Diploma in Child and Youth Care

at Vancouver Island University - Nanaimo Campus Canada

Computer Science is a rapidly-growing field, generating a great number of employment opportunities. Government agencies are predicting shortages of qualified computing people that will number in the tens of thousands in Canada alone. The Bachelor of Science, Major in Computer Science, is designed to meet the training and educational requirements outlined by CIPS (Canadian Information Processing Society), ACM (Association for Computing Machinery), and IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers). These requirements reflect the needs of the computing industry, both nationally and internationally.

The program is composed of courses drawn from the systems, theoretical and business application domains. It is designed to train students in applied computer science and educate them in the social, ethical and legal implications of computer science.

The program has an optional co-operative education component. To be eligible, students must maintain a grade point average of 3.0 (“B”) or better in their Computer Science courses.

The Computer Science Major will be of interest to students wishing to enter the Information Technology industry and/or graduate studies. The Minor will primarily be of interest to students wishing to combine an additional field of study with a strong computing background.

Unlock your full potential as an executive office administrator. The VIU Applied Business Technology Certificate Program offers specialties as an Accounting Assistant, Administrative Assistant and Legal Administrative Assistant. In this 10-month certification program, you will master computer, accounting, legal, customer relations and keyboarding skills that will turn you into the secret weapon your dream employer has been looking for.

The Office Administration Program
This program provides thorough, in-depth training in the skills required by today’s office workers in order to be competitive in the job market. Current computer software applications are stressed, as well as the traditional skills and knowledge of business English, business calculations, office procedures, customer relations, and strong keyboarding skills.

The program offers three specialties Accounting Assistant, Administrative Assistant, and Legal Administrative Assistant. Students can expect to receive industry-specific training in skills related to their chosen field of study. A two-week work placement practicum is available at the end of the program in each certificate stream for eligible students.

Legal Administrative Assistant
This specialty is designed to provide students with the fundamental skills and knowledge required to join a firm’s legal support staff at the junior level.

Graduates of this program have gained employment in private law firms; Crown prosecutor’s offices; federal, provincial, and municipal government offices; real estate companies; offices of notaries public; insurance offices, and major corporations.

To continue into the second semester, a student must pass all fall semester courses and have a minimum "C" in Business English and a minimum "C-" in all other fall semester courses.

This program is designed for university graduates who have earned an appropriate discipline-based undergraduate degree and who wish to become professionally certified teachers. This is a 1½-year post-degree, 62 credit professional program leading to a Bachelor of Education that can only be earned as a second degree. The Secondary option is also available to applicants without an undergraduate degree who hold Red Seal certification in acceptable teaching areas. Course work and field experience is completed over three full-time semesters with intake only occurring in the Fall of each academic year. All academic courses are delivered on campus in Nanaimo and does not run during the summer months.

Applicants can apply for the elementary and/or secondary teaching option(s). Coursework will have either an elementary or secondary focus with supporting practicums. Either option will prepare applicants for teaching at the middle school level.

The program is designed to prepare graduates to be well-qualified beginning teachers. Upon successful completion of the program, graduates will be recommended to the Teacher Certification Branch (TCB) at the BC Ministry of Education for ‘professional certification’. This certification is required for employment in any BC public, independent or BC Offshore school.

Strengthen your employment opportunities in the expanding field of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) applications with VIU’s Advanced GIS diploma program. Almost every field of study has a spatial component and GIS specialists have a range of career opportunities in areas such as forestry, resource management, urban and rural planning, government, banking, transportation and many more.

VIU’s GIS Diploma program prepares students to capture, map and analyze geographic data using ArcGIS by ESRI GIS software.Students can choose between an 8-month in class program which also includes a work-study practicum and a 16-month online program. 

The Advanced Diploma in Geographical Information Systems (GIS) Applications Program:-
The Advanced Diploma in GIS Applications provides skills training in geographic information systems (GIS) to university and college graduates who wish to strengthen their employment opportunities in GIS applications – an area that is in high demand around the world.

