NORTHBRIDGE, Mass. - The majority of police departments in Massachusetts still hire police officers using the civil service exam, but many are evaluating whether it's better to drop the requirement.

The Northbridge Police Department is one of 41 departments in the state no longer under civil service. Chief Timothy Labrie said they dropped the requirement almost a year ago because it made the recruiting process a lot harder. 

Under civil service, departments would hire from a list of candidates who scored high on the state test. But, Labrie said some candidates who do not perform well on tests still have the qualities he is looking for in an officer. Now, the department uses their own hiring process and has been able to hire one officer using the new requirements. 

"You can't put a value on how easy it was to hire this individual, instead of just waiting for him to score well on a test," Labrie said. "Myself included, I'm not a very good standardized test taker, but yet was able to have a successful career in this profession because I had a good work ethic, by being able to communicate with people, work well with others."

The Easthampton, North Adams and Grafton police departments are a few others who are no longer under civil service. In Worcester, City Manager Eric Batista said it's something he's looking into  as well. 

"We established a committee to evaluate the elimination of civil service for our police officers and we are going to be doing that in the next six months, putting together a committee to review that process," Batista said. 

Batista said before anything is final, they'll take into account the protections civil service offers while finding the best way to hire and promote officers.