Diploma in Computer Automated Systems Technician

at Saskatchewan Polytechnic Canada

Innovative. Idea-driven. Important. Graphic communications revolutionized society with the printing press. Now it’s leading a new revolution into the digital age. It’s an industry of team players who combine artistic, technical, and entrepreneurial talents to get the job done. It could be the career for you.

Saskatchewan Polytechnic's Graphic Communications diploma program will challenge you both creatively and technically. Our training ensures you meet national skills standards set out by the Canadian Printing Industries Sector Council. You’ll graduate with the kind of practical, hands-on skills you need to succeed—in both traditional and digital printing environments, as well as publishing, advertising, design, and communications.

Graphics Communications is a two-year diploma program offered full-time at Saskatchewan Polytechnic Regina campus. Come here to develop practical, hands-on skills in electronic file management, industry-standard software applications, and print management, production, and administration. This includes training in:

• Colour copier operation
• Colour theory and colour management
• Design and typography
• Digital photography
• Hydraulic cutter operation and maintenance
• Image editing and page layout
• Industry-standard software and hardware systems
• Logos, graphs, vector graphics, PDF creation
• Mixing inks
• Preflighting, proofing and output methods
• Screen printing
• Sheetfed offset press operation and maintenance
• Wide-format printing
• Vnyl decal/sticker creatio

Machinists are in high demand in western Canada—from the oil patch to power utilities, from manufacturing facilities to mines, mills and chemical plants. The job demands both problem-solving and creativity to machine parts to blueprint specifications.

Saskatchewan Polytechnic's Machinist certificate program can fast-track you into the workforce, and give you a head start on apprenticeship. You’ll need good computer skills, math skills and be comfortable working in industrial settings.

Machinist is a one-year certificate program offered in Saskatoon and Regina. You’ll learn on a variety of machine tools in Saskatchewan Polytechnic’s well-equipped shops including lathes, mills, drill presses, surface grinders, CNC lathes and machining centres. You’ll also learn online, blended training for the CNC course, and participate in an industry-based work experience.

Experienced instructors who understand the demands of industrial workplaces, from maintaining workflow to working safely, will help you build knowledge and skills in:

• Blueprint reading, technical drawing, precision measurement
• Communications and applied math
• Computer numerical control (CNC)
• Drilling machine operations
• Grinding and sawing operations
• Heat treatment processes
• Lathe operations
• Materials selection
• Milling machine operations

In Saskatchewan, 4 out of every 10 people currently working in management are over the age of 55. Retirement is looming for nearly half our management workforce. This reality presents an opportunity for those with the right combination of skills, experience, and education.

The new Bachelor of Applied Management (BAMgt) degree program provides journeypersons and non-business diploma graduates with a unique opportunity to leverage existing education and experience into a bachelor's degree with only two years of additional study.

The BAMgt degree is designed to meet the emerging need for qualified managers by providing you with two years of course credit towards the four-year bachelor's degree. The program provides theoretical knowledge and technical training through applied learning opportunities. You will build knowledge and skills in a wide range of leadership and management disciplines including accountancy, human resource management, business communications, strategic management, leadership development, business analytics, finance, change management, risk management, commercial law, and economics.

The post-graduate certificate in cloud computing and blockchain will prepare students for the challenges of evaluating the feasibility, designing, and implementing cloud-based solutions that fulfill the requirements of specific business cases. Additionally, the program content will provide students with the cognitive and technical skills to evaluate blockchain technologies beyond cryptocurrencies. Therefore, they can design and implement blockchain-based solutions.

The program content is based on the expectation that students will have developed necessary digital-literacy skills, such as online research, sharing information to create knowledge, being responsible online, among others, in their undergraduate information and communication technology degree and that the Cloud Computing and Blockchain post-graduate certificate program will enhance their existing knowledge and skills.

