Human Services-Educational Assistant/Community Support Certificate

Admission Requirements

1. C+ in English 12 or equivalent
     
2. Signed Human Services Requisite Skills and Abilities document.
3. 300-word HSW Letter of Intent for coming into the program and career goals.

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Indigenous Priority Admissions

North Island College is dedicated to improving its ability to meet the educational needs of Indigenous students. NIC’s Indigenization Plan, “Working Together” outlines our commitment to Indigenization, reconciliation and decolonization.  To further advance these goals, North Island College has reserved seating and priority admissions in many of our program for students of Indigenous ancestry. 

Applicants will be considered on a first-applied, first-qualified basis for all programs with the exception of Bachelor of Science in Nursing Degree, where a selective admission process will be used.

To be considered for a priority admission seat, Indigenous students must:

• Self-identify as an Indigenous person
• Complete the Indigenous Priority Admission Request for a Reserved Seat form
• Meet NIC’s general admission requirements, and/or specific program requirements

Before Classes Begin

Once accepted to the program but before classes begin, you will be required to:

• attend a group information session. This mandatory session is designed to assist you in making an informed decision about pursuing a career in human services. The admissions office will send you an invitation with details regarding the date and time of the information session.
• hold a Standard First Aid Certification with CPR Level C that is valid through to the end of the program.
• submit a Criminal Record Check Permission form, which will be sent to you by the admissions office once you are offered a seat in the program.
• complete a Personal Immunization form which will be sent to you by the admission’s office when you have a seat in the program. It must be validated by the public health nurse at your local health unit.

Note: Human Services students are not required to meet the PSY 130  and PSY 131  prerequisites for registering in PSY 250  and PSY 251 . If you choose to work toward a degree, you may be required to complete PSY 130  and PSY 131 .

If you wish to reduce your workload, you can take ENG 115  or ENG 116  before entering into the program.

Course Requirements

• ENG - 115 Essay Writing and Critical Analysis or
• ENG - 116 Essay Writing & Indigenous Perspectives
• HSW - 136 Holistic Health and Well-Being
• HSW - 152 Foundations of Human Service Practice
• HSW - 164 Foundations of Community Support
• HSW - 167 Support Strategies for Skill Development
• HSW - 190 The Educational Assistant in the Classroom
• SSW - 121 Interpersonal Communications
• PSY - 250 Human Development from Conception Through Childhood
• PSY - 251 Human Development from Adolescence Through Adulthood
• HSW - 170 Educational Assistant/Community Support Practice Experience I
• HSW - 174 Human Service Practice Exp II

• You will gain extensive practice experience throughout the program. Practice experience placements are offered to provide you with actual on-the-job training in a school or community service agency. The placements are supervised by grade school teachers, agency personnel and faculty. The purpose of the practice experience is to provide you with direct experience. This allows you to learn exactly what the job entails, what skills are required and the opportunity to learn those skills both in theory and in practice.  A weekly seminar provides additional learning and connection of theory with practice.

Completion Requirements

1. This program may be completed in two ways:
   1. Part-time. A limited number of seats per year are reserved for part-time admission.
      1. Students admitted as part-time must successfully complete all required courses within seven years of admission.
      2. Students admitted as part-time will complete the program courses in a pre-determined order. NIC advisors can assist students with this planning.
   2. Full-time. Students admitted as full-time must successfully complete all required courses within seven years of admission.
      1. Students who are invited to the program as full-time may not then switch to part-time. If students wish to give up their full-time seat and switch to part-time, they must re-apply to the program as a part-time student.
2. A letter grade of C (60%) or better in all classes.
3. A letter grade of P (Pass) in all practicum courses.
4. Students must receive a letter grade of C (60%) or better in all certificate courses (HSW, SSW, PSY 250  and PSY 251 ) to be promoted from one term to the next term. A student who fails any course in the program cannot progress until the course is passed. ENG 115  or ENG 116  courses are not a requirement of progression but must be completed with a grade of C (60%) or better in order to obtain the credential.
   In order to repeat a course, you must reapply to the program in a subsequent offering of the same term in which the failure occurred providing there is an available seat. If in repeating the course, you fail again, then you will be removed entirely from the program and can only re-enter by going through the admission process. Please note that you may be required to begin at term one.
   If you fail a course, re-enter the program and successfully repeat the failed course, and then fail another course, you will be removed entirely from the program and can only re-enter by going through the admission process. Please note that you may be required to begin at term one.
   Re-entering the program under any circumstance is dependent on availability of seats and at the discretion of the human services department and in consultation with the dean. If you fail a course, you may be asked to complete a learning assessment prior to being reconsidered for re-admission. These regulations are important to the profession to ensure that graduates have the required skills and knowledge and are therefore deemed safe to practice.
5. All students are required to adhere to the program expectations document. Failure to adhere to these standards may result in your dismissal from the program.