New Recruit Constable
Honour Through Service
As a member of the Victoria Police Department, you will join a team of committed and caring professionals. You will work in an organization driven by collaboration, excellence, and innovation. You will be supported as you grow and learn, and you will discover the rewards to be found in a profession that is unlike any other. Every day, you will be challenged to find the best in yourself as you keep people safe and serve our vibrant and growing communities.
Police work involves significant responsibility, diversity and complexity in both preventing crime and enforcing a wide variety of Federal and Provincial laws, and Municipal bylaws. Police officers are expected to anticipate, discover and investigate crime, recommend charges and the effectively deliver evidence to the courts.
Police work also requires protecting life and property and the application of complex investigative techniques and methods, which are complicated by departmental policy, diverse legal and evidentiary rules and procedures. All of these must be accomplished within the scope of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Police officers are frequently exposed to danger, injury, disagreeable working conditions and difficult and challenging social elements and surroundings. Police work requires the exercise of a high degree of discretion, tolerance, tact, integrity, and ethical conduct.
Policing also requires initiative, flexibility, social conscience, intelligence and effective judgment in resolving a wide range of problems at all levels of society. These problems involve criminal, Provincial or Municipal bylaw violations, child and spousal abuse, alcoholism, mental health issues, cultural issues and labour and political disputes.
Situations police officers are expected to deal with are frequently violent, unpredictable, and stressful. Officers are often required to act without supervision and are accountable for decisions and actions to supervisors, the courts, and the public. Police officers' responsibilities to the department and the public apply on a twenty-four hour basis, both on and off duty. Officers' performance and conduct are evaluated by both supervisors and the public perception. In addition, performance may be reviewed by courts of criminal and civil jurisdiction and also be subject to review by a variety of internal and external professional conduct tribunals which incorporate a citizens complaint procedure.
Police Recruit Selection
The Victoria Police Department is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity in the workplace, and we use a consistent recruitment and selection process. Our practices comply with general employment legislation such as: Collective Agreements; Workers Compensation Act; Provincial Human Rights Code; and the Employment Standards Act.
Assessment of honesty, integrity and ethics are an integral part of the selection process and the information you provide throughout the process will be scrutinized closely. Dishonesty, deceit, or non-disclosure of information will result in your removal from the process.
The length of the application process varies depending on a wide range of factors but generally takes between 6 – 12 months. VicPD Human Resources responds to all cover letters and resumes submitted. All submissions will be reviewed, and you will be advised of moving forward in the process in due time.
How to Be a More Competitive Candidate
Your cover letter/resume will be evaluated based on 4 areas;
- Work Experience
- Post-Secondary Education
- Volunteer Experience
- Life Experience
Applicants need to demonstrate their understanding of a policing career. The success of candidates depends on their competitiveness, the current needs of VicPD and the number of quality applicants already in the process.
You should ask yourself three very important questions that will set you up for success:
- Why do I want to be a police officer?
- Why am I a competitive candidate?
- Why do I want work for the Victoria Police Department?
Only you can answer these three questions. More importantly these three questions are the foundation to the entire selection process and you should have prepared your answers before you submit your cover letter and resume.
Prior Experience & Volunteering
If you are not currently in a field related to policing, we would prefer to see that an individual has some related volunteer experience. An applicant could either be involved in a Police Department Community Services section such as Block Watch, Victim Services or Police Reserve program, or an applicant could volunteer in Community Services such as homeless shelters, drug and alcohol or mental health programs. Volunteering in the noted area will assist an applicant with understanding the population we police as well as provide an opportunity to make a commitment to one’s community.
Recruit Training
Candidates hired by VicPD are sworn in prior to commencing recruit training at the Justice Institute of BC (JIBC) in New Westminster, BC, and earn Probation Constable wages and benefits. Prior to attending the training, recruits do a full block ride-along on a patrol shift.
Police Application Process
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1. Pre-requisites
Physical Testing – POPAT
The POPAT is a demanding, anaerobic physical test which must be completed in under 4 minutes and 15 seconds, and POPAT test results are valid for 12 months. Applicants DO NOT require an invitation from the Recruiting Section to take this test and information for upcoming tests can be found here.
