No degree required. Paid training, a pension, and six figures within a few years of hire.
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What you earn and what it costs to get there.
First-class constable
$104,000
Recruit or cadet
$66,000
Sergeant
$135,000
Big-city services pay the most. Vancouver's grid starts at $93,690 and reaches $133,847 within four years; Toronto and Calgary first-class constables are in a similar range. Job Bank's national median is about $104,000. Overtime and paid duties can add $20,000 or more.
$65,000 to $94,000
Paid from your first day at police college
RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) cadets at Depot, its training academy, receive a weekly allowance during the 26-week program, then start around $65,000 as constables. Big-city services start higher: Vancouver recruits begin at $93,690.
$105,000 to $134,000
Reached in 4 to 5 years at most services
Vancouver's first-class rate is $133,847. Promotion to sergeant, staff sergeant and inspector adds more, and big-city officers with long service can gross over $150,000 with overtime.
Tuition, fees, exams and kit. Not rent, food or travel
The low end is somebody hired straight out of high school who pays only for the Ontario certificate testing run by the OACP (Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police). Recruit training at police college is free and you are paid to attend, and the fitness test, medical and background check are normally covered by the service that hires you. The high end adds a two year police foundations college diploma at roughly $6,000 a year, which is optional and does not guarantee a badge. Very few six figure jobs cost this little to enter.
This is one of the few six-figure careers with almost no education cost.
Defined-benefit pension
Full pension after 30 years, or at age 50 to 55 at many services.
Health, dental and extended leave
Paid duty work
Off-duty security at events and construction sites at premium rates.
Uniform, equipment and training provided
The exact path from high school to qualified.
Meet the minimums, pass the tests, get hired, then train.
High school diploma
Grade 12
The legal minimum. Most successful applicants have some post-secondary education or work history.
Meet the requirements
Before applying
Canadian citizen or permanent resident, 18 or 19 or older, valid driver's licence, clean record, first aid and CPR, and pass a vision and hearing check.
Testing and selection
3 to 12 months
In Ontario, the OACP Certificate (a standard police entrance test): written tests, a fitness test (called PREP) and a psychological screen. Then the service's own interviews, background check and polygraph at some services.
Police college
3 to 6 months
Ontario Police College is 13 weeks. RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) Depot in Regina is 26 weeks. Quebec's police academy (ENPQ) is about 15 weeks after a college diploma. Paid.
Probationary constable
12 months
Coached by a senior officer for the first year.
Police foundations or criminology diploma
Not required but very common.
Any degree
Some services prefer it, and it helps with promotion later.
Volunteer and community work
Auxiliary police programs are the classic route.
Fitness
You must pass a timed physical test.
Police officers are sworn under provincial police acts, and Quebec requires a specific college diploma before its academy. Moving between services usually means re-applying, though experienced officers can transfer with shorter training. The RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) is federal and can post you anywhere in Canada.
Things you don't need, but that help.
Detective or investigator
Major crimes, fraud, cybercrime, homicide. Usually after 5+ years on patrol.
Tactical or emergency response
Highly selective, extra training.
Canine, marine, mounted, traffic
Specialized units with their own selection.
Promotion
Sergeant, staff sergeant, inspector. Exams and interviews at each step.
A second language
French is an asset federally; other languages help in big cities.
Military or security experience
Communications or social work background
Increasingly valued in modern policing.
Day to day, pros and cons, where you'd work.
Patrol officers work 10 to 12 hour rotating shifts, including nights and weekends. A shift is calls for service: traffic stops, disputes, mental health crises, break-ins, collisions, and a lot of reports. Long stretches of routine broken by short bursts of intensity. Court appearances happen on your days off, paid.
The good
The hard parts
Things people don't tell you.
Every Mountie in Canada goes through Depot Division in Regina, Saskatchewan. Cadets live on base for 26 weeks.
The OPP (Ontario Provincial Police) and the Sûreté du Québec police most of their provinces outside big cities. Everywhere else, the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) does that job under contract.
Ontario publishes every public employee earning over $100,000. Police officers make up one of the largest groups on the list, mostly because of overtime and paid duty.
Last checked September 2026. Pay figures are typical full-time annual amounts in Canadian dollars, based on Government of Canada Job Bank wage data and published salary grids. They vary by province, employer and experience. Tuition is for domestic students.