Two years later he gained distinction in promotion examinations and was allowed to spend a year at Emmanuel College, Cambridge.
By 1838, the midshipmen who were approaching promotion examinations were assigned to the school for 8 months of study.
One of them, the less important, is that he may pass his promotion examinations.
Last year's mandatory summer school for public school students who failed year-end promotion examinations was chaotic and poorly managed.
He said he hoped the predicament would be eased soon by offering promotion examinations every two years and by streamlining the process for handling challenges to the fairness of the tests.
When minority police officers scored poorly last year on a sergeant's promotion examination, he reminded them of his own failures and told them to keep the faith and continue studying.
He later passed a promotion examination and was formally commissioned as a lieutenant with effect 1 December 1909.
The New York City Police Department is bracing for a possible new round of lawsuits over its 1988 promotion examination to sergeant because almost all who passed it are white.
He had studied for and passed all his promotion examinations with distinction.
Once admitted to the Corps, there are internal promotion examinations for promotion to other professional groups in the Municipal Police.