Canadian Forces Training Mandate

The mandate of the Canadian Forces (CF) is to train and educate its members in the competencies that support the men and women in front line Air, Sea, and Land occupations. The many military trades taught by the CF include cooks; financial clerks; logisticians; firefighters; and nuclear, biological and chemical technicians to name a few. For every soldier in the field, pilot in the air or sailor at sea, there are seven other military members in trades supporting that operator in the field. It is imperative that the CF properly prepare these members and ensure their proper training before deploying them.

The Canadian Forces and Canadian Colleges

Upon examination of the competencies required for CF occupations, the CF recognized the potential for many common elements to exist between the learning and performance objectives of the CF and the objectives supporting civilian training programmes offered at colleges for similar occupations.

The CF and the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) therefore agreed in May 2008 to expand options and develop a longer-term relationship between the Forces and Canada’s colleges, institutes of technology, polytechnics, cégeps, university colleges, and equivalent institutions.

This agreement will allow CF personnel to access existing training programmes in approved colleges and complete recognized training programmes that satisfy military requirements. This will then enable the CF to focus their efforts towards delta training, the gap that remains to meet the specific needs of the CF.