Students will study cloud computing in the following fields:

• Provision of cloud computing, storage, and networking resources
• Security of cloud-based solutions
• Migration of on-premises systems and databases
• Design of hybrid architectures
• Monitoring and auditing of cloud-based solutions
• Cost management and business continuity
• Evaluation and design of cloud-based solutions to save costs and optimize resources

Students will also study blockchain technologies in the following fields:

• The role and impact of cryptocurrencies in our economy
• Evaluation and design of smart contracts
• Analysis of the deployment and operational cost of smart contracts
• Analysis and design of solutions that integrate on-chain and off-chain components
• Evaluation and design of blockchain-based solutions to provide high reliability, transparency, and fault tolerance.

The program structure allows students to experience the challenges and pressures of emerging cloud computing demand in such a way that they can develop their critical thinking to propose cloud-based solutions. The program structure also allows students to study blockchain technologies to identify the need to design solutions that integrate blockchain components.

Computer systems technologists solve computer-related issues for businesses, government agencies, utilities, law enforcement agencies, health services providers, educational institutions and more. It’s a career that demands a unique blend of skills—computer literacy, technical know-how and communications savvy—but also lets you specialize in areas that interest you the most, including programming, software design, mobile application programming, data communications and web design.

The two-year Computer Systems Technology diploma is available full time at Saskatchewan Polytechnic Saskatoon campus, with a number of courses also available through distance and/or continuing education. Comprehensive technical training gives you a solid foundation of theory and hands-on lab practice in:

• Designing, installing and managing local area networks
• Developing computer programs in various programming languages
• Developing interactive web pages with multimedia components
• Developing proficiency in several common computer application packages
• Installing and configuring computer hardware and software
• Performing systems analysis and design
• Programming apps for mobile devices (smart phones, tablets, etc.)
• Providing end-user technical support services
• Troubleshooting and repairing hardware problems

If you want to study more than one post-graduate program at Sask Polytech, you have the option to apply for a post-graduate bundle. With one application you can apply and be accepted into both post-graduate programs.

Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics

The goal of the program is to prepare internationally-educated graduates with degrees in information and communications technology for the fields of data analysis and machine learning. Humans have always wanted to better understand the massive amounts of currently available and newly gathered data and what that means for future potential.

Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics is the power to analyze and learn about large amounts of data from multiple sources and detect patterns to make future trend predictions. Business and industry benefits from predictive analytics to make decisions about production, marketing and development.

You will study:

• cost and benefit estimation for process change
• conversion of business questions into data mining problems
• enterprise data architecture and associated technologies
• strategies to leverage the popular data science language Python
• importance of business intelligence to the modern enterprise
• application of artificial intelligence (AI) application programming interfaces (APIs) to business applications
• application of algorithms to make predictions that form the foundation of machine learning
• ethical issues surrounding big data
• emerging application of AI to common business areas

Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurial spirit runs deep in Saskatchewan. Our past, present and future is built on innovators and creators--people who want to run their own business, carve their own career path and build a future for their family. The new one-year Entrepreneurship post-graduate certificate will give you the skills, the knowledge, even the beginnings of a professional network to launch your entrepreneurial career.

What sets the Entrepreneurship program apart is our focus on relevant, real-world learning. Get the skills you need to effectively manage a business, from the basics of accounting and finance to human resources, communication, marketing and leadership. Learn about social entrepreneurship and purpose-driven businesses, indigenous entrepreneurship and the role of technology in entrepreneurship.

Saskatchewan Polytechnic is known for our hands-on approach to learning. This means you will have many opportunities for applied learning, including preparing a feasibility analysis, creating an innovative solution to a problem and developing a business plan for a new venture.

Information technology, business software, mobile platforms—information systems are reinventing the way we do business. Computer-savvy people with programming and development skills are in demand in the business world. When your skill set includes training in business solution development, you’re a hot commodity.

Business Information Systems (BIS) is a two-year diploma program offered full-time at Saskatchewan Polytechnic, Moose Jaw Campus. It includes four academic semesters and a six-month paid co-operative education work term.

