Graduate Certificate in Financial Planning

at Humber International Graduate School Canada

Humber’s Project Management graduate certificate program will prepare you to manage complex projects and programs. Given the recognition that project management skills and competencies have to the success of all organizations, this program attracts candidates from diverse backgrounds and industries whether public, private or not-for-profit sectors.

In just two semesters, you will learn the skills needed to move a project through conceptualization, initiation, planning, execution, control and closing. The curriculum is designed in collaboration with industry and closely aligned to the Project Management Institute's Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), as well as international best practices. You will thoroughly explore the key stages of the project life cycle, project economics and financial analysis, procurement management, leadership skills and professional best practices through a comprehensive project delivery model. It also exposes students to the adaptive/Agile approach to project management and the various frameworks that fall under the Agile umbrella. Students learn about trends in project management including cutting edge technology and electives in areas such as public sector, information technology, construction and strategic portfolio management.

Learning Outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
  • Link projects with the organization’s strategic plans, documenting the business need and justification for the project.
  • Define and manage the overall scope of the project, documenting project goals, deliverables, constraints, performance criteria and resource requirements in consultation with project stakeholders.
  • Develop a comprehensive project plan.
  • Integrate project functions, making tradeoffs among competing objectives and alternatives in order to meet or exceed project objectives.
  • Implement planning and control procedures, resource management, and risk management plans.
  • Employ a range of methodologies, techniques and tools available to project managers.
  • Develop, implement and analyze key financial information, translating financial information into project terms and establishing financial benchmarks.
  • Identify, analyze and refine project costs to produce a budget and control project costs.
  • Determine quality requirements and implement quality assessment activities.
  • Identify and allocate human resources required to manage project tasks, both within the core project team and the broader organization.
  • Manage communications to ensure the timely and appropriate generation, collection, dissemination, storage and disposition of project information to aid in the achievement of project objectives.
  • Identify potential risk events, monitor and control project risk, and assess risk management outcomes.
  • Identify procurement requirements, establish procurement processes, and implement and evaluate contracts.
  • Monitor project progress, identify variances and take timely action to deal with problems and opportunities.
  • Anticipate and respond to challenges inherent in complex projects.
  • Develop creative and flexible solutions that bring projects in on time and within budget.
  • Adhere to legal requirements and ethical standards.
  • Interact with team and stakeholders in a professional manner, respecting differences, to ensure a collaborative project management environment.

Humber’s Supply Chain Management graduate certificate program provides you with a solid grounding in both business and global supply chain issues. Major changes in processes and technology have led to a high demand for workers with modern supply chain skills.

You will learn to research and analyze the marketplace; develop demand forecasts; evaluate suppliers’ capabilities to deliver; utilize technology such as Systems, Applications, and Products in Data Processing (SAP); develop aggregate and master production plans/schedules; and analyze business processes.

You will also learn industry-standard theories, methods, and techniques (Six Sigma, Total Quality Management, Just-in-Time, Lean) and how they apply to supply chain management strategies and problem solving.

Humber is a SAP University Alliances member school, ensuring you learn this key supply chain management software.

Humber’s Advertising Media Management graduate certificate program gives you the knowledge and skills to effectively research and analyze both the marketplace and a target audience, and subsequently develop the best and most creative media solutions that meet the client or the company’s advertising goals.

Throughout the program, you will learn how to translate marketing objectives into focused media campaigns, assess the strength and weaknesses of different media types, analyze media data, and determine how best to sell advertising time/space for both traditional (TV, radio, outdoor media, print) and emerging (all things digital) platforms.

Upon graduation, you will have learned how to speak knowledgeably and persuasively in a media environment, and how to negotiate as buyers and sellers of media time and space. Through the enhancement of your client and customer communications skills, you will gain the ability to focus on the needs of an organization, build lasting relationships across the industry and add tremendous value to the companies you work with.  Finally, you will build your technology skillset through the use of industry specific research databases and softwares throughout your studies.

With this comprehensive understanding of both the traditional and digital media landscape, you will hit the ground running in your new career at a boutique or world leading advertising agency or any number of small to large companies across the media management landscape. 

Work Placement
Gain hands-on industry experience with a 160-hour (minimum) work placement. Here you will have the opportunity to apply what you’ve learned in the classroom to a real-world business environment. With our support, you’ll find your placement at any number of local, national or international advertising/media-related companies or brands. Placements can be completed on a part-time basis throughout the academic year or full-time once your classes are complete. 

