Iqaluit (May 02/05) - Of the 37 current applicants for a job with the RCMP, 11 are Inuit and two are First Nations.

Stefan Kilabuk: One of Iqaluit's latest recruits.

Applicants begin by contacting Cpl. Liz Douglas, Nunavut's chief recruiter, or attending an information session in their community. After passing an aptitude test, applicants must run an obstacle course inside the force hanger in Iqaluit.

"Physically, it wipes you right out," she said.

That's followed by a three-four hour interview, medical check and extensive background search, which can span several months.

Barriers to entry include language skills and possessing a restricted driver's licence. Sometimes medical equipment isn't available in communities to do a physical check, either.

"Come and talk to us and see if you're interested," she said.

Once accepted, recruits attend six months of training in Regina.

Const. Stefan Kilabuk in Iqaluit clearly remembers the regime he endured a year and a half ago. He arrived with about seven other Inuit recruits. "Everyone looked to each other for support," he said.

But getting up for early-morning parade drills requires an entirely different sort of discipline than hunting on the land. By the end, only he and one other was left.