Certificate in Pre-Health Sciences Pathway to Certificates and Diplomas

at Durham College - Oshawa Campus Canada

As one of the top ten in demand professions in Canada, public relations professionals, including communications and media relations specialists, share vital messages through attention-grabbing writing, video, social media, special events and fundraising campaigns. Regardless of the field – sports, fashion, music, television or health-care – a creative PR professional is an essential part of any successful business or non-profit organization. In this growing industry our graduates are highly sought after and enjoy a wide range of career opportunities. The hands-on curriculum includes two unique field placements. Durham College is the only compressed program in Ontario, which allows graduates to enter the workforce in just two calendar years.

Professionals with knowledge in international business can help organizations understand marketing, law, trade and finance as they apply to the global village we live in. As a professional in this field you may investigate, analyze, administer and manage human, physical and operational resources, as well as complex strategic and practical management issues. In particular, you will gain skills in strategic decision-making, and conducting operational and marketing analysis for business firms on a global scale. Graduates of this program often work on cross-functional and global project teams in order to serve their clients.

Durham College is a Platinum Accredited Partner of the Forum for International Trade Training (FITT – www.FITTforTrade.com). This partnership means that Durham College offers an international business program that has been validated by FITT as meeting their high standard of industry excellence. Students registered in our FITT-accredited program have a direct link to FITT and its full range of global trade credentials.

We continue to see dramatic shifts in how people consume digital media, influencing the way we communicate, work, play, and shop. Each day we are exposed to thousands of messages competing for our attention. Every message attempts to inform and influence our decision-making and ultimately our behaviour. This graduate program is designed for those with a curiosity and passion for all things digital media – it explores how digital applications and platforms are used to build successful brands. Students gain experience working with real businesses to create impactful digital plans and content that will engage and build strong consumer connections.

For students who want the best of both worlds, this joint Durham College and Ontario Tech University (Ontario Tech) diploma-to-degree program will enable you to earn your diploma and degree in only four years. Learning from industry-connected professors, you will develop your knowledge of accounting using the latest tools and technology in order to gain the skills employers need. You will be exposed to QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, Sage 50 and Profile. You will also have the opportunity to earn Microsoft Office specialist certifications. Experience the best of both learning environments while on the journey to a career in accounting.

Helping people of all ages to engage in recreation and leisure programs and events is at the heart of a career in recreation and leisure. This program provides you with the skills and experience to start your career in government, non-profit and commercial recreation organizations. You will learn how to use industry-standard records management software. With an interesting blend of management training, program and event planning, implementation, and evaluation, and customer service, recreation and leisure professionals provide healthy, well-rounded lifestyle opportunities for community members to connect, play, and grow.

This popular program provides students with the leadership skills and training required to strategically plan, implement, evaluate and manage programs for community members of all ages and abilities, prepare budgets, raise funds, manage staff, and market activities with teams of volunteers and other recreation and leisure service providers.
As a graduate, you can pursue an exciting and rewarding career offering recreation programs to community members of all ages and abilities. As such, you will study:

• Community development
• Facility management
• Fundraising for sport
• Outdoor recreation
• Program and event management
• Recreation for diverse populations

You will have the opportunity to obtain HIGH FIVE certifications in Principles of Healthy Child Development (PHCD) and Quality Experience Scanning Tool 2 (QUEST 2) from Parks and Recreation Ontario, as well as other workshops and certifications embedded within the program. In addition, you will learn about Active Network and Intelligenz recreation management software, which is used extensively in the Canadian recreation industry.

This joint Durham College and Ontario Tech University (Ontario Tech) diploma-to-degree program will enable you to earn both credentials in only four years. Experience the best of both learning environments while on the journey to a rewarding career in the computer systems technician field.

In today’s world of personal computers, networking and applications, computer systems technicians are in high demand. After acquiring the expertise required to build, maintain and repair the latest in technology, you will test-drive new ideas and restore old favourites to working order. You will learn in state-of-the-art labs from professors who are connected to industry. This program is built on partnerships with some of the most influential names in networking today, including Cisco, IBM and Microsoft.

An education in journalism provides excellent training in critical thinking, writing and presenting ideas while preparing students for one of the most interesting careers imaginable. Armed with very transferable knowledge, skills and experience, journalism graduates go on to write and deliver stories on all written and broadcast platforms. Students also develop an array of social media skills and undergo experiential learning through the program’s ‘working newsroom’, before moving on to a seven-week field placement, applying their skills in a professional environment. Students taking the Journalism advanced diploma program will have an additional four-week field placement at the end of the sixth semester.

This program embraces the broad changes occurring in the media landscape and offers a progressive curriculum that will allow you to focus on development of journalism, social media skills and content creation on all platforms – online, print and broadcast. Students in the Journalism – Mass Media program will develop the essential skills, knowledge, and behaviours required to work in this progressive, critical profession. In their first year, students are introduced to the core journalism skills and learn how society functions both locally and globally. In their second year, students focus on creating content for all media platforms and undergoing experiential learning through our ‘working newsroom’'.

