UBC Reports | Vol. 48 | No. 14 | Dec. 5, 2002

Japanese Police Train at UBC

Since 1993, the National Police Agency of Japan has been sending young police officers to the UBC English Language Institute for an eight-week ESP (English for Specific Purposes) program. The course is designed to develop young police officers’ international understanding through language training, knowledge of Canadian policing, and cultural exchange with Canadians.

The officers, 26 men and four women this year, study at UBC in the mornings and attend police-related lectures or activities several afternoons per week. The officers also participate in activities such as rock climbing, cycling in Stanley Park, Halloween, attending hockey games, a golf tournament with the Vancouver Police Department, an RCMP social, and a weekend stay with a police officer’s family. A highlight of the program is the martial arts demonstration they put on each year as a way of saying thank you and sharing some of their culture with the general public.

For more information, contact 604-822-1526 or email trish.fodor@ubc.ca.