Home - Communities - LoonLounge - Blogs - Bridging Programs in Ontario: What are they?
Bridging Programs in Ontario: What are they?
Posted on Jun. 26th 2009 at 11:29 am EDT (719 views, 4 comments)
One of the most frequently-asked questions here on LoonLounge, and something I get asked privately a LOT, is how newcomers to Canada should go about finding a job. That's a very broad subject, of course. A major challenge newcomers face is employer perceptions about the fact that their education (and experience) is from another country. Some newcomers decide to return to education to get a Canadian qualification in their field to improve their employability. Some others have no choice about returning to education, because they work in a regulated profession and they are required to take some courses or exams to qualify for their licence. This is where bridging programs come in. A bridging program is one that offers educational upgrading to help newcomers learn about Canadian standards and regulations in their profession, to develop their language skills and technical language for their profession, and even to gain certification or licensure in their field. These are shorter programs than the normal qualification in each field - for example, nursing is a four-year university program, whereas the Bridge to Nursing programs are usually around a year, including clinical placements. Bridging programs exist across Canada, but I'm just going to focus on programs in Ontario as these are the ones I know about! One good example of a bridging program that helps people obtain a licence is the bridging program for internationally-trained dentists: this is offered at the Schulich School of Medical and Dental Science at the University of Western Ontario in London, and similar programs in BC and Manitoba. These are two-year programs, but are very competitive... and very expensive. There is also a program for pharmacists at the University of Toronto. Bridging programs like these have been around for a while, but an exciting development in this area in Ontario is that the Ontario Government is investing a considerable amount of money in these programs, to help newcomers convert their training to Canadian standards. These government-funded programs are FREE. Here is a list of occupations where the Ontario Government is currently funding bridging programs: http://www.citizenship.gov.on.ca/english/working/experience/ If you click on any occupation in that list, you will be taken to a page showing which colleges in which area offers the program. For example, for accounting Fanshawe College in London is one of the colleges offering this program. The Bridge to Accounting program includes ten months of classroom education, leading to credits towards regulatory-body accreditation; a paid work placement, known as a 'co-op'; and a laptop is supplied to each student in the third semester. All fees and associated costs, apart from the college fee of around $1200, are paid by the government. There are also programs for nurses, pharmacists, social workers, early childhood educators, engineers, massage therapists and many more. Not all of these programs will be free - you will have to investigate the program that may be most suitable for you to see what the costs and eligibility requirements are. But with any luck these programs will make it much easier for newcomers to adapt their experience to the Canadian labour market and to understand the legal and professional context for their occupation here.
|
|
