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Military Police

Non-Commissioned Member | Full Time, Part Time

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    • Overview

    Military Police enforce laws and regulations on Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) establishments in Canada and abroad. They serve the entire CAF community, including Regular and Reserve Force members, civilian employees, cadets, and family members.

    The primary responsibilities of the Military Police are to:

    • Support CAF missions by providing policing and operational support
    • Investigate and report incidents involving military or criminal offenses
    • Develop and apply crime prevention measures to protect military communities against criminal acts
    • Coordinate tasks related to persons held in custody (including military detainees and prisoners of war)
    • Provide security at selected Canadian embassies around the world
    • Provide service to the community through conflict mediation, negotiation, dispute resolution, public relations and victim assistance
    • Perform other policing duties, such as traffic control, traffic-accident investigation, emergency response, and liaison with Canadian, allied and other foreign police forces

    Work environment

    All Canadian citizens are entitled to the same rights, privileges and protection under Canadian law, and Military Police are qualified to provide these services to the same standard as every other Canadian police service. Military Police routinely work within the civilian criminal and military justice systems, and are recognized as peace officers in the Criminal Code of Canada. With over 1,250 full-time members, they form one of the largest police forces in Canada.

    Military Police provide around-the-clock service to the military community in Canada or around the world, including areas of armed conflict or natural disaster. Most Military Police members work outdoors, on foot or in a vehicle, or in an office setting to take statements or complete documentation.

    Career Overview

    Transcript

    TITLE:

    MILITARY POLICE

    I’m Warrant Officer Barbara Smith. I’m from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. I’m a military policewoman and I’m currently posted to the Naval Military Police Group Headquarters in Ottawa, Ontario.

    I’m Master Corporal Darryl Coughlin from Toledo, Ontario. I’m a military policeman working with the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service in Ottawa, Ontario.

    SMITH: Military Police are sworn to uphold the laws of Canada and the code of service discipline. We’re dedicated to serving a global community of 90,000 regular and reserve-force members.

    We handle everything from Internet cyber security to dockside patrols, from guarding our diplomatic missions overseas to directing traffic on convoy. Whether it’s investigating a domestic disturbance or a theft on base or securing and transporting enemy detainees, Canada’s Military Police members have a vital role to play.

    COUGHLIN: Canadian Armed Forces members are there to protect Canada. As a Military Police member, you’re protecting those who protect Canada.

    SMITH: On deployment, we go wherever our service men and women go. We also work with foreign law enforcement to help train and improve their ranks.

    COUGHLIN: You’re constantly learning new skill sets, facing new challenges and upgrading your abilities.

    I wanted the policing job and I also wanted to be in the military. I still wanted to be able to deploy and I found that the Military Police trade was the best opportunity for that. I could serve my community, serve the military community and serve abroad all while serving Canada.

    SMITH: There are great opportunities for specialized postings. You could end up providing close protection for VIPs, handling security at one of Canada’s overseas embassies, or working undercover in one of our specialized investigative units. You could become an Air Marshall or an instructor who trains police forces in other countries.

    COUGHLIN: You could work in Beijing, China… London, England… basically anywhere in the world where there’s a Canadian embassy.

    SMITH: Before you can enroll in the Forces as a Military Police recruit, you’ll have to complete a community college diploma in Law and Security Administration, Police Foundations or a similar program from a recognized community college or CEGEP.

    COUGHLIN: If you’re accepted, you’ll undergo basic military training in Saint-Jean, Quebec, then head to the Canadian Forces Military Police Academy in Borden, Ontario.

    SMITH: The course at the Academy lasts six months. You’ll learn the basics of Canadian military and civilian law, emergency response, conflict mitigation, crime scene investigation and use of force. You’ll also learn the role of the Military Police in the Forces, in the community, in the courtroom and on the battlefield.

    COUGHLIN: When you graduate from the Academy, you’ll be posted to your first detachment.

    SMITH: Your first year as a provisional member of the Military Police is spent under close supervision at a police detachment on a Forces base in Canada. You’ll have a long list of benchmarks to pass to ensure you’re up to the job.

    COUGHLIN: Once that initial year is up, you ride on your own and you’re able to get into more diverse training and experiences in the Military Police trade.

