Northern Region: 1/18/26, 4/13/26, & 7/20/26
Green Oaks: 10/13/2025, 2/2/26, 4/27/26, & 7/20/26
New officers currently start at $23.45 per hour.
Green Oaks Training & Professional Development Center
8701 East M-36
Whitmore Lake, MI 48189
Northern Region Training Center
5086 W. M-80
Kinross, MI 49788
Monday through Friday, 7:00am – 3:30pm.
Classroom training is eight weeks at the academy, followed by an additional two months of on-the-job training at your assigned facility.
Recruits that live/work more than 50 miles from the academy are given the option for lodging per the state travel regulations. Staying on-site is not a requirement. If not staying overnight mileage MAY be reimbursed per the State of Michigan Travel Regulations.
Academy lodging is provided by the Department at the Green Oaks Training and Professional Development Center Lodge. Each room has two beds, two wardrobes, two study desks and a shared internet app-ready television as well as an in-room bathroom with a shower and two sinks. Additionally, the lodge has a recreation room, a fitness room, a quiet study space, laundry and vending on each floor, and an outdoor patio and basketball court. Lodging at the Northern Region Training Center will be provided through local hotels in Sault Ste. Marie about 15 miles from the training center.
Yes, you will most likely share a room with another recruit. The rooms have two double beds. There are regular room inspections to make sure the rooms remain clean.
The MDOC expects that recruits follow the academy rules, MDOC policies and procedures, and the MDOC employee handbook. Additionally, recruits are expected to be prepared, to be on-time, and to be at work each day with their uniform worn properly. They shall be respectful to training staff and each other, self-disciplined, open to learning, and receptive to constructive criticism that helps them become exceptional officers.
The academy is run with some structure, but it is not considered to be paramilitary. There is no rank structure at the academy. Field Training Officers and academy instructors are here to ensure learning and to prepare recruits for their new career.
Recruits will have morning inspection and rollcall, followed by classroom training, lunch, and then usually physical training or skill development at the end of the day. Training is a mixture of lecture/group-based training and skill-based activities.
Lunch is provided to all recruits. Breakfast and dinner are provided for recruits who are lodging on site.
