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"Well, you'll need to demonstrate the ability to react well to pressure and so forth, perseverance and dedication, because Auror training takes a further three years, not to mention very high skills in practical defence. It will mean a lot more study, even after you've left school..."
— McGonagall informing Harry Potter about the process to become an Auror[src]
Auror Field Training HM

The Auror recruitment programme,[1] also referred to as Aurorial Appraisal,[2] was a three-year-long programme set by the Auror Office that was established by Minister Eldritch Diggory sometime between 1733 and 1747 to train and evaluate potential Aurors.[1] The programme was considered very stringent, and only the best wizards and witches were accepted into it.[3]

History[]

Due to the intensity, few candidates had ever been accepted into the programme. In 1996, Minerva McGonagall noted that the last acceptance had been in 1992.[3]

However, after the Second Wizarding War was over, Minister for Magic Kingsley Shacklebolt temporarily relaxed the entry requirements due to the deaths of many Aurors. In order to resupply their forces immediately, Shacklebolt permitted anyone who participated in the Battle of Hogwarts on the grounds that having fought and survived in such a battle and not changing sides against such odds more than satisfied the character and skill requirements to qualify for the training.

Qualifications[]

"You'd need top grades for that... They ask for a minimum of five N.E.W.T.s, and nothing under 'Exceeds Expectations' grade, I see. Then you would be required to undergo a stringent series of character and aptitude tests at the Auror office. It's a difficult career path... they only take the best."
— Minerva McGonagall regarding the process of becoming an Auror[src]

To qualify for Auror training, a witch or wizard had to first have attained at least five N.E.W.T.s of no less than 'Exceeds Expectations'. Minerva McGonagall recommended that Defence Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Charms, and Potions would be useful N.E.W.T. level classes for those wishing to pursue a career as an Auror.[3]

Whereas the Ministry had set a series of character and aptitude tests to further test the worth of potential applicants,[3] it was also possible for someone forego these and be accepted into the recruitment programme right away if a sufficiently high-ranking official vouched for them,[4] although they still had to undergo the required training programme in order to become a fully-fledged Auror.[5] The Ministry also ran a background check into the records of new applicants; Dolores Umbridge once implied that wizards with a criminal record could not become an Auror.[3]

Course of study[]

For those who were accepted, Auror training took three years of further study after Hogwarts.[3] Known subjects included Concealment and Disguise and Stealth and Tracking.[6] Poisons and antidotes were also essential studies for Aurors.[3] Other known courses included in training were Battle Instinct, Best-Laid Plans, Duelling in the Dark, Field Training, History of the Dark Arts, Method in the Mad-Eye, Resilience Training, and The Auror Advantage.[2]

During the course of their training, they had access to a number of training rooms[7] and in addition to getting on-the-job-training, they also had to participate in training duels and attend various lectures and seminars ministered by veterans at the Auror Office. They were presumably also taught about magical jurisprudence to make sure they apprehend criminals on legally valid grounds.

Behind the scenes[]

  • As Kingsley Shacklebolt successfully managed to modify the memory of a Hogwarts student without causing any damage, it is possible that Aurors are trained in the use of the Memory Charm in case their work forces them to venture out in the Muggle society while tracking down Dark wizards or witches who has gone into hiding and some of the non-magical community observe them using magic, meaning that Aurors might be, at least in part, responsible to enforce the International Statues of Wizarding Secrecy during their work out in the field.
  • As American and German wizards do not attend Hogwarts, it is unknown what requirements they have to become Aurors.

Appearances[]

Notes and references[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Writing by J. K. Rowling: "Ministers for Magic" at Wizarding World
  2. 2.0 2.1 Harry Potter: Wizards Unite
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 29 (Careers Advice)
  4. Harry Potter: Wizards Unite: (Harry Potter vouches for Penelope Padgett, leading to her 'promotion'.)
  5. Harry Potter: Wizards Unite - (It took Penelope Fawley two years to become an Auror after she was offered the job, as her skill was such that she did in two years what it takes most people three years to complete).
  6. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 3 (The Advance Guard)
  7. Harry Potter: Wizards Unite (Light and Shadow Room - Wizards Unite Hub)
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