California has three accredited polygraph schools: Backster School of Lie Detection in San Diego, Marston Polygraph Academy in Winterhaven and Orange County Polygraph Institute (OCPI) in Mission Viejo. Backster School of Lie Detection is the oldest of the polygraph schools, established in 1959 by Cleve Backster, who developed the objective chart analysis technique of polygraph examinations. The program consists of an initial eight-week training course, after which students are required to complete 30 polygraph examinations within one year in order to receive a certificate. Classes include test question formulation, examination techniques, chart analysis, instrument operation, examiner ethics, legal issues and interviewing procedures.
Florida offers three APA accredited polygraph schools that include the Deception Control's International Academy of Polygraph in Fort Lauderdale, the Academy of Polygraph Science Latin America, Inc. in Largo and the Academy of Polygraph Science in Ridge Manor. The Deception Control's International Academy of Polygraph offers training in the fields of test data analysis and countermeasures, numerical scoring of charts and interviewing and interrogation. The school is only open to former or active members of federal, state or local law enforcement agencies or applicants with a minimum of 60 hours of college coursework. The 10-week program consists of eight weeks of campus education and two weeks conducting 20 polygraph examinations off-campus.
The American International Institute of Polygraph (AIIP) in Morrow, and Troy University's Polygraph Center in Atlanta are Georgia's accredited polygraph schools. AAIP's 10-week Examiner's Basic Course trains students to conduct polygraph examinations in law enforcement or the private sector. AAIP uses both analog and computer-based polygraph equipment, and instructors have also taught at the Department of Defense Polygraph Institute. Troy University's Polygraph Center offers a 400-hour course in basic polygraph training with eight weeks of campus classes and two weeks of polygraph examinations. Courses include chart analysis sex offender testing screening, and interviewing and interrogation. Students can earn 12 undergraduate credits upon completion of this program, and may apply those credits toward their bachelor's degree.
Pennsylvania has two accredited polygraph schools, the Academy for Scientific Investigative Training in Philadelphia and the HACC Polygraph Institute Pennsylvania State Police Northeast Counterdrug Training center in Harrisburg. The Academy for Scientific Investigative Training is an eight-week program for eligible candidates to graduate as professionally-trained forensic psychophysiologists. Course work includes eight hours in the history of lie detection, 40 hours in the study of psychophysiology (emotions of the nervous system), 26 hours of instrumentation training, 60 hours of polygraph techniques, 40 hours of interviewing training and 80 hours of post graduate assignments such as submitting charts and book reviews.