Northlands College kicked off the school year with increased enrollment for the second year in a row. Northlands saw roughly a 4% increase this year, with 450-500 learners enrolling compared to 389 last year. The college also has more learners set to enroll when other programs begin next month.
This year, Northlands College will be announcing a number of new programs and also plans to refresh their delivery of their automotive service technician program to make it more responsive to the labor market. The mine training programs will also get an update to respond to the needs of the natural resources sector better.
“We’re expanding programming to a number of communities, including the community of Cumberland House; we have partnered with stakeholders in the community, and we got some students enrolled today in social work programs in that community,” said Northlands College president and CEO Karsten Henriksen. “Lots of exciting connections with community partners across northern Saskatchewan.”
Northlands College also announced the extension of a partnership with Sask DLC for this school year, which will give adults access to free online high school courses. Northlands College is providing $100,000 to cover the course fees for students over the age of 22 living in the Northern Saskatchewan Administrative District. Henriksen said all the seats filled up for the free online courses last year, and he expects the same for this school year.
“For individuals who may not be close to a campus centre or available to study during regular operating hours, it creates a lot of flexibility for learners so they can continue to meet their employment responsibilities if they are working and wanting to upgrade, or individuals who may be caregivers for their children or parents,” explained Henriksen. “It’s a partnership we’re really proud of.”
Students interested in registering for online and in-person courses or wanting to learn more about eligibility can go to https://www.northlandscollege.ca/future-learners/.