Diploma in Comedy Writing and Performance

at Humber College - Lakeshore Campus Canada

The truth-telling role of journalism has never been more important than it is today. Humber’s Bachelor of Journalism degree program helps you develop all of the skills you will need to report on the biggest and most compelling stories in your community and around the world. Journalism is the perfect field for students with a desire to inform and engage the public. In addition to traditional skills like critical thinking, researching, reporting and interviewing, you will also learn how to use audio, text, video, and photos to create compelling online stories for a wide range of digital platforms.

You will study both the theoretical and practical aspects of journalism, and you’ll do it using the latest industry-standard hardware and software in Humber’s Newsroom. You will have access to and learn from instructors with deep and varied journalism experience. You will have the chance to pursue your interests with journalism classes that will teach you to cover sports, arts, politics, lifestyle and more. Breadth education electives will help you expand your knowledge in a variety of areas.

Our program has been designed with input from journalists and media professionals ensuring that it provides the skills required for a wide variety of journalism careers.

Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:

• Write and edit content for a variety of story forms and web-based applications.
• Interview contacts and sources for a variety of media applications.
• Examine and apply various journalistic and academic research methods assessing the credibility of international sources.
• Analyze media theory and the role of the media in society.
• Adhere to professional and ethical codes of conduct, guidelines and legal requirements.
• Produce images and content for web-based applications.
• Demonstrate critical and creative thinking skills.
• Analyze society’s fundamental systems (political, legal, social diversity) and their connections to the journalistic world.
• Analyze media law and journalistic responsibility.
• Critique and analyze media practices and products.
• Develop entrepreneurial skills related to the business of journalism.
• Develop a portfolio of journalistic projects for work search purposes.
• Establish a professional media identity based on an analysis of personal interests, opportunities, benefits, risks, marketing, strategies and audience.
• Demonstrate conflict management strategies and negotiation skills required in journalistic work.
• Work effectively and assertively in teams to achieve desired goals and resolve differing or opposing ideas and points of view.

Work Placement

• You will complete a 14-week work placement in the summer between years three and four. This placement provides an opportunity to gain experience in your chosen field and to meet professionals in journalism and digital communications settings. Many of the placements are offered in the Greater Toronto Area, a hub for Canada’s media industry. The work settings and the work itself support your professional development and will provide you with both the knowledge and skills required to enter the profession, as well as the confidence to perform the work required.

Humber’s Bachelor of Commerce - International Business degree program will help you develop the knowledge and applied skills you need to carve out a career not only in a multinational company but also in nimble, fast-paced small- and medium-sized businesses and entrepreneurial ventures. Our program combines a balanced approach to teaching business featuring case studies, problem solving, modelling and data analytics in support of decision-making. Course content, skill-building activities and writing and applied projects maintain a strong focus on the three pillars of international business: marketing, finance and operations.

Our program starts with a foundation of business studies in areas such as consumer behaviour, micro and macroeconomics, finance and accounting, law, marketing, and operations management. Specialization courses in international business will give you the opportunity to gain practical skills through applied projects such as creating a full business and strategic plan to launch a business in an external market. You will gain experience developing processes from concept through to execution. Examples of specialization courses include Intercultural Communications, International Finance, Supply Chain Management and International Logistics, International Marketing, International Trade Law, and Strategic Business Analytics.

You will learn from experienced professors and a network of industry professionals who provide feedback and evaluation on industry projects. 

Work Placement
The program requires that you complete 14 weeks/420 hours of paid work during your work placement term in the summer between your sixth and seventh semesters. This gives you the hands-on, real-world experience that employers value. Your placement will give you the opportunity to explore the field you’d like to work in when you graduate. We will work with employers and our industry partners to help you identify opportunities to pursue.

