The 177 participants included 100 new recruits surveyed on their first day in the police academy and 77 trainee officers who had been in the academy for 6 months. Surveys also collected information from the first group after 6 months in the academy and 6 months and 12 months after that and from the second group after 6 months of field placement. The research assessed drinking behavior using the international version of the AUDIT, a 10-item instrument that assesses the risk of harm from drinking behavior. Results revealed that recruits’ risk of harm from alcohol consumption increased as their training progressed. Six percent of new recruits displayed a risk of serious alcohol dependency when assessed on their first day at the academy. This risk increased to 13 percent after 6 months and 16 percent after 12 months in the police service. Younger recruits had higher levels of risk drinking than did older recruits. Males and females had similar drinking behavior. Findings suggest that the police service and training process introduces police recruits into a culture of alcohol consumption that may influence their individual levels of alcohol consumption. Tables, figures, and 23 references