Certificate in Applied Financial Services

at Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) Canada

Collect, distribute, treat and manage our most valuable resource
Freshwater is the planet's most important resource. It's necessary to sustain life, cultivate food and generate power. Although 70% of the Earth's surface is covered by water, less than 1% of it is freshwater. This natural scarcity, coupled with an increasingly environmentally-conscious society, has created a strong demand for highly skilled, well-trained professionals in the field of water management.
The NAIT Water and Wastewater Technician program – the only such program in Alberta – is designed to provide you with the important skills necessary for a rewarding career in this growing industry.

Hands-on, industry-relevant skills
In this program, you'll be instructed in the fields of water treatment, water distribution, wastewater collection and wastewater treatment. You'll experience a combination of traditional classroom delivery, self-study and tutor-supported activities.
Hands-on training in labs will help you develop the skills to maintain and operate mechanical equipment, treat water and enter the workforce prepared and ready to go.

By the time you graduate, you'll have a better understanding of:

• Basic chemistry, math and electricity
• Water and wastewater treatment processes
• The operation and maintenance of water distribution and wastewater collection systems
• Hydraulics
• Blueprint reading

The new Automotive Service Technology diploma is a unique opportunity to get the technical and career essential skills you need to succeed in the automotive industry. It can also serve as a pathway to apprenticeship.

This two-year diploma provides exposure to new trends and technologies. Once you complete the program, you will have the knowledge, skills and hands-on experience in dynamic shop environments to diagnose vehicle systems, and repair and maintain vehicles.

The diploma program offers a direct pathway into trades training at NAIT without having to first be a registered apprentice. After graduating, you will be eligible to enter the job market having all apprenticeship technical training completed.

What You Will Learn
Industry-approved training
A career in the automotive industry calls for an understanding of both technical knowledge and career essential skills.  Learning outcomes for this program include being able to:

• Identify safety hazards and comply with legislation
• Diagnose vehicle systems
• Repair and maintain vehicles
• Select and use tools and equipment for diagnosis and repair of vehicles
• Describe and discuss automotive systems and component operation
• Demonstrate written and verbal communication skills

Careers that leave a lasting impact
Have a passion for building? Civil Engineering Technology is a 2-year diploma program or 2-and-a-half year co-op diploma program through which you’ll learn how to design and manage construction, infrastructure and research projects.

Our curriculum has been developed with industry input to ensure we cover all of the theoretical and practical elements that are essential within the broad field of civil engineering. With the help of hands-on learning and supportive, experienced instruction, you’ll apply computer-aided design & drafting (CADD) systems to civil engineering problems in the areas of:

• Structural design
• Urban services design
• Highway design
• Pavement design
• Geotechnical design
• Project management
• Applied research

Mix creativity, strategic sales and business insight and you’ll get marketing as a result. Marketing requires imagination, keen knowledge of one’s audience and the ability to position products and services against the competition.

In NAIT’s marketing program, you’ll work on practical, hands-on assignments for real-world clients. After completion of our core business courses, you’ll be able to choose 2 electives from a list of 5 course options.

Our 2-year diploma program has been developed in consultation with industry partners and will immerse you in dynamic group-work on real world projects with real clients.

Pursue a field in marketing where ideas are king, and every day is different.

What You Will Learn
Hands-on, industry-relevant skills
In your first year of the program, you will take 10 common courses with other business students, in order to gain foundational core business knowledge. In the second year of studies, you’ll take the required courses to get a specialized marketing diploma upon graduation.

We immerse students in a combination of classroom teaching, industry-relevant case work, simulations and networking. You will develop an understanding of modern business dynamics and learn to work well within culturally diverse organizations

The BBA with Entrepreneurship and Innovation emphasis will help you grow your entrepreneurial mindset and develop skills that are essential to transform business. You'll be led through business ventures from the ground up, focusing on how to create financially, ethically and environmentally sustainable solutions in the marketplace. You'll have the ability to collaborate creatively, apply logic to problems, and complex inductive reasoning in an immersive setting. All entrepreneurship and innovation related courses have prerequisites, so it is important to carefully plan the order of studies.

The Digital Media and IT (DMIT) program is multi-disciplinary in its approach. Spanning a range of career opportunities from business analyst to visual designer, this innovative program allows you the ability to meet industry demand while developing skills aligned with your individual talents and inclinations.

As an Information Technology (IT) System Administrator, you could be responsible for implementing and maintaining data infrastructure and providing IT solutions that deliver value to an organization.

This program will show you what you need to know in order to get started in this highly sought after profession.

What You Will Learn
Hands-on, industry-relevant skills
In the IT System Administrator area of emphasis, you will learn how to plan, install, upgrade and configure computer operating systems along with essential software applications and services, including:

• Vital data network services (DHCP, DNS and Active Directory Services)
• Virus and patch-management services
• Web, SharePoint, deployment and remote desktop servers

These courses will teach you how to identify requirements for data network infrastructure services based on functionality, resource utilization, capacity and growth, security, ease of use and maintenance activities. You will also learn how to specify, order, install and connect hardware based on those requirements.

You will leave this program with the skills necessary to determine and document software, roles, features, settings and parameters required to maintain a reliable and manageable IT environment.

Co-op Opportunities
As a result of DMIT's close connection with industry, various co-op opportunities exist for students in the DMIT program. Many companies offer our students paid co-op positions that provide direct experience in specific areas of study. Co-op is also seen as a staffing strategy for many organizations.