    SMITH: My first posting was at CFB Halifax. I truly enjoyed my time on patrol there. The rush of a 911 call is incredible.

    COUGHLIN: Within a detachment, you could be working as a court liaison officer or in a general investigations section. We have drug units, we have undercover operators – the sky’s the limit essentially.

    SMITH: Currently, I’m a Police Operations Warrant Officer with the Naval Military Police Group Headquarters. On a day-to-day basis, I conduct quality assurance and police oversight on all police investigations across the Naval Military Police Group, for things such as impaired driving, common assault, fraud or other service offences.

    COUGHLIN: You know, there’s no greater satisfaction than going home at the end of the day, knowing that you did something good. If the day’s been busy, you’ve been busy helping people. If the day’s been slow, then people haven’t needed your help and that’s just as satisfying.

    TITLE:
    MILITARY POLICE

    Related Civilian Occupations

    • Royal Canadian Mounted Police
    • Provincial or Regional police force members
    • Federal law enforcement agents (customs, immigration or fisheries)

    Training

    The first stage of training is the Basic Military Qualification course, or Basic Training, held at the Canadian Forces Leadership and Recruit School in Saint- Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec. This training provides the basic core skills and knowledge common to all trades. A goal of this course is to ensure that all recruits maintain the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) physical fitness standard; as a result, the training is physically demanding.

    Learn more about Basic Training here.

    Military Police attend the Military Police Academy in Borden, Ontario. Over a six-month period, they will learn the basics of Canadian civilian and military law, investigative techniques, and acquire skills necessary to perform daily Military Police functions.

    Military Police may be offered the opportunity to develop specialized skills through formal courses and on-the-job training, including:

     

    • Criminal Identification Specialist
    • Polygraph examiner
    • Major crime investigator
    • Crime scene manager
    • Major case management
    • Drug investigator
    • Aircraft security specialist
    • Sexual assault and fraud investigations
    • Clandestine lab investigator
    • Homicide investigator
    • Evasive anti-terror driving
    • Strategic intelligence analysis
    • Cybercrime investigative technique

    As they progress in their career, Military Police who demonstrate the required ability and potential will be offered advanced training. Available courses include:

    • Interview techniques
    • Information security investigation specialist
    • Criminal investigator
    • Counter-human intelligence specialist
    • Surveillance operator
    • Officer safety instructor
    • Senior police administration
    • Use-of-force instructor

    Entry plans

    The minimum required education to apply for this position is graduation from an approved program at a post-secondary institution. For a list of approved programs, please contact your local recruiter.

    Following the initial screening, eligible candidates will complete career orientation and aptitude assessment at a Military Police Assessment Centre to ensure that you have a realistic view of the Military Police occupation and the potential to succeed.

    A valid provincial driver’s licence is also required.

    The ideal candidate will already have a college diploma in Law and Security Administration, Police Foundations or similar program from a recognised Canadian community college, the CAF will decide if your academic program matches the training criteria for this job and may place you directly into the required on-the-job training program following basic training.

    Foreign education may be accepted.

    Part time options

    This position is available for part-time employment with the Primary Reserve at certain locations across Canada. Reserve Force members usually serve part time with a military unit in their community, and may serve while going to school or working at a civilian job. They are paid during their training. They are not posted or required to do a military move. However, they can volunteer to move to another base. They may also volunteer for deployment on a military mission within or outside Canada.

    Military Police members may serve with the Royal Canadian Navy, the Canadian Army or the Royal Canadian Air Force. They are employed in enforcing laws and regulations at CAF establishments. When they are employed on a part-time or casual full- time basis they usually serve with a Military Police Group at a location within Canada.

    Find a Recruiting Centre

    Reserve Force members are trained to the same level as their Regular Force counterparts. They usually begin training with their home unit to ensure that they meet the required basic professional military standards. Following basic military training, the home unit will arrange for specialized skills training. Military Police members complete their qualification at the Military Police Academy in Borden, Ontario over a six-month period.

    Reserve Force members usually serve part-time with their home unit for scheduled evenings and weekends, although they may also serve in full-time positions at some units for fixed terms, depending on the type of work that they do. They are paid 92.8% of Regular Force rates of pay, receive a reasonable benefits package and may qualify to contribute to a pension plan.