Police investigators and other investigative occupations
Also called: Detective - police, Police investigator, Investigator - police, Cybercrime investigator, Drug investigator - police, Detective sergeant - police, Narcotics squad investigator, Railway investigator - police, Canadian security intelligence service (csis) investigator, Coroner, Medical examiner, Dark web detective
Police investigators and professionals in related investigative occupations follow leads and investigate circumstances relating to crimes committed and obtain information to prevent crimes. They plan and coordinate investigations, collect evidence, interview suspects, victims, witnesses and other stakeholders, conduct surveillance and testify in court. They are employed by municipal, provincial and federal governments. This unit group includes coroners and medical examiners.
Main tasks
- Police investigators
- Interviews persons in connection with criminal incidents, including victims, witnesses and suspects
- Exchange information and coordinate activities with other law enforcements agencies
- Prepare investigation reports and testify in courts concerning criminal investigations
- Search and collect physical evidence from crimes scenes, such as fingerprints, and attend autopsies
- Perform surveillance by using investigative technologies
- Obtain search warrants, conduct searches and arrest suspects
- May conduct investigation on online networks and computer systems to detect cyber crimes or to recover data
How to become one
Police Investigators Completion of secondary school is required. Several years of experience as a police officers are required. Completion of a university degree in police investigation is required in Quebec. Specialized training or certification may be required for certain areas of investigation. Coroners and medical examiners In Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador, a medical examiner is required to be a physician with an active medical license. In Ontario and Prince Edward Island, coroners are required to be a physician with an active medical license. In Quebec, coroners are required to be a non-retired member of the Collège des médecins du Québec, the Barreau du Québec or the Chambre des notaires du Québec, and have a minimum of four years of professional experience in their practice. In British Columbia, New Brunswick, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Saskatchewan, and Yukon, it is preferred coroners have education and experience in the legal, medical or investigative fields.
Ways in
- University: Law & Justice degrees, Offered by 15 universities in Canada
- University: Business & Commerce degrees, Offered by 17 universities in Canada
- Licence or registration: In Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador, a medical examiner is required to be a physician with an active medical license. In Ontario and Prince Edward Island, coroners are required to be a physician with an active medical license.
Pay · Outlook
- Median pay: $108,752 a year The middle half earn $94,692 to $117,000.
- About 11,900 people worked in this job in 2023, and about 13,500 are projected by 2033. (+13.4%)
- Projected labour market to 2033: balance.
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Sources
- Statistics Canada: Census 2021: employment by occupation, gender and education (98-10-0449) (2021 Census), Statistics Canada Open Licence, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Statistics Canada: National Occupational Classification (NOC) 2021 (Version 1.0), Open Government Licence - Canada, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Employment and Social Development Canada: Canadian Occupational Projection System (COPS) (2024 to 2033), Open Government Licence - Canada, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Employment and Social Development Canada (Job Bank): Wages by occupation (2025 (revised 2025-11-19)), Open Government Licence - Canada, retrieved 2026-10-03
Updated 2026-10-03