Instrumentation Engineering Technology (IET) is a nationally accredited program that provides a comprehensive course of studies in industrial measurement and control.
With a provincial economy that is largely industrial-based, instrumentation has become an extremely important field. Industries are also becoming increasingly automated to improve productivity, conserve energy, and reduce pollution. This has created a strong demand for trained professionals in the instrumentation technology field across industries ranging from industrial automation and electronics to oil and gas.

In the Instrumentation Engineering Technology program, you can expect to gain the knowledge and skills needed for a successful career in instrumentation technology. The program involves detailed studies of the principles and application of pneumatic, electronic, and microcomputer measurement and control systems.
Access to state-of-the-art laboratories and a hands-on approach to learning provide students with job-ready experience.

Skills you will acquire
Over the course of the program, you will learn how to:

• Apply principles of process control to analyze and optimize the performance of industrial processes.
• Install and maintain process instruments.
• Install and maintain analytical instruments and sampling systems.
• Configure and troubleshoot industrial  controllers.
• Install, program and troubleshoot industrial controllers.
• Design and specify measurement, safety and control systems for industrial applications.
• Use computer hardware and software relevant to instrumentation.
• Work in a safe and professional manner following regulatory and industry specific work practices.
• Communicate effectively through written and verbal means.
• Use tools appropriate to the instrumentation field in a safe and effective matter.
• Participate as a member of an effective team

Practicum/Co-op/Work Experience
Students may be eligible to participate in a 4 or 8 month co-op placement once they complete all level 1 courses, and before they complete all the level 2 courses. Successful co-op students work in a program-related industry position and gain advanced job-readiness skills. Acceptance into our co-op program is based on successful completion of first term coursework with a minimum GPA of 2.7.

The Combined Laboratory and X-Ray Technology program is unique in that students are trained in both the medical laboratory and x-ray disciplines, practicing predominantly in rural communities. On completion of their training, graduates are able to perform general medical laboratory procedures, general diagnostic radiographic procedures, and electrocardiograms. Students also receive training on information systems and technology in the medical laboratory and diagnostic imaging departments.

What You Will Learn
Hands-on, industry-relevant training
Students attend classes full-time at NAIT for a total of 2 years where they will learn and practice the skills required to be a registered CLXT.

Year 1 of the Combined Laboratory and X-Ray Technology program begins every September and consists of 38 weeks of lectures and hands-on labs that align with current industry standards. This includes two 15-week semesters, and one 8-week intersession located at the NAIT Main Campus.

Upon completion of year 1, the student progresses to an affiliated rural clinical site to complete 40 weeks of Work Integrated Learning (WIL). Students will train alongside technologists where they will apply the knowledge learned in year one and continue to develop their critical thinking and professionalism skills while providing high quality patient care. Scheduled shifts during clinical training will include evenings, nights and weekend days.

Individuals will work alone or alongside physicians, other technologists, nurses and non-medical personnel. The ability to work independently and/or closely with others are important requirements for an effective Combined Lab and X-Ray technologist.

The healthcare industry continues to see a rapid increase in the usage of advanced medical diagnostic and therapeutic equipment to provide the highest level of patient care possible. As our dependence on high-tech equipment and technical expertise required by medical professionals increases, so have the technology-related risks to patients and clinical staff.

Biomedical engineering technologist careers have evolved to help manage technology-related risks in the health-care industry through the entire lifecycle of medical devices, including specification, inspection, calibration, repair and maintenance, and technical troubleshooting.

The Biomedical Engineering Technology program will provide you with fundamental knowledge and hands-on experience with electronics, microcontroller applications, computer network systems and medical imaging systems. You'll also become familiar with medical laboratory practices, anatomy, physiology and health technology management.

What You Will Learn
Hands-on, industry-relevant training
The Biomedical Engineering Technology program will provide you with the skills of an electronic technologist with a specialized focus on biomedical equipment technology.
In your first year of study you will learn about electronics, microcontroller programming, math and computer systems. 

• Biomedical instrumentation
• X-ray and diagnostic imaging equipment
• Medical laboratory instrumentation

Supplementary courses in anatomy and physiology and medical equipment management complete the medical specialization.

Co-op
Students may be eligible to participate in a one semester co-op placement between their first and second year of training. Successful co-op students work in a program related, industry position and gain advanced job-readiness skills. Acceptance into co-op requires successful completion of first term coursework with a GPA of 2.3. 

NAIT's Bachelor of Technology degree is the only program of its kind in Alberta and one of just a few similar programs in Canada. If you've graduated with a recognized 2-year technology diploma, the BTech program offers the opportunity to earn a baccalaureate degree with 2 additional years of study.

The BTech degree has been developed to help you bridge the gap between the job you started as a technologist and a career in management. We've received industry demand for leading-edge technologists who have the technical theory, innovative skills, and ethical and social awareness required for sustainable industry. We have also been challenged to prepare critical-thinking practitioners who are able to address technological challenges in today's economy.

What You Will Learn
Hands-on, industry-relevant skills
In the Bachelor of Technology (BTech) program, you'll build on your strong technical background, adding leadership and critical-thinking skills you'll need to take on management and supervisory roles. You'll gain a global perspective, focusing on social, economic and environmental issues.

You'll also develop skills in:

• Innovation, transition and change management
• Effective multi-media communications
• Planning and strategy development
• Staffing and supervision
• Critical thinking and problem-solving