One of the goals of law enforcement in British Columbia is to reflect the diversity of communities served. Police forces need members from all cultures, backgrounds and walks of life to improve their capacity to deliver service that is effective and responsive to the needs of BC's diverse communities.

Hiring standards vary according to the particular police department and training standards are guided by provincial and federal legislation.

With respect to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), hiring standards and procedures fall under the federal RCMP Act. For information about recruitment and training by the RCMP, you can access general information on the RCMP website.

For Independent Municipal Police Services such as the Vancouver Police Department, hiring standards and procedures are governed by provincial legislation.

The BC Police Act provides the Chief Constable of a municipal police department, under the direction of the municipal police board, with general supervision and command over the municipal police department including responsibility for setting hiring standards. Once an individual is offered employment as a municipal police officer, he or she must be trained, certified and registered in accordance with the Police Act.

For further information, you may contact the recruiting section of the particular police department in which you are interested. See the Police Forces page on this web site for a list of the 11 municipal and 2 tribal police departments in BC.

The Justice Institute of BC website also provides general information about hiring and training by municipal police departments.

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