, 2026

Who is eligible to apply?

• You must live or go to school in San Francisco AND/Or have a San Francisco address
• Ages 19 – 24 years old when the program starts on 6/22/26

Employment Information:

If selected, you will be hired through the Opportunities for All program, and you will be paid through their partner agency, JCYC

• Pay: $19.18/hour for June work hours; and $19.61/hour starting July 1, 2026
• Employer: JCYC (fiscal sponsor for the Opportunities for All program)

Program Eligibility

• Answer the eligibility questions honestly
• Share schedule conflicts
• Be sure you can commit to 20 hrs per week

Education

• High School Diploma or GED required
• Select your highest level of education completed
• College is not required

Short Answer Questions

• Share your interests and experiences
• Be thoughtful and specific
• Keep responses to 250 words or less
• Use your own ideas and voice
• Do not use AI

Examples of Skills

Questions 16 and 17 ask you to identify your strongest and weakest skills. Below are examples of different types of skills. You can choose any skills that you relate to.

• Communication
• Time management
• Adaptability
• Problem-solving
• Critical thinking
• Teamwork
• Creativity
• Emotional intelligence
• Self-motivation
• Organization
• Relationship-building
• Empathy
• Reading
• Writing
• Presentation skills
• Active listening
• Public speaking
• Computer literacy (e.g., email, typing, basicsoftware use)
• Note-taking
• Observational skills
• Customer service
• Physical fitness skills
• Mechanical skills

Related Interests and Experience

• Share related activities or experience
• Tell us if you’ve applied to SFPD before
• Let us know how you heard about this program

Consents and Screening Notice

• Review photo/video consent
• Background check acknowledgement
• Then submit your application

Application Tips

• Apply online only
• Submit before the April 3rd deadline
• Draft answers before pasting them on the application
• Be honest and use your own voice
• Do not use AI
• We are excited to learn about you and your experiences!

Selection Process & Timeline

• March: Submit completed application before April 3rd, 5pm.
• April: If you are invited, participate in a 15-minute phone interview.
• Late April: If you are invited, participate in an in-person group activity, short writing sample, and/or group interview (tentatively this may occur at the Police Academy).
• Early May: If you are selected as a finalist, you will receive a Conditional Offer Letter with a deadline to respond.
• Mid-May: If you accept the internship offer, you will go through two background checks with DHR and with SFPD, and you must come in-person to get fingerprinted.
• June: Once you clear the background checks, you will receive a final offer letter! You will then complete the OFA application and employment hiring paperwork with JCYC.
• June 22nd: First day of the internship!

What are we looking for when we select our finalists?

You are an ideal candidate for this program if you are...

• Genuinely interested/curious about public safety work.
• Open to the possibility of beginning the police officer application process within the next year (or sooner).
• Eager to learn, open-minded, and excited about gaining new experiences.
• Committed to serving the community and making a difference.
• Ready to work hard to prepare for a new career and achieve your goals.
• Committed to improving your skills, and willing to practice your writing, public speaking, and communication skills this summer.
• Open to working together with a group of 20 peers all summer.
• Able to fully commit to the entire summer internship schedule and willing to participate in all program activities, including physical fitness activities.

Background Check for Finalists

If you are selected as one of our 20 finalists, you will need to go through two different background checks before we can hire you for this internship:

1. DHR Conviction History background check (LiveScan fingerprinting at City Hall)
2. SFPD light background check: SFPD will review your police records (if any), and consider each situation on a case by case basis.

Opportunities for All

Opportunities for All

• The Opportunities for All initiative connects San Francisco's young people of all backgrounds, ages 13-24, to paid employment, job training, and mentorship opportunities.
• OFA places approximately 1,500 participants into paid summer internship opportunities each summer. The NextGen Public Safetycohort is one of OFA's summer internship opportunities (for those 19-24) this year for 20participants.
• This means you will be considered both a NextGen Public Safety intern and also an OFA summer intern if you are selected for this internship.
• There are 2 separate applications: one with the NextGen Public Safety cohort, and one with OFA.

JCYC Employment Onboarding

• The Japanese Community Youth Council (JCYC) is the Employer of Record for all OFA summer interns. This means JCYC hires the interns and pays them over the summer.
• All NextGen Public Safety summer interns will be considered Opportunities for All interns, hired through JCYC. You will need to complete the OFA application and hiring paperwork with JCYC as you go through background checks, in order to get paid over the summer.
• This also ensures that, if for some unforeseen reason you are NOT selected for the NextGen Public Safety cohort, you will still be considered an OFA applicant and will be in the OFA applicant pool, however, placement into a different internship opportunity is NOT guaranteed.
• JCYC employment onboarding includes...
  • Making an appointment to submit and get support for your work documents
  • Providing a valid ID (California DL OR ID) and birth certificate
  • Providing a Social Security so we can confirm your SSN
  • Filling out W-4 and I9 forms as well as other on-boarding documents

Other Internships through Opportunities for All

To increase your chances of landing a summer internship, we encourage you also to apply for other summer internships through the Opportunities For All program.

The OFA Summer Intern Application is LIVE and the Deadline will be April 10th!

https://www.jcycworkhub.org/programs/ofa

To learn more about the programs and initiatives offered by the San Francisco Human Rights Commission, please go to our website here: https://sf-hrc.org/

Next Steps and Resources

Stay Connected & Apply

• Sign up for the Talent Community to receive updates
• Visit the San Francisco Public Safety Trainee Program webpage
• Begin your application and submit before April 3, 2026 deadline. Apply now.
• Look out for email communication regarding next steps after you submit your application.
• Consider applying for Opportunities for All (OFA) simultaneously
• Reach out to us if you have questions: DHR-PublicSafetyTraineeProgram@sfgov.org
• Visit the Career Center in Room 110 of City Hall if you need help.

Presentation

• Request for a copy of the Information Session presentation.
• Email dhr-publicsafetytraineeprogram@sfgov.org