Humber’s Business Management – Entrepreneurial Enterprise graduate certificate program provides the practical skills and knowledge you’ll need to take on a wide variety of leadership roles in innovative entrepreneurial enterprises.

This program covers every area of entrepreneurship from the fundamentals of developing and refining ideas to launching, growing and managing the enterprise. You will be prepared to take on key management roles in entrepreneurial enterprises including operations, marketing and sales, finance, human resources and strategic planning. Plus, you will learn all you need to start and manage your own new enterprise.

Students in this program can participate in Humber’s Business funding competitions for a chance to obtain seed funding for their new enterprise and other contests and progams sponsored by Humber's Centre for Entrepreneurship. Students in this program automatically become members of Humber’s Centre for Entrepreneurship which gives them access to mentorship, coaching, networking events, seminars, workshops, and entrepreneurial facilities and workspaces.

Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:

• Develop and implement a comprehensive business plan for a new business enterprise.
• Present an executive summary of a comprehensive business plan to potential financial backers.
• Set up and operate a basic bookkeeping and accounting system for a new enterprise that will enable effective financial management.
• Construct, interpret and analyze key financial statements.
• Devise marketing plans encompassing development, implementation, performance monitoring and adjustment using appropriate tools, techniques and applications.
• Execute leadership strategies by modelling ethical practices and corporate social responsibility to enhance a firm’s competitive position and sustainability.
• Comply with legal and regulatory requirements, tax and other financial requirements, and non-financial compliance requirements and controls systems.
• Apply various selling structures, methods and techniques to generate revenue and effectively manage client relationships.
• Develop and implement an effective human resource management plan to support new ventures and ongoing business operations.
• Build and manage relationships using communication, networking, teamwork and leadership skills.
• Use evidence-based analysis and decision-making in all functional business areas.
• Analyze and realign business strategies to contribute to the operational sustainability of new or ongoing small or medium size enterprise.

Insurance has become an integral part of virtually everything we do in life and business. Roles within the insurance industry are many and varied. Whether you enjoy working with numbers, doing research, solving problems or working with people, you can find your specialty in insurance.

Humber’s Insurance Management – Property and Casualty graduate certificate program prepares you for a variety of entry level management career paths in the large and growing property and casualty insurance industry. Learn the fundamentals of the industry and its three main functional areas – underwriting, loss adjusting and agency/brokerage – and gain transferable skills in business communications, computer applications, insurance accounting and metrics, marketing, sales and customer service, project management and leadership. Employment-focused experiential learning helps you consider a variety of options, as you launch your career. 

Learning Outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
  • Differentiate the functions of and the relationships between various elements within the structure of the insurance industry in Canadian and global contexts in order to identify business opportunities, challenges and solutions.
  • Use current and relevant insurance industry-specific terminology when communicating with stakeholders.
  • Assess and manage the four major categories of risk (hazard, operational, financial and strategic) to determine insurance needs associated with specific cases.
  • Apply best practices for risk management to finance the negative consequences of risk events in multifaceted situations.
  • Provide evidence-based recommendations for management of hazards and risks faced by an organization.
  • Evaluate the clauses, terms and conditions of various insurance policy wordings in order to determine the appropriate coverage according to defined risk tolerance levels.
  • Adjust, negotiate and settle insurance claims to satisfy needs of claimants and providers.
  • Provide rationale for the acceptance or rejection of an application for insurance to uphold efficacy of decision-making.
  • Evaluate the needs of a commercial and/or personal client in order to plan and recommend an insurance program that provides protection from identified exposures.
  • Select leadership and communication strategies necessary to manage others and accomplish organizational goals.
  • Prepare and deliver effective integrated marketing, customer service and sales plans to further organizational objectives.
  • Develop, interpret and present common property and casualty insurance industry metrics and financial statistics and data to support organizational decision-making.
  • Apply project management methodologies to identify, plan, and execute various property and casualty insurance managerial projects.
  • Develop strategic business plans in order to respond o changing opportunities and challenges within the property and casualty insurance business.

Work Placement

• Get hands-on experience in the industry with a 160-hour (minimum) work placement that will give you the opportunity to apply what you have learned in the classroom. Students initiate the placement with the aid of faculty, targeting companies in the Greater Toronto Area. Placements can be completed on a part-time basis throughout the academic year, or full time during the term immediately at the end of the program.