Applicants can register for any official POPAT test at any authorized testing facility near you, and there are many sites in BC and at least one in Alberta.
Candidates from outside of British Columbia, you may take the PARE test used by the RCMP after getting permission from the Recruiting Sergeant at recruiting@vicpd.ca. However, candidates will need to complete the POPAT test during the application process.
ETHOS Written Exam
Candidates may be invited to write the VicPD written examination after the recruiting section has reviewed your cover letter and resume.
The exam assesses practical skill sets that police officers must use on a regular basis while performing their duties. Exams sessions are held periodically throughout the year. The exam is divided into four modules:
- Memory and observation skills
- Reading comprehension and critical thinking skills
- Summarizing skills
- Writing and editing skills
Candidates who complete the exam will be contacted by the recruiting section with an exam score.
ETHOS exams completed with other BC Police agencies are valid for three years. Please advise Recruiting at recruiting@vicpd.ca if you have passed the ETHOS exam with another BC Police Agency with a score of 70% or higher, and arrangements can be made to forward the certificate.
2. Initial Screening
This interview is conducted by the VicPD Recruiting Team and is based on all of the information the applicant has provided. This interview focuses on general suitability, life experience, integrity and assesses the next step in your hiring process. You do not need to prepare anything for this interview.
3. Secondary Screening
Interviews
Behavioral-based interviews focus on the life skills, experience and abilities of the applicant. Applicants should prepare answers using the STAR (Situation – Task – Actions – Result) format. Below are the behavioural competencies that the Victoria Police are looking for when recruiting police officers:
- Adaptability
- Ethical Accountability & Responsibility
- Interactive Communication
- Organizational Awareness
- Problem Solving
- Risk Management
- Stress Tolerance
- Teamwork
- Written Skills
Documentation Request
If you are deemed suitable you will be given access to the application package. You must include all requested documents as outlined in the application package and incomplete packages will not be processed.
Psychological Testing
Applicants will be required to attend an identified Victoria Police selected psychologist office for an interview and written testing, and arrangements for a virtual meeting can be made for out of town candidates. This testing is paid for by VicPD.
Polygraph Test
This is a continuation of the Polygraph Integrity Questionnaire and is administered In Victoria, BC by a trained professional qualified in the use of a polygraph.
4. Final Screening
HR Interview
The final interview with the candidates who have succeeded in the previous stages is with the Human Resources Division Staff Sergeant and Director. This behavioural-based interview focuses on questions which allow candidates to showcase their communication skills, ability to problem solve, and explain why they are a competitive candidate for the VicPD team.
Occupational Health Assessment
Conducted at Victoria Police Department’s expense, you will attend a health assessment company in Vancouver to ensure you are able to carry out the occupational requirements of the job as a constable.
Background Investigation
An extensive background investigation is conducted with regards to references submitted and others. An investigator contacts friends, family members, past and present employers and neighbors, and validates the candidate’s resume.
4. Final Screening
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Qualifications & Prerequisites
To qualify as a Special Municipal Constable applicant, you must meet the following requirements:
Qualifications
- Basic computer skills and keyboarding ability
- Demonstrated fit and healthy lifestyle
- Meet the medical requirements of the Victoria Police Department
- Maturity derived from varied life experience
- Demonstrated responsibility, initiative, creativity and problem-solving abilities
- Demonstrated sensitivity to people whose culture, lifestyle or ethnicity is different than your own
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Ability to successfully undergo reference checks
- Ability to pass security checks, which include polygraph
Prerequisites
- Minimum age 19 years
- No criminal record for which a pardon has not been granted
- Valid Basic First Aid Certificate and CPR
(Level C) - Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident
- Visual acuity must be no poorer than 20/40, 20/100 uncorrected and 20/20, 20/40 corrected. Applicants having corrective laser surgery must wait three months from time of surgery before applying
- Hearing requirements: must be above 30 db HL to the 500 to 3000 HZ in both ears, and 50 dB HL in the worst ear at the 3000 + HZ notch
- Grade 12 High School equivalency (GED)
Competitive Attributes
- Previous experience as a jail guard or peace officer
- Fluency in a second language
- Basic Security Course (BST-Level 1 & 2)
- First Aid Training OFA level 2
