Diploma in Technology in Environmental Protection (Co-op Optional)

at Kwantlen Polytechnic University - Langley Campus Canada

The Associate of Arts Degree (AA) in Asian Studies will introduce you to the discipline and prepare you for further study. By completing the AA Degree you will gain a broader understanding of the world in which you live and will become a more informed and engaged citizen. You can choose to focus on a particular geographic region; however, we recommend that you complete as broad a range of courses as possible.

Asian Studies courses involve a significant amount of reading and writing; therefore, it is strongly recommended that you complete your English requirements within your first two semesters.

The Bachelor of Applied Arts degree program is geared towards helping students gain the skills and experience necessary to be job-skills ready. The Bachelor of Applied Arts also emphasizes research skills, and gives students a bit of the grad school experience and skills, without going to graduate school. The program is more rigorous and challenging than the more flexible Bachelor of Arts, but includes courses hand-picked by faculty and employers to target hard and soft job skills. The Bachelor of Applied Arts is ideally suited for students interested in workplace expertise, tests and measurements, and UX design.

Lower