Humber's 3D Modelling and Visual Effects Production certificate program focuses on both the conceptual and the technical, as you learn to master visual techniques to bring ideas to life. You will develop skills in modelling, texturing and lighting, as well as in visual effects, compositing and digital cinematography. We employ a teaching process and course structure that requires content created in one course to be used to complete assignments in other courses. This “pipeline” process mirrors that of industry, allowing students to make a seamless transition into a real production environment.

The program is designed by artists for experienced traditional artists and animators who want to either develop or transition their skill sets for employment in the 3D and visual effects industries. The faculty take their years of industry experience into the classroom, straight from the studio. Their collective experience and passion in the gaming, television and film industries is the driving force that ensures the program meets the current and future needs of the industry.

January intake scheduling: students will benefit from our streamlined flexible schedule, allowing them to work their day jobs while they study for their dream jobs. Our schedule will have students on campus and in classes on evenings and weekends. Students will study in our state-of-the-art labs equipped with Cintiq tablets and the latest tools and software.

The Humber Advantage

• Program Benefits:
  • Flexibility for industry professionals looking to develop new skills
  • Approved for second career candidates
  • Course curriculum taught and designed by industry professionals
  • Teaching process and course structure follows a “pipelines process,” mirroring the realities of a real-world production environment
• Our program allows you to:
  • Manage work, family and study in a flexible schedule
  • Work your day job as you learn during evenings and Saturdays
  • Expand your career possibilities by learning new skills
  • Finance your education as you study
  • Bring your ideas to life
• Skills You'll Develop
  • Modelling
  • Texturing
  • Lighting
  • Visual effects
  • Compositing
  • Digital cinematography

Today’s businesses know that it is critical to stay on top of what’s next in their industry: the next trend, the next tool, the next technology. They are developing capacity within their organizations to use big data to derive insights for a more profitable future. Businesses have a growing need for professionals who can use data, analytics and business acumen to improve ROI, streamline and expedite processes, drive down costs, create smart products, and build better customer experiences.
Humber’s Business Insights and Analytics graduate certificate program provides you with practical, in-demand skills in business; database management and programming; data analysis and interpretation; and decision-making and communications. It consists of a common platform of 21 core courses in business, database management, programming for machine learning and data analytics, plus three specialization stream courses in either Marketing or Operations.

Graduates of this program will:

• Develop effective business strategies, tactics and processes based on data-driven analytics
• Support business decision making with advanced statistical and quantitative analysis; and advanced data visualization and communications tools and techniques
• Generate business insights by developing and using databases, big data and machine learning

Learning Outcomes:

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
  • Design, develop and manage databases and big data using current IT technologies and tools to query, program, process and analyze open source structured and unstructured data.
  • Apply project management techniques, skills and software to scope, track and manage resources of business analytics projects.
  • Use established and current frameworks for business, economic and financial analyses to inform business decision-making and recommend appropriate business strategies and tactics.
  • Implement personal and professional development strategies to improve job performance and promote professional growth.
  • Collect, store, process, model, analyze, interpret and communicate data using advanced statistical and qualitative techniques and current information technology tools.
  • Provide insights to solve strategic business management challenges derived from a range of business intelligence metrics.
  • Prepare and communicate complex materials, verbally, in writing and digitally for a variety of audiences and purposes, clearly and effectively using, where appropriate, current technology.
  • Formulate and implement plans for the collection, storage, processing, modelling, analysis, interpretation and communication of data that meet the needs of the client.
  • Develop and implement machine learning algorithms and applications in order to capitalize on previously unrealized business opportunities.
  • Formulate and implement plans for managing the full data life cycle adhering to all theoretical, practical, ethical, legal, security, professional, and privacy guidelines, requirements and standards.
  • Present a persuasive and cogent argument and recommendations for actionable insights derived from sophisticated analysis of data from a wide variety of sources.
  • Ensure that all analysis of numerical and text data, and all data processing is conducted with a high degree of accuracy, and is consistent with the appropriate principles of data integrity and stability.

