MOS 31A—Military Police Officer

Military Police Officer (MOS 31A) Description / Major Duties:

The Army's Military Police (MP) provide an important function in full spectrum Army operations. The Army's Military Police can be utilized during offensive operations, defensive operations, stability operations, and civil support operations. As a Military Police Officer you will be charged with leading Soldiers in the execution of the five Military Police Battlefield Functions.

These functions are:

1. Maneuver and Mobility Support Operations (such as route reconnaissance or surveillance)
2. Area Security Operations (to include critical site security as well as response force operations)
3. Law & Order Operations (law enforcement on US installations and host nation police force development).
4. Internment/Resettlement Operations (includes US military prisoners as well as enemy combatants)
5. Police Intelligence Operations (enhances situational awareness for the maneuver commander by providing another source of information that could lead to the production of actionable intelligence or prosecutorial evidence.)

These five functions of the Army's Military Police all provide a commander with the necessary information and support for the successful completion of many Army missions.

The responsibilities of a Military Police Lieutenant may include:

  • Lead and direct small, tactical Military Police units and organizations (typically MP Platoons)
  • Provide Military Police coordination at all levels
  • Serve as Military Police advisor to Army Reserve and Army National Guard organizations

Training

After completing Basic Officer Leader Course II (BOLC II), where the focus is on basic officer leadership duties and responsibilities, you will transition to the Military Police Basic Officer Leadership Course III (MPBOLC III), where you will learn leadership skills, tactics, maintenance and operational aspects of the systems and tools used in the Military Police Corps. This is a ten-week program of instruction conducted at the United States Army Military Police School at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri (the home of the Military Police Corps Regiment).


Helpful Skills

Being a leader in the Army requires certain qualities. A leader exhibits self-discipline, initiative, confidence, and intelligence. A leader is physically fit and can perform under physical and mental pressure. A leader makes decisions quickly, while focusing on completing the mission successfully and showing respect for all those around them. MP leaders lead from the front and adapt to environments that are constantly changing around them. They are judged by their ability to make decisions on their own and bear ultimate moral responsibility for those decisions.


Advanced Responsibilities of an MP Officer

Military Police Officers can continue in the Operations career field, serving in the Army Military Police Branch at ever increasing levels of leadership and responsibility.

Responsibilities of a Military Police Captain may include:

  • Commanding and controlling company-sized Military Police units (100-200 Soldiers)
  • Coordinate the employment of Military Police Soldiers at all levels of command, from company to division level and beyond, in U.S. and multi-national operations
  • Instruct Military Police skills at service schools and combat training centers

Article Last Modified: February 20, 2011

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