Diploma in Police Foundations is a diploma in Fire, Justice & Security programme taught at Mohawk College in Hamilton, Canada. The programme runs for 2 years, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition for international students is CAD 15,268 per year (CAD 1,354 per year for local students).
This diploma builds theoretical knowledge and practical skills for careers in public safety, policing and criminal justice, following guidelines set by the Ontario Ministry of the Solicitor General. A common first year allows students to move into year two of the Protection, Security and Investigation diploma, and coursework covers criminal, civil and provincial law, ethics and diversity in policing, principles of evidence, police powers and related legislation, and interviewing and investigation skills. Students also develop de-escalation and tactical communication techniques aimed at reducing the need for force, along with health, wellness, fitness and stress-reduction skills and physical training geared toward law-enforcement fitness requirements, with co-op work terms available for students who meet the relevant prerequisites.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Admission requires an Ontario Secondary School Diploma or equivalent (Mohawk Academic Upgrading or GED accepted), including Grade 12 English at the C, U or equivalent level. Applicants whose first language is not English must demonstrate proficiency through one of: successful completion of the GAS-English for Academic Purposes (478) program, a TOEFL score of 550 paper-based or 80 internet-based, an IELTS Academic overall score of 6.0 with no band below 5.5, or a Duolingo English Test score of 105-110 with no section below 100. Some policing employment opportunities require meeting specific physical, driving-record and health standards, including vision; a Police Criminal Record Check (pardons are possible with legal counsel) and further selection criteria may also apply. Students complete fitness training toward the PREP requirement, must pass a policing aptitude test and written assessment to graduate, and must be able to participate in fitness courses across all four semesters.
Application Details
Start Date:Starts Mohawk lists on this program’s own page, checked 6 September 2026. Domestic applicants: September 2026 at Fennell Campus (FF); January 2027 at Fennell Campus (FF). Mohawk’s page lists no international intake table for this program, so international applicants should confirm with Mohawk International that the program is open to them before applying. Mohawk runs a Fall term from September, a Winter term from January and a Spring/Summer term from May; not every program runs every term, and the seat status shown beside a start (open, waitlist, closed) moves as intakes fill.
Application Deadline:Mohawk publishes no deadline unique to this program; the dates below are the college-wide ones.
DOMESTIC APPLICANTS (Canadian citizens and permanent residents) apply through ontariocolleges.ca. Equal consideration date: 1 February for a September start; 1 June for a January start. Applications that reach Ontario Colleges by then are read together in the first round of offers. Applying afterwards is still allowed, but remaining seats go first-come, first-served, and a competitive program is usually full by that point. Where a program draws more qualified applicants than it has seats, Mohawk ranks them on the average of their highest senior-level final grades in the required courses, and offers go to Ontario permanent residents first, then residents of other Canadian provinces and territories, then international applicants.
INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS (citizens of another country without Canadian permanent residence) do not use the equal consideration dates. Mohawk lists no international intake for this program at the time of writing, so there is no international deadline to quote; contact Mohawk International before assuming a seat exists.
