The fastest way to certify a whole crew of Texas security officers is to train them as one group on one enrollment: every officer works through the online courses at their own pace, then the group finishes the in-person portions together, either at your facility or at our range in Longview. One invoice covers everyone, one roster sets everyone up, and you watch progress from a single manager login instead of chasing officers one at a time.
That sounds obvious. In practice, most security companies still certify officers the slow way, and it costs them weeks of billable time on every new hire.
Why does certifying officers one at a time take so long?
Because every step waits on the one before it, and every officer waits on their own calendar. A typical new hire signs up for Level 2, finishes it when they get around to it, then hunts for a Level 3 class with an open seat, then waits for a range date, then starts over for OC or Level 4. Multiply that by six or eight officers and your operations manager is running a scheduling business on the side.
The real cost is not the class fees. It is the officer you hired three weeks ago who still cannot be posted to the armed contract you hired them for.
What training does an armed Texas security officer actually need?
The Texas Administrative Code sets the ladder. Under 37 TAC §35.141(a):
- Level 2 is required for every applicant for a noncommissioned security officer license and for a security officer commission (§35.141(a)(1)).
- Level 3 is required for a security officer commission and for a personal protection officer license, and it must be taught by a DPS-approved school and a DPS-approved instructor (§35.141(a)(2)).
- Level 4 is required for a personal protection officer license and runs a minimum of fifteen classroom hours (§35.141(a)(3)).
So an officer who will carry a firearm on a commercial post needs Level 2 and Level 3 at minimum. An officer you want available for executive protection or personal protection work also needs Level 4. Most companies add OC Pepper Spray certification on top, because clients and site policies increasingly expect documented less-lethal training.
How does group training cut the timeline?
Group training removes the waiting between steps. Here is how a booking runs with ETXSTA:
- Request pricing. Tell us how many officers and which courses on the group training page. Most requests are invoiced the moment the form is submitted.
- Pay one invoice. It covers every officer, in advance. Nobody on your roster pays anything themselves.
- Send one roster. Each officer gets an account and login by email automatically, already enrolled. Nobody has to sign themselves up.
- Officers finish the online portions. Level 2, the online part of Level 3 and the online part of OC are self-paced, so officers can work through them between shifts.
- Book the in-person sessions. Once your roster is through the online work, the group completes the firearms qualification, the OC practical and Level 4 in person, on dates booked for the whole roster, at your site or in Longview.
Payment and scheduling are deliberately separate. You are not forced to pick a range date at checkout for a class your officers are not ready for yet, which is the single biggest cause of reschedules.
What is the Security Career Fastrack?
The Security Career Fastrack is the whole ladder in a single enrollment: Level 2 online, Level 3 online plus the in-person firearms qualification, OC Pepper Spray online plus the in-person practical, and Level 4 Personal Protection Officer in person.
It is $500 per officer. Bought one class at a time, those four courses come to $589.95, so every officer on the Fastrack saves $89.95. More to the point, a new hire comes out the other side commissioned, OC certified and cleared for personal protection work, ready for whichever contract needs them first.
If your officers are already partway up the ladder, you do not need the full path. Any single course, including Armed Security Recertification, can be booked for a group on its own.
Do my officers have to travel to Longview?
No. You choose. An instructor can come to your facility anywhere in our 38-state service area for one flat travel charge, starting at $1,500, with no per-mile billing. Or your officers can train at East Texas Rifle and Pistol Club in Longview, Texas, with no travel charge at all. Longview is open to a company based in any state.
Because the travel charge is the same whether we come out for one course or the whole path, it pays to run the full Fastrack in one trip rather than bringing an instructor back for each step.
How do I know who has finished?
Every group booking includes a manager login for your company. One screen shows your whole roster: who has started, who has finished, and who has not signed in yet. It is scoped to your company only. When a client asks whether your officers are certified, you can answer in seconds.
Certificates follow the rules too. Under 37 TAC §35.147(a)(1), an approved school issues the original certificate of completion within seven days after the student qualifies.
Is group training worth it for a small company?
The minimum for group pricing and group scheduling is five officers. If you are onboarding five or more people in a season, group training is almost always faster and simpler than managing individual enrollments. Below five, officers can still enroll individually at the published course rates.
Common questions
Can Level 2 be taught in house instead?
Yes. 37 TAC §35.141(a)(1) allows Level 2 to be taught by the licensee’s designee. Level 3 is different: §35.141(a)(2) requires a DPS-approved school and instructor, so armed officers have to train with an approved school either way.
What score do officers need to pass Level 3?
Under 37 TAC §35.144(c), the passing grade on Level 3 and Level 4 examinations is a minimum of 75% correct answers.
What if weather closes the range on our training day?
The session is rescheduled to the next date we can both make, at no additional training charge. The full list of covered events is in our terms and conditions.
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