Work Placement:
Get the hands-on experience that industry demands with a 320-hour (minimum) work placement that will give you the opportunity to apply what you have learned in the classroom to the real world. Students initiate the placement with the aid of faculty, targeting companies in the Greater Toronto Area. Placements may be completed on a part-time basis throughout the academic year, or full time during the term immediately following the program.

Humber’s Marketing Management graduate certificate program is a comprehensive program covering a wide range of topics relevant to today’s marketing professionals including digital marketing, branding, product development, advertising, distribution, sales, communications, planning, budgeting and strategy.

You will receive advanced training in a number of transferable skills that employers are looking for in their new hires, including creative problem solving, communications, decision-making, goal-setting and time management. With a highly practical focus, you will learn from a combination of real-world case studies and cutting-edge marketing techniques.

Work Placement
Gain hands-on industry experience with a 160-hour (minimum) work placement.  Here you will have the opportunity to apply what you have learned in the classroom in a real-world business environment. With our support, you will find your placement at any number of leading marketing or advertising firms, or directly within the marketing departments of local, national or international brands.  Placements can be completed on a part-time basis throughout the academic year or full time once your classes are complete. 

In the current knowledge economy and information age, and as organizations recognize the growing need for research on which key policy and strategic decisions are based, the demand for social, market, and marketing research has increased substantially. The Research Analyst graduate certificate program focuses on the theoretical, practical, and ethical underpinnings of research, while equipping you with the statistical, technical and professional skills necessary to do applied research in a variety of different settings throughout the public and private sectors.

In this program, you will focus on all of the major aspects of the research process including research design, information retrieval and evaluation, data collection, analysis and interpretation, and the preparation and presentation of research findings.

Special features of the program include an emphasis on professional, ethical and legal implications when designing research studies; new research technologies for data collection; analysis; presentation; proposal writing; research entrepreneurship; project management; and program evaluation.

Learning Outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
  • Interpret primary and secondary data applying principles of currency, relevance, authority, accuracy and purpose.
  • Design and execute a marketing or social research project to provide recommendations and actionable insights.
  • Manage research projects with due consideration to budget, schedule, quality, scope, ethics, and data governance.
  • Prepare a variety of effective social and marketing research documents and deliverables using knowledge translation and mobilization practices.
  • Communicate results of research using effective and engaging written, oral, visual and multi-media modes, that are appropriate for diverse audience needs.
  • Respond to the evolving sensibilities/concepts of equity, diversity and cultural sensitivity in conducting research.
  • Mitigate risk by the detection of bias in research design and processes.
  • Collect data using varied robust, effective and appropriate quantitative and qualitative research methods.
  • Organize and analyze primary and secondary data using industry standard software tools.
  • Conduct research projects in accordance with legal, ethical and professional standards.
  • Develop a career ready profile through goal-setting, on-going professional learning and industry exposure.
  • Evaluate research evidence and findings for the identification of assumptions, soundness of logic and the veracity of claims.
  • Select and synthesize academic, trade, business, institutional, governmental, or non-governmental resources for appropriate research purposes.

Work Placement

• Students complete a twelve-week placement allowing them to gain valuable practical and professional experience.

Humber’s Financial Planning graduate certificate program provides a clear pathway to careers in the lucrative financial services industry including banks, investment firms, insurance companies, financial planning firms among others. Our program provides you with a broad range of financial services, business and soft skills plus the opportunity to earn the licences and designations that financial services institutions are looking for in the professionals they hire. 
Faculty are chosen for their expertise and experience in the financial services sector, and many continue to work in the industry.

Learning Outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
  • Adhere to the certified financial planner ethical code of conduct, standards of practice, regulatory, legal and taxation requirements.
  • Establish and manage the client-planner relationship.
  • Analyze and evaluate client financial data including investment goals, life and health insurance, retirement planning and estate planning, considering economic information.
  • Develop and present financial recommendations and/or alternatives regarding investments, retirement planning, estate planning, life and health insurance.
  • Implement financial recommendations and monitor clients’ accounts.
  • Market and promote financial products, services, solutions and strategies that meet client needs.
  • Provide investment advisory services, using current software and entrepreneurial skills.
  • Qualify to challenge the Certified Financial Planner (CFP™), the Life Insurance Licence (LLQP) examination and the Canadian Securities Course.

Work Placement

• Gain first-hand experience in the financial services industry with a four-week work placement taking place either part time during the program or full time at the end of the program. Placements provide the valuable work experience employers seek.