During this intensive program delivered over two terms, students will learn to use GIS as a spatial informational and problem-solving tool. Content is equally divided between developing hands-on competency in GIS technology and using GIS as a tool in resolving geographic problems through assignments and project work. Students in the program will be well positioned to secure employment upon graduation.

ESRI’s ArcGIS is the main software package used in the delivery of this program. Published materials and instructional courseware packages will provide support for each course. A select number of course modules, available through ESRI’s Virtual Campus, will be incorporated into the delivery of specific courses. Use of these modules enables students and instructors to keep pace with changes in the world’s most popular GIS package – ArcGIS.

All in-class students are required to complete a nine-week GIS project in the second term of the program. The project is intended to provide students with an opportunity to apply GIS knowledge and skills learned in the first term. Each student will be required to select a potential sponsor and develop a project proposal in consultation with the sponsor.

The two-year Baking Management Diploma program gives you specialty skills and management expertise, preparing you for a career in the baking and pastry arts industry.

Gain hands-on experience under the direction of our professional chefs in industry-standard baking and pastry labs. In the first year, focus on building a strong foundation of essential baking skills. In the second year, acquire a combination of advanced patisserie training and management skills for job advancement or business ownership.

Unleash your creativity while learning many advanced skills such as:

• Chocolate work
• Blown, pulled and cast sugar pieces
• Special occasion and wedding cakes
• Artisan breads
• Plated desserts

Gain knowledge and skills related to business planning, sales and cost forecasting, marketing and capital costs. Learn how to thrive in the daily operation of a professional bakery. Plan and compile a business plan that is then presented to a guest judging panel. 

Graduates from this program can take their career into many specialized areas of the industry. You may find employment as a:

• Baker
• Pastry chef
• Confectioner
• Chocolatier
• Research assistant in food manufacturing
• Bakery manager in commercial or artisan bakeries
• Restaurant and catering company employee
• Bakery/patisserie owner

The Engineering Transfer Diploma prepares students to transfer into the University of Victoria in their second year. This program contains the first-year core courses and select second-year courses required for this institution including physics, chemistry, engineering design, computer programming mathematics, and communication skills. Upon successful completion, graduates who complete the entire Engineering Transfer Diploma program curriculum are: 

• Guaranteed admittance into 2nd year Engineering at UVic provided students achieve a minimum required overall GPA and minimum grade in each curriculum course. 
• Placed in a common pool with all students for competitive entry into their 2nd year engineering program of their choice at UVic. Average GPS for entry into a specific engineering program at UVic changes each year depending on the number of students applying and the number of seats available. 
• Students are also applicable for entry into other engineering schools in BC on an individual, non-guaranteed basis. 
• Students interested in Engineering pathways to UBC, SFU, and TRU, are encouraged to consider Vancouver Island University’s Engineering Transfer Certificate program.  

The Engineering Foundations certificate acts as a bridge for students to obtain their degree at UBC, SFU, and UVIC Engineering programs. Graduates of VIU’s engineering transfer program gain guaranteed acceptance into second year at UBC, SFU, and UVIC Engineering programs if they meet the required GPA.

The Certificate in Engineering Program
The Engineering Certificate program prepares students to transfer into the University of British Columbia - Vancouver Campus (UBC-V), the University of Victoria (UVic), or Simon Fraser University - Burnaby Campus (SFU-B) engineering in their second year. This program contains the first-year core courses required from each of these institutions including physics, chemistry, engineering design, computer programming, mathematics, and communication skills. Upon successful completion, graduates who complete the entire Fundamentals of Engineering Certificate program curriculum are:

• Guaranteed admittance into 2nd year Engineering at UBC-V if program completed within 8-months and with a minimum required GPA.
• Guaranteed admittance into 2nd year Engineering at UVic with a minimum required GPA and grade in each curriculum course.
• Guaranteed admittance into 2nd year Engineering at SFU-B if program completed within 16-months and with a minimum required GPA.
• Placed in a common pool with all students (regardless of first-year institution), for competitive entry into their 2nd year engineering program choice at UBC-V, UVic, or SFU-B. Average GPA for entry into a specific engineering program at UBC-V, UVic, or SFU-B changes each year depending on the number of students applying and the number of seats available.

