The mayor and police commissioner of New York City have sworn in the first class of NYPD recruits since Sept. 11, charging them with the difficult task of fighting everything from low-level crime to international terrorism.

"You will have responsibilities that would have been unforeseen to officers only a few years back," Mayor Michael Bloomberg told the 1,978 new recruits in the auditorium of Brooklyn Technical High School. "You will be charged with protecting New Yorkers from threats large and small, originating from around the corner or around the world."

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly called the class of recruits the most diverse and highly educated in the city's history. Nearly half of the recruits are minorities, more than 300 have served in the armed forces, 15 have master's degrees and two others have law degrees, police said.

Kelly said that about 200 more recruits will be hired in the next week to account for attrition among the new class and the existing police force. He has said he plans to hire enough new officers to bolster the ranks of the NYPD to 39,100.

Kelly promised the new recruits the best police training in the world over the next six months, saying "You're now part of history."