For years, the Dallas Police Department has been losing more officers than it hired. By fall 2024, the situation worsened after voters approved a measure requiring the force to maintain at least 4,000 officers — hundreds more than its 2010 peak.

In response, Dallas officials removed the requirement that applicants have college credits, aiming to make it easier to fill vacancies, according to a recent USA Today report.

Dallas isn’t alone. Cities including Chicago, Memphis, Louisville, and New Orleans have made similar moves, part of a national trend toward easing education requirements. The outlet pointed out that a  2017 survey of nearly 1,000 departments found more than 80% require only a high school diploma.

“In a perfect world, would you want police officers to be college educated? Absolutely, but this is where policing is now,” Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum, told USA Today. “There simply is more demand for police officers — for qualified police officers — than there is a supply.”

Research has linked higher education to certain benefits in policing, such as lower rates of force, fewer citizen complaints, and better report writing. But, according to USA Today, some experts note the evidence is not definitive, and easing requirements can make policing more accessible — particularly as college costs climb. 

Since Dallas made the change, applications have come in from people who would have been ineligible before, said department spokesperson Luis Mata. Recruits must still pass civil service, physical, psychological, and medical screenings before entering the 10-month academy.

“I've been asked this question, ‘Does education have any sort of bearing on whether somebody is going to be successful through your academy?’” Mata told the outlet. “And I would say that we have people with master's degrees, bachelor's degrees, and associate’s that fail out of our academy. It’s really about applying yourself.”