Social Service Diploma

Admission Requirements

Additional Information

Before Classes Begin

Please attend a group information session offered by our department. This session is designed to assist you in making an informed decision about pursuing a human services career. The admissions department will send you an invitation with details regarding the date and time of the information session.

Once accepted to the program but before classes begin, you will be required to complete the following for practicum:

• hold a Standard First Aid Certification with CPR Level C that will remain valid through to the end of the program.
• complete a Personal Immunization form which will be sent to you by the admissions office when you are admitted to the program. It must be validated by the public health nurse at your local health unit.
• complete a Criminal Record Check. A weblink for this will be sent to you by Admissions once you are offered a seat in the program. Please note: Criminal Record Checks are valid for five years; previous NIC students may not need to resubmit this form.

Provincial Violence Prevention Curriculum Training

Students may be required to attend the Provincial Violence Prevention Curriculum (PVPC) training which is mandatory for all staff and students who work in Health Authorities. Most of this training will be completed online through the Learning Hub. However, any students participating in practicum in high-risk areas are required to complete an additional 8-hour classroom module at their own cost, and prior to their placements in high-risk areas. High-risk areas are: Correctional Health Services, Emergency Departments, Home and Community Care, Long Term Care, Mental Health and Substance Use, In-Patient Psychiatry, Neurology, Brain Injury, Paramedics, Protection Services.

PSY 250 and 251

Social Service diploma 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 .

Part-time Pathway

If you would like to attend this program part-time please meet with an advisor or navigator to help you select courses in accordance with our part-time pathway.

Course Requirements

Completion Requirements

• A letter grade of C (60%) or better in all classes.
• A letter grade of P (Pass) in all Practicum courses.
• A minimum of 50% of the program must be completed at North Island College.
• All program requirements must normally be completed within five (5) years of initial enrollment.
• Students must receive a letter grade of C (60%) or better in all core (SSW courses, ABG 100 , PSY 250  and PSY 251 ) courses to be promoted from one term to the next term. A student who fails any core course in the program cannot progress until the course is passed. University Transfer and 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 core 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, you will be removed entirely from the program and can only be re-admitted by going through the admission process. Please note that you may be required to begin at term one.
• If you fail a core course, were re-admitted to the program and successfully repeated the failed core course, and then fail another core course, you will be removed entirely from the program and can only be re-admitted through the admission process. Please note that you may be required to begin at term one.
• Re-admission to the program under any circumstance is dependent on an available seat and at the discretion of the human services department and in consultation with the Dean. If you fail a core 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.
• All students are required to adhere to the program expectations document and the Canadian Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Ethical Practice. Failure to adhere to these standards may result in your being required to leave the program.