How Hard Is It To Join?
In order to join the Belize Coast Guard, you must not only meet qualification criteria, but also meet a whole person evaluation. You must sincerely desire to serve your country and develop your leadership and professional potential.
Think of your meeting with a recruiter as a job interview, where your personal skills and attributes will be evaluated and compared with other eligible job applicants. Your recruiter will work with you to fill out a variety of forms that validate your eligibility. You must honestly answer all questions and provide supporting documentation and information.
The qualification criteria include:
You must be a citizen of Belize.
You also must be between 18-24 (If you are 17, you’ll need parental consent.) Exceptional qualifications may allow you to be older.
Reservists must be between ages 18-40. Prior-service personnel should contact their local recruiter for specific programs.
You must have a high school diploma. GEDs are accepted in rare circumstances.
You can have no more than three dependents.
As part of the recruitment process, you will have to pass the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) test and a military entrance medical exam.
You will also be subject to a police background check and as with other military services; felony convictions will disqualify you from consideration. Your credit will also be evaluated.
The whole person evaluation considers your attitude, professionalism, honesty, respect, language proficiency, height/weight, physical abilities, and work ethic.
As the first step in the process, we recommend you complete the APPLY NOW form on bcg.gov.bz. Your information will be forwarded to your local recruiting office. You will also receive an email verifying that your information has been forwarded. However, our recruiters are very busy and it may take up to 72 hours to contact you. If you don’t hear back within 72 hours. Because of the personal/sensitive nature of the information you’ve submitted, only limited individuals have access to it.
Please note that at this time the Belize Coast Guard is not accepting new recruits. But please consider completing the APPLY NOW form for consideration when a new intake is scheduled.
Do I have a choice of location or assignments?
Every member of Belize the Coast Guard, officer and enlisted alike, may request assignments on something similar to an electronic resume. The request may contain several choices; final determination of assignment is made by an assignment officer, who must balance the workforce nationwide. Not every location or assignment is always available.
What is a typical day like in the Coast Guard?
It really depends on the type of a unit. Life at a small boat station is much different than life on a ship. Most boot camp graduates will receive orders either to a ship or a small boat station. At this point, they will start to perform the duties of a crewman at their unit. They must learn everything about their ship or small boat station. They may be assisting with law enforcement, narcotic and human trafficking interdiction, detecting illegal fishing and foreign incursions into Belize, working aids to navigation, conducting search and rescue, or responding to a natural disaster. Regardless of the unit, Coast Guard men and women live to uphold the motto Utrinque Paratus… Ready For Anything.
As a member of the Coast Guard, do I get paid time off for maternity leave?
The Coast Guard is proud to have fully integrated women in our operations at all echelons. The Coast Guard recognizes that our mission readiness is directly tied to the health and well-being of our service members and that childbirth can be a challenge for women in the service. Accordingly, the Commandant has directed eligible members be authorized up to 12 weeks of maternity leave following the birth of a child.
Do I have to know how to swim?
Yes, you will be tested on your ability to enter a swimming pool from a 1.5 meter platform and safely swim 100 meters in five minutes without touching the side or the bottom of the pool and without any goggles. You’ll then have to tread water for five minutes without a life jacket. If you fail to complete this test, you’ll be required to get up earlier and attend an additional swim class in the morning before your regular classes.
This is a mandatory requirement for you to graduate from basic training. You should come prepared. The more abilities you have, the more comfortable you’ll be. The training staff at will help you, but time is short.
If you are afraid of being in, on, or near the water, you are not eligible to apply.
Do I qualify as enlisted or as an officer?
There are several ways to become an officer in the Coast Guard: By successfully graduating from the Coast Guard Academy, successfully completing Officer Candidate School (OCS), or through one of several Direct Commissioning Programs. You must have normal color vision for all officer programs.
Officer Candidate School (OCS) is 17 weeks of training select overseas schools. Studies include nautical science, law enforcement, seamanship, and leadership. When you graduate, you will be commissioned as an ensign (O1) with a three-year, initial active-duty obligation. Upon completion of your initial three years of active duty, you and the Coast Guard will decide if you can extend on active duty.
If you have a four-year college degree from an accredited college and meet the age, physical, and moral requirements, you may apply for OCS. Upon completion of your officer package, you will have an interview with three Coast Guard officers. The completed package will be submitted to a board who will select the top candidates from the packages they receive.