Due to the constant evolution of technology and the increasing development of new platforms of communication, traditional media professions such as journalism are facing new opportunities, as well as new challenges. Changes in the delivery methods of traditional news have forced journalists and others within the journalism industry to change how they do their jobs. For instance, journalists can now collect information with their phones and deliver stories directly to multiple platforms.

Graduates will have developed skills in: broadcasting, reporting, interviewing, editing, writing, content creation and media production, teamwork and critical thinking. You will have knowledge of applicable legislation, standards and professional ethics, and recognize the importance of continuous learning. More specifically, you will gain a clear understanding of the impact of digital technology on journalism and will be able to respond and adapt effectively and efficiently to technological changes.

Upon successful completion of this program you will have opportunities at an entry-level in a wide variety of news organizations and as content creators for a variety of private companies and public organizations, such as school boards, hospitals and governments. Graduates will have the skills to perform a range of tasks, including:
Writing local, national and international news through interviews and research

• Writing news stories for publication and/or broadcast
• Editing, analyzing and verifying information for accuracy
• Researching and conducting interviews for broadcast, online and print
• Applying production skills and using equipment to create content for a range of platforms
• Using social media platforms to engage audiences
• Planning and designing editorial content to meet a mass communications strategy for a client

Durham’s Journalism – Mass Media program has successfully covered the campus and community since 1974. It has an ongoing history of excellence, winning Ontario Community Newspaper Association honours on a regular basis. Our graduates have a track record of producing quality work across Canada – for news organizations such as CBC, CTV and TSN and in communities from British Columbia to Nova Scotia. Grads have also earned careers as content creators and social media coordinators for companies, agencies and institutions.

NOTE: Students enrolling in this program are required to purchase their own laptop. 

If you have an interest in helping others in an oral health care setting and becoming a valued member of a dental team in your community, this may be the profession for you. Students will acquire knowledge, skills and training in the professional behavior necessary to work as a Level II dental assistant, providing education and care in a variety of dental settings.

There is growing disconnect between humans and the environment, but well-trained environmental technologists are looking for solutions as pressures from population, industry and society continue to stress our ecosystem. Equipped with knowledge rooted in an evolving priority of sustainability that is grounded in risk and analytical testing, technologists provide innovative ways to reduce human impact on the environment and work towards a more sustainable way of living.

This dynamic program focuses on the chemical and biological sciences as they relate to environmental pollution. An emphasis is placed on ground and surface water quality, soil and waste management and recycling in urban and industrial settings. You will also examine environmental regulations and review their social and economic impacts on communities.

Training and experience in the handling, analysis and monitoring of a wide variety of biological and chemical parameters linked to pollution are at the heart of this program. First-hand field work and laboratory experience is emphasized in areas such as:

• Analytical chemistry
• Environmental chemistry
• Environmental Sampling
• Environmental stewardship
• Instrumental analysis
• Microbiology

Environmental problems and concerns are constantly changing and at Durham College we aim to adapt in order to stay at the leading edge of these changes. Statistics Canada has identified environmental technology as one of the top emerging employment sectors.

Co-operative education (co-op):
The best way to succeed in your field is to immerse yourself in it! Co-op is an excellent way to build your professional network, explore career paths and apply in-class teachings to real work situations. Co-op is a model of education that integrates academic learning with workplace learning in fields relevant to our students’ academic and personal goals. Similar to an academic course, work terms are a mandatory component to this form of experiential learning.

Students in the Environmental Technology Advanced Diploma program will be invited to apply to the co-op option during their first academic semester. Entrance to the co-op option is limited and the processes for securing a work term are competitive. Students who qualify for co-op will be eligible to complete two four-month, paid work terms totalling 840 hours. Work terms are scheduled between semesters two and three and four and five of the program.

Supports are available through the Co-op office to assist students with securing their work terms. In addition, the Co-op office is in contact with co-op students and their employers during the work terms to help with any questions.

Most consumer products are created in a laboratory or industrial setting where the quality of the raw materials is monitored. Chemical laboratory technicians work in a supporting role using testing methodologies to assure quality with chemical manufacturers, pharmaceutical and food ingredient companies, energy producers and the emerging green product sector. One of the few two-year science-based diploma programs at Ontario colleges, the Chemical Laboratory Technician program will provide you with foundational knowledge in many different disciplines to open the door to the career of your dreams.

Students spend almost half of their course time in the laboratories, learning to operate state-of-the-art analytical instruments such as gas chromatographs, atomic absorption spectrometers and fluorometers, while building core wet chemistry skills. Once you have successfully completed the first year, or the entire two-year diploma, there is also the opportunity to specialize towards a specific industry by completing the remaining coursework for some of our three-year advanced diplomas.