The Business Information Systems program starts with a solid foundation in business basics with a focus on information technology functions and learning how to use them to develop meaningful business solutions. This includes training in:

• Software development languages (Visual Studio.NET, Java, COBOL);
• Computer hardware, networking and operating systems (Windows, Unix and Linux);
• Data gathering, modeling and database management systems (Oracle, SQL Server 2000);
• Retrieval techniques of databases and programming languages (SQL, PLSQL, ADO.NET, JDBC); and
• Target platforms, including Windows application development, networked software development, web application development (XHTML, JavaScript, ASP, Java).

You’ll use cutting edge technology in servers, programming and mobile apps. You’ll have opportunities to develop or enhance actual production applications, and build hands-on skills in systems analysis, design methodologies and project management.

There is a mandatory six-month paid Co-operative Education work term between Semesters 2 and 3. Semesters and co-op work term time patterns are listed in Courses below.

If you like working with machinery, enjoy solving mechanical problems and are good with your hands, check out Saskatchewan Polytechnic’s Industrial Mechanics program. You’ll get the basic knowledge and skills you need to install, repair, overhaul and maintain stationary, industrial machinery and mechanical equipment.

Demand for industrial mechanics - also called millwrights - is high across western Canada. Oil & gas and mining are big employers, but there’s also demand in manufacturing, milling, power generation and chemical plants.

Industrial Mechanics is a one-year certificate program offered at Saskatchewan Polytechnic Saskatoon campus and Saskatchewan Polytechnic Prince Albert campus. Working in well-equipped shops with highly qualified instructors, you’ll get practical, hands-on training in:

• basic math, drafting and blueprint reading
• basic welding, fabrication and installation
• conveyance systems, pumps and pipe fitting
• mechanical components
• preventative maintenance
• using tools of the trade

There’s a lot of technology at work in today’s commercial and institutional buildings, from energy efficient boilers to complex HVAC systems (heating, ventilation, air conditioning). Building systems require regular, skilled maintenance—mechanical and technical. That’s why building systems technicians are always in demand. It’s a job that requires good problem-solving skills and the ability to work independently or as part of a team.

Building Systems Technician is a one-year certificate program offered at Saskatchewan Polytechnic, Regina Campus. You’ll receive comprehensive training in maintaining and operating electrical, ventilation, refrigeration and water treatment systems.

Most courses include practical activities to develop your troubleshooting skills. Time in a working facility will give students a real life experience during the second semester work placement. It’s a great way to use what you’ve learned in class and labs in a real-world setting. It’s also a way to develop contacts for possible future employment.

Certification Opportunities
Industry certifications are important to your career mobility and earning power. So, in addition to developing your knowledge and skills, Saskatchewan Polytechnic helps you prepare for industry certification exams. You’ll have an opportunity to write the Technical Safety Authority of Saskatchewan (TSASK) exams:

• 5th Class Power Engineering (5th Class Power Engineering qualifies the certificate holder to operate equipment at the Fireman Boiler Operator level)
• Refrigeration Engineer (Refrigeration Engineer qualifies the certificate holder to operate equipment at the Refrigeration Plant Operator level)

The Bachelor of Construction Management (BCM) degree program is unique in Saskatchewan offering students the opportunity to earn an after-diploma baccalaureate degree with an additional two years of study. The program was developed in response to industry need and global trends for trained professionals in the construction industry. The BCM program combines practical multi-faceted skills with theoretical knowledge and technical training, truly a practitioner's degree. 

Sask Polytech is proud of its reputation of providing industry with 'career ready' graduates, and this degree is no exception while providing a unique, direct and relevant path for students to earn a degree in this increasingly important area. The curriculum encompasses a comprehensive spectrum of construction management topics including:

• Scheduling
• Estimating
• Safety
• Contract law
• Cost control
• Tendering
• Project management