The Advertising - Art Direction Graduate Certificate is designed to arm you with a comprehensive understanding of advertising art direction, design and copywriting combined with marketing, branding and strategy development. This combination of skills enables students to create effective communication and advertising solutions across a wide range of media – both emerging and traditional

Learning Outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
  • Conduct secondary research to derive insights for proposed advertising and marketing solutions.
  • Create a campaign that influences the attitudes and behaviours of a described target audience evidenced by identified metrics of campaign success.
  • Analyze the social, cultural, political, economic, psychological, technological, and historical influences on current practices and emerging trends in art direction to design creative advertising campaigns.
  • Complete all work in a professional, ethical and timely manner.
  • Express concepts, ideas, information, brand stories and research insights presented through verbal and visual techniques appropriate to the audience.
  • Collaborate in professional team environments to produce and present creative solutions to client challenges.
  • Self-assess to identify the lessons available in failure and the place of critique in the improvement process.
  • Develop a showcase portfolio to represent industry ready competency in art direction.
  • Generate visual content for use in various media channels that aligns with the creative brief and is in compliance with legislation, industry standards and accepted business practices.
  • Question assumptions and biases through listening, reading and observing critically to validate the intentions of a proposed advertising solution prior to presentation

Humber’s Advertising Media Management graduate certificate program gives you the knowledge and skills to effectively research and analyze both the marketplace and a target audience, and subsequently develop the best and most creative media solutions that meet the client or the company’s advertising goals.

Throughout the program, you will learn how to translate marketing objectives into focused media campaigns, assess the strength and weaknesses of different media types, analyze media data, and determine how best to sell advertising time/space for both traditional (TV, radio, outdoor media, print) and emerging (all things digital) platforms.

Upon graduation, you will have learned how to speak knowledgeably and persuasively in a media environment, and how to negotiate as buyers and sellers of media time and space. Through the enhancement of your client and customer communications skills, you will gain the ability to focus on the needs of an organization, build lasting relationships across the industry and add tremendous value to the companies you work with.  Finally, you will build your technology skillset through the use of industry specific research databases and softwares throughout your studies.

With this comprehensive understanding of both the traditional and digital media landscape, you will hit the ground running in your new career at a boutique or world leading advertising agency or any number of small to large companies across the media management landscape. 

Work Placement
Gain hands-on industry experience with a 160-hour (minimum) work placement. Here you will have the opportunity to apply what you’ve learned in the classroom to a real-world business environment. With our support, you’ll find your placement at any number of local, national or international advertising/media-related companies or brands. Placements can be completed on a part-time basis throughout the academic year or full-time once your classes are complete. 

Humber’s Introduction to Commercial Jazz Music certificate is a performance-based program designed to help you assess and strengthen your skills. It solidifies your knowledge of the fundamentals of western music and develops your current performance skills through the jazz-specific areas of improvisation, repertoire development and small group ensemble performance. You will emerge from the program with a clearer understanding of the field and your own career potential within it, and as a stronger candidate for entry into postsecondary music degree and diploma programs. All courses have a particular focus on the commercial jazz field.

Learning Outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
  • Recognize & identify common styles of music.
  • Describe the commercial/jazz field in terms of tradition, artists, & styles.
  • Explain the contribution of various artists to the development of particular styles & idioms.
  • Analyze the components & performance differences of recorded selections.
  • Play a repertoire of memorized materials that are considered standards in the commercial/jazz field & reflect the various styles inherent in this music.
  • Write diatonic melodies in various styles demonstrating knowledge of relevant harmonic & melodic concepts & structures of form.
  • Perform in an ensemble demonstrating basic ensemble skills such as intonation, tuning, time, feel, balance & dynamics.
  • Identify their own musical strengths & weaknesses in terms of a performance career in the commercial/jazz field.
  • Implement strategies & plans for on-going personal & professional growth & development.
  • Establish a practice of critical self-assessment & professional goal setting.

Humber’s Acting for Film and Television diploma program covers the full spectrum of training needed to succeed as a screen actor: acting, voice, movement, improvisation, screenwriting and script analysis. You’ll learn what it takes to express yourself through the art and craft of screen acting, gain on-camera confidence and learn how to shine at auditions. When you graduate, you’ll have a solid understanding of the craft and industry – its history, protocols and professional standards.

Our program has one of the most comprehensive curricula in Canada and is taught by respected professional actors. Workshop simulations, screen demos, voice-over demos and our spring motion picture showcase provide you with unequalled opportunities to experience the world of screen acting. You will review and discuss your work with some of the acting world’s most recognizable faces, as well as with key industry personnel.

Learning Outcomes:

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
• Describe the structure of the film and television industry.
• Perform to a professional standard in a range of roles recorded in a variety of media.
• Analyze and interpret scripts, screenplays, story boards and commercial copy.
• Summarize the different requirements and challenges of one-time versus series work.
• Explain the characteristics and requirements of different genres such as sitcoms, daytime TV, episodic TV and film.
• Prepare for and perform appropriately on camera for each genre.
• Convey character to the camera with appropriate emotional depth and clarity.
• Maintain a character’s physical and emotional continuity over the course of production.
• Work effectively with agents, casting directors, producers, directors and film crews.
• Respond to the improvisational demands of the media.
• Demonstrate individual creativity and imagination within a rigorous production structure.
• Evaluate his or her place within the entertainment industry and develop the appropriate career strategies and contacts.
• Develop team building and communication skills and engage in exercises that encourage self understanding, peer respect and professional behaviors.
• Outline the entrepreneurial skills needed by actors in the electronic media.
• Work effectively with the new technologies encountered in the industry.

Humber’s Media Communications diploma program is designed to meet industry demands within multi-faceted areas of the communications industry. Students graduate with a diverse range of marketable skills in photography, graphic design, web design and writing, social media, and videography.

In the program, you will learn how to:

• Be effective transmedia storytellers across multiple platforms
• Produce corporate video and audio for the web and other applications
• Design, write for and edit effective websites
• Shoot professional photographic images in both the studio and on location environments
• Create and edit content using current software applications such as Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator and Premiere Pro
• Learn how to establish, operate and market your business through a course in freelance and project management
• Research, write and design communications such as media kits, blogs and brochures

Courses are designed with industry input, ensuring you are learning current and relevant information in state-of-the-art labs from industry experts – people who know the trends and effective methods of communications.

The first semester of this program is shared with the two-year Advertising and Graphic Design diploma, the three-year Journalism advanced diploma, the two-year Advertising and Marketing Communications diploma, and the three-year Public Relations advanced diploma programs, allowing the flexibility to continue in any of these five programs in second semester.

Learning Outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
  • Perform the duties, tasks and activities required of a media communications specialist in business, government and the not-for-profit sectors.
  • Research and gather information in print, audio and visual formats for communications’ products and strategies.
  • Analyze clients’ communications needs and implement solutions for business, government and the not-for-profit sectors.
  • Create audio, visual and print communications according to the client’s purpose and audience.
  • Design and create content for websites, using current software applications.
  • Capture, scan, download, save, store, and manipulate digital images using current software applications.
  • Produce corporate video and audio using current software applications.
  • Create and manage content for presentations at in-house meetings and media conferences.
  • Adhere to ethical and legal guidelines in communications practice.
  • Maintain professional relationships with business associates and clients.
  • Develop a portfolio of communications’ products and strategies for a variety of projects and audiences.

Work Placement
Students will participate in a mandatory work placement which takes place in the last semester of study. During that time, students hone their skills in professional environments, developing digital communication solutions. They build complete portfolios which, when they graduate, have them standing out from their competitors as corporate communications professionals.

By combining the latest recording technologies and entrepreneurial business strategies with performance, production, songwriting and composition in jazz, pop, R&B, Latin and world music, you will be well equipped with the knowledge and skills needed for success in today’s music world.

Founded in 1972, the program has consistently produced many of the most successful commercial and jazz musicians in Canada and the world. With more than 350 students and a faculty of 18 full-time and 80 part-time teachers, our program is one of the largest, most diverse and highly regarded programs of its kind in the country. Long known for the strength of its professors, Humber offers you the opportunity to study privately, in classroom situations, and in several of the more than 50 ensembles directed by a who’s who of Canadian music. As Toronto is the centre of Canada’s entertainment industry, Humber attracts the top professionals in jazz, musical theatre, television, film, commercials and pop.

After two years of core music courses, you will continue with lessons on your major instrument, as well as take classes in music production and music business while also choosing from electives in arranging, composition, advanced improvisation, film scoring, music production techniques, songwriting, ethnomusicology or pedagogy.

You’ll develop musicianship and artistry by presenting your own recital, arranging and composing original material, and recording and marketing your own music.
In addition, you will take courses in music history, theory, aural training and improvisation, and have the opportunity to participate in a variety of ensembles.

All students complete a major recording project/portfolio in their fourth year. The assembled portfolio, which includes a complete press kit and professional-quality recording, as well as other promotional materials, functions as your calling card for entrance into the music industry upon graduation.

Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:

• Perform, compose, produce music at a professional level for entry to the competitive, global music industry.
• Demonstrate a knowledge of diverse musical styles and contextualize themselves within contemporary music history: specifically defined as the idioms of African American musical genres, mainstream pop music, country/folk music, Latin music, music for musicals and film, art music and jazz.
• Demonstrate, through performance and composition, a technical and musical mastery of harmonic, melodic and rhythmic structures.
• Demonstrate, through performance, an extensive knowledge of contemporary musical repertoire and apply appropriate performance skills in diverse music contexts.
• Compose and arrange in a broad range of contemporary music styles.
• Prepare and present a portfolio of recorded material reflecting a broad range of styles.
• Record, edit and produce a broad range of contemporary music.
• Apply computer applications/music technology skills in composition, arranging and production.
• Critically analyze and evaluate sound recordings and describe their production characteristics.
• Demonstrate, through production and performance, organizational, project management, and implementation skills.
• Demonstrate leadership, teamwork, communication, critical thinking, research and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrate a working knowledge of contract law, copyright law, intellectual property rights, royalties, and rules of public domain.
• Make use of entrepreneurial music business skills to engage in the competitive contemporary music industry.
• Demonstrate professional “freelance” etiquette relating to job seeking and keeping skills.
• Demonstrate an ability to research and present findings from primary and secondary sources.
• Formulate, articulate and present their own ideas about music, art and society through discussion and writings.
• Demonstrate an artistic awareness and understanding of musical aesthetics.
• Assess personal strengths, musical and business skills, knowledge, artistic vision, interests, and abilities.

Work Placement

• You will participate in a work placement designed to mirror the professional music world, which is largely characterized by contract, freelance and part-time employment. You are responsible for accumulating the equivalent of 420 hours of experience which will allow you to establish contacts and relationships with key companies and industry professionals.

Humber’s Bachelor of International Development degree program is an interdisciplinary program that provides you with a solid theoretical foundation in sustainable international development studies and its related disciplines, as well as professional and technical skills in development management. The program is designed specifically to bridge the gap between theory and practice by building hands-on project management skills and capabilities. The program fosters a comparative understanding of developed and developing countries - countries of the global North and South - through directed study, analytical research and opportunities to travel that provide cross-cultural learning experiences.

Your core courses, in which you’ll develop professional competencies, include four streams: international development studies, supplementary disciplines, management skills and research skills.

Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:

• Describe and critically evaluate the values, key theoretical approaches and concepts in international development.
• Demonstrate critical thinking in relation to international development policy and practice.
• Analyze international development through a variety of disciplinary lenses.
• Examine the roles and responsibilities of various actors within the field of international development.
• Design, plan, implement and evaluate international development projects using a variety of methodologies.
• Examine and apply various qualitative and quantitative research methods and assess the appropriateness of their use.
• Implement effective management of key financial, information and other resources associated with international development projects.
• Exercise initiative, personal responsibility and accountability in personal, professional and group contexts related to international development.
• Analyze cross-cutting themes of gender and environmental sustainability and their effects on international development projects.
• Communicate and work effectively in diverse environments.
• Critically analyze the practical and ethical implications of doing international development work across borders and cultures.
• Critically examine political, social and economic behaviours of various societies and their impact on sustainable international development.

Work Placement

• The 14-week/420-hour work placement is from May to August following Semester 6. A placement advisor will support your efforts to find a position that fits your academic and career goals. Your placement will give you the opportunity to explore the field of international development, as well as gain the hands-on, real-world experience that employers value.  We will work with employers and our partners to help you identify the best opportunities to pursue.

Humber’s Social Service Worker diploma program prepares you to work with people in a professional helping role. Approaching your education from an individual and a community perspective, you will learn how to empower and advocate for people to meet their goals and to access needed services and programs.

Skilled, committed faculty with real-life work experience in the human services field teach with a focus on promoting equity and addressing barriers people face on the basis of race, class, disabilities, gender or sexual orientation.

You will study topics such as human behaviour and development; interpersonal, interviewing and counselling skills; family dynamics; legislation and social policy; and how to work effectively with groups and communities. You will develop the skills needed to intervene in crisis situations and to work with a broad range of people including those experiencing poverty, settlement challenges, domestic violence, mental health issues and substance abuse, post-traumatic stress, and other challenging life events.

Work Placement

• You will work with a field placement co-ordinator to align two unpaid field placements with one of our community partners.
• Your first-year field placement begins in the January semester and your second-year field placement runs throughout the academic year. Field placements are two days per week. You will have the opportunity to experience a full work week in Semesters 2, 3, and 4.