Applications are being accepted for the Bridge Watch Rating Program, a fully funded maritime training course with fall and winter intakes in Hay River. The program offers Behchokǫ̀ residents a chance to gain Transport Canada-certified skills for entry-level deckhand jobs on commercial vessels, at no cost to trainees.
Delivered by Arctic Marine Training, an Indigenous-led not-for-profit, the program is backed by Transport Canada’s Oceans Protection Plan. It covers tuition, books, equipment, personal protective gear, housing, travel, meals, and training allowances—an investment of about $45,000 per student. The program is available to Indigenous Peoples, Northerners, and women.
Students earn certifications in Bridge Watch Rating, Small Domestic Vessel – Basic Safety (SDV-BS), Marine Basic First Aid (MBFA), Proficiency in Survival Craft (PSC), Radio Operator’s Certificate – Marine Commercial (ROC-MC), and Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS). These credentials prepare them for jobs with employers such as the Canadian Coast Guard, BC Ferries, and Desgagnés. In fact, four of five graduates from the first cohort in April 2024 landed positions with those organizations.
For Behchokǫ̀, the largest Dene community in the Northwest Territories, located about an hour’s drive northwest of Yellowknife, the program is a direct route into a growing industry. The Tłı̨chǫ Government’s Career Development Division can help citizens with applications and career planning.
Marine transportation is vital across the North, moving freight and fuel to remote communities along the Mackenzie River and Arctic coast. The Bridge Watch Rating Program ensures Northerners have the skills to fill those jobs, building a stronger local workforce.
