Training
The FBI Academy is the world’s premier learning and research center for law enforcement.
Located in Quantico, Virginia, the FBI Academy is where FBI special agents, intelligence analysts, law enforcement partners, and others receive world-class training, including hands-on, real-life scenarios they will encounter in law enforcement.
Basic Field Training Program
All new FBI special agents and intelligence analysts train together at the FBI Academy. In the Basic Field Training Course (BFTC), new agents and analysts learn the basics of working together in a collaborative approach in one of the FBI’s 56 field offices after they graduate.
New Agent Training
New agents spend more than 800 hours training in academics, case exercises, firearms training, and operation skills. During the approximately 18-week program, new agents learn:
- Academics: Agents learn about ethics, law, behavioral science, investigative techniques, interrogation, forensic science, leadership, and more. As part of this training, they visit the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum to learn what happens when law enforcement loses its core values. They also visit the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial to gain perspective on civil equality.
- Firearms: As carrying a firearm is part of their duties, all new agent trainees learn how to use Bureau-issued firearms. They learn the fundamentals of marksmanship, safety, and practical shooting techniques. New agents spend more than 100 hours practicing with their FBI-issued weapons.
- Operational skills: New agents learn a variety of operational skills, such as tactical driving, physical fitness, physical and electronic surveillance, and conducting operations. At Hogan’s Alley, they learn to investigate cases like bank robberies and kidnappings.
- Case exercises: New agents receive real-life case investigation scenarios to test their skills. They receive a tip and follow that tip through to arrest. The investigations use actors who play criminals in Hogan’s Alley. Trainees also follow intelligence-driven scenarios and learn to present evidence in court.
Becoming an Agent, Part 1
Follow a class of trainees as they spend several months at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, where they’ll learn what it takes to become a special agent.
New Intelligence Analyst Training
New intelligence analysts receive a curriculum consistent with the rest of the U.S. intelligence community. Analysts learn about doctrine and tradecraft, authorities and guidelines, and a respect and appreciation for guidelines and the rule of law.
Ongoing Training
Training doesn’t end when new agents and intelligence analysts get their first office assignments. FBI employees learn throughout their careers. Agents, intelligence analysts, and other employees often return to Quantico for refresher training throughout their careers.
Law Enforcement Training
The FBI provides training for our partners in state, local, federal, tribal, and territorial law enforcement. Law enforcement partners can learn more on our law enforcement site.
Resources
Jobs
The FBI has a wide variety of career paths for individuals from all backgrounds and experiences.
Tactical/Hogan's Alley
We put Hogan’s Alley on the map in 1987 to provide a realistic training environment for our new agents. It’s located on 10-plus acres at our Training Academy in Quantico, Virginia, and we share the mock town with new Drug Enforcement Administration recruits as well as with state…
The FBI Academy: A Pictorial History
In May 1972, today’s FBI Academy—which trains not only Bureau personnel but also law enforcement professionals from around the globe—opened its doors on a sprawling 547-acre campus carved out of the Quantico Marine Corps base in rural Virginia.