Criminology is an interdisciplinary science that focuses on law and its interpretation by the courts, patterns in crime, explanations for deviant and criminal behaviour, and society’s reaction to law-breaking. The program introduces students to criminal law, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and case-law decisions made by the courts. Students examine the three main components of the criminal justice system—police, courts, and corrections. Students explore the trends and correlates of crime, including the influences of age, ethnicity, gender, and social class and how. Major explanations for crime account for these patterns by looking at historical, individual and social causes. The criminological focus is broadened with courses from other disciplines within the Social Sciences and Humanities.

The program provides students with conceptual, critical, and applied skills to work in fields where a legal/justice focus is beneficial. The curriculum emphasizes the development of professional and applied skills including professional ethics, conflict mediation, use of information technology for research, writing, presenting, and working in small groups. Although the core of the curriculum is centred on justice-related issues, students will find the program applies equally to areas in the private sector where research competence, project management, legal analysis, and communication skills are essential.

Students who successfully complete the first two years of the program with a minimum program cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.00 may apply to receive a Diploma.

The digital world continues to evolve at an accelerated rate, the result of this is a strong demand for highly skilled web and mobile developers who help design, build and secure applications for a multitude of industries.

The ITAS Web and Mobile Development Diploma program prepares students for careers in the design, coding and implementation of web and mobile software applications. The program will teach students to systematically analyze business, organization or societal needs, and then design, implement and test software and relevant information technologies to address these needs. The course includes an entrepreneurial component, and students will be able to develop customized software solutions that are tailored to a specific domain problem.

The program combines rigorous theoretical and technical education with hands-on, project-based learning. Using the most up-to-date curriculum, the program will develop student's programming skills, as well as teamwork, communication, and project management skills to satisfy industry demands for well-rounded, highly employable technology graduates.

The program consists of two 4-month terms per year, plus a 4-week practicum work experience session or 12-14 week co-op placement at the end of the first academic year.

The first year of the program provides students with a solid foundation in general programming skills and introduces them to the basics of web and mobile application design (using Android). Students are introduced to Project Management and Agile development methodologies, various client and server operating systems and fundamentals of relational database design and implementation.

In the second year of the program, students hone their programming skills by developing full-stack database-driven web applications using such technologies as HTML/CSS, JavaScript/JSON, Node.js, PHP as well as NoSQL databases. Students learn about cross-platform mobile development, user interface design (UI/UX), platforms and technologies to deploy, hosts and secure applications (DevOps), relevant Cybersecurity topics and the use of cloud computing technologies.

Second year graduates will receive a diploma in Information Technology and Applied Systems - Web and Mobile Development.

The Bachelor of Interior Design combines theory with specialized knowledge and the development of proficiencies relative to the profession of interior design. It is intended for students who wish to pursue a professional career in this creative multi-faceted discipline. Interior designers work in all areas of the built environment including residential, office, retail, hospitality, and Institutional settings to create interior spaces that are "functional, enhance the quality of life and culture of the occupants, and are aesthetically attractive"*. The program provides a balanced range of theoretical, intellectual, communication, experiential, applied and other skills, needed to deal effectively with the responsibilities of interior design professional life. The interior design curriculum features lecture, studio, critique, and computer lab instruction; independent and collaborative projects; formal and informal presentations; field trips; an internship and a final major project spanning two semesters. The foundation courses and elective study provide an excellent foundation and structure for lifelong learning and ensures that students develop quantitative reasoning and critical thinking skills.