The Missouri DPS Handgun Qualification

In my quest to find the best military and police quals, I stumbled into Missouri, a state I admittedly know nothing about. Is Missouri the south? Is it the midwest? I can’t really tell you. I can tell you that St. Louis seems pretty dangerous, so I imagine their cops need to be well-trained. With that in mind, let’s take a peek at the Missouri DPS Handgun qual.

What You’ll Need For the Missouri DPS Handgun Qual

The Missouri DPS Handgun qual is one of the more impressive police quals on the map. It’s not too logistically complicated and doesn’t break the bank in any particular direction. To shoot the qual, you will need a handgun and holster, as well as 60 rounds of ammunition. You will need at least two magazines and something to use as cover.

CZ P310C, holster, sunglasses, and hearing protection
You only need the basics for this qual. I used the P10C.

This qual includes time constraints, so you’ll need a shot timer. Don’t forget the basics of safety, and bring your eyes and ears as well as a target or two. You only need a single target, but having a spare is always handy.

I like the way the Missouri DPS Handgun qual handles targetry. You can use any basic silhouette target. As a shooter, you’ll outline a scoring zone 11.75 inches wide and 17.75 inches tall on the torso. I suggest using a Sharpie before things pop off. You’ll also need to outline a headshot zone that is 6.5 inches wide and 9.5 inches tall. Only shots inside of this zone count as points.

In scoring the qualification, the minimum to pass is 42 hits in total, and 60 points is 100%. Your range will vary between 1 and 25 yards, so be ready to stretch your legs.

Blasting Away With the Missouri DPS Handgun Qual

This is the type of qual that starts close and slowly moves backward. Start with your handgun loaded and get ready to rock and roll.

Stage 1: Up Close and Personal

At stage 1 of the Missouri DPS Handgun qual, you are in bad-breath range at 1 yard from the target. Your handgun is holstered and loaded with 6 rounds. At the beep, draw, assume a close retention position, and fire 2 rounds into the target within 2 seconds.

Complete this drill a total of 3 times.

Stage 2: One Hand Only

Stepping back to 3 yards and loading your weapon with 6 rounds. Using a holster is optional for this stage, according to the Missouri DPS Handgun qual manual. If it’s above your skill and safety level, then you might want to ditch the holster and work your way up to it.

String 1: You are shooting strong-hand only. At the beep, draw (or not) and engage the target with 3 rounds. Reholster and repeat the drill 1 more time.

one-handed shooting with Missouri DPS Handgun qual
Get comfy with one-handed shooting.

String 2:  Now, move to the support hand. At the beep, draw with the strong hand, transition to the support hand, and fire 2 rounds into the target within 3 seconds. Repeat this drill 2 more times.

weak hand shooting
I hate how much I suck with my weak hand.

Stage 3: One and Two

Now you are at 5 yards, and this stage has 2 strings that are a fair bit different from each other so pay attention to the individual strings.

String 1: This is a support-hand-only shooting string. You can choose if you want to draw or not. If you decide to draw, do it with your strong hand and then transition the gun to your weak hand. From there, fire 2 rounds. You have a total of 3 seconds to accomplish this. Shoot this string 3 times for a total of 6 rounds.

String 2: This string does require you to draw. You’ll draw, and fire a failure drill of two rounds to the chest and one round to the head in three seconds. You shoot this string twice for a total of six rounds.

Two-handed shooting
Two-handed shooting remains the most important style.

Stage 4: Failure Drill

At Stage 4 of the Missouri DPS Handgun qual, move back to 7 yards. This is a fairly common distance for concealed carry engagements.

Start with the gun holstered. At the beep, draw and fire a failure drill that consists of 2 rounds to the chest and 1 to the head in 4 seconds. Repeat this drill 1 more time for a total of 6 rounds.

Stage 5: Backing Up

Move back to 15 yards with this stage. You’ll need your notional cover and need 2 magazines loaded with 6 rounds each.

At the 15-yard line, start with your weapon holstered and behind cover. At the beep, you will draw, lean out from cover, and shoot 6 rounds into the target. From there, conduct a reload and assume a kneeling position, and fire an additional 6 rounds. You have a very generous 30 seconds.

Missouri DPS Handgun Qual
This is a great course of fire for learning a thing or two.

Stage 6: Going Way Back

The final stage of the Missouri DPS Handgun qual takes you all the way back to the 25-yard line and challenges you to hit shots at that range. You’ll need your cover device and your spare magazine. Both magazines should be loaded with 6 rounds. You can choose any position you want but you will be forced to shoot from both sides of the cover.

Start with the weapon holstered and behind cover. At the beep, draw and fire from the position of your choosing from the right side of cover. You’ll fire 6 rounds, then tuck behind the cover and reload. Then lean out the left side and fire 6 more rounds. You have a total of 40 seconds to accomplish this drill.

What I’d Change

This is one of the better police handgun quals out there. It’s fairly demanding. The last 2 stages have strict accuracy requirements, but the time requirements are just a little generous. The Missouri DPS Handgun qual mixes in and tests a lot of different skills and is a fun way to spend 60 rounds at the range.

Check it out, give it a shoot, and let us know in the comments what you think. Or, just shoot me some Missouri facts.

Travis Pike is a former Marine Machine Gunner and a lifelong firearms enthusiast. Now that his days of working a 240B like Charlie Parker on the sax are over he's a regular guy who likes to shoot, write, and find ways to combine the two. He holds an NRA certification as a Basic Pistol Instructor and is probably most likely the world's Okayest firearm instructor. He is a simplicisist when it comes to talking about himself in the 3rd person and a self-professed tactical hipster. Hit him up on Instagram, @travis.l.pike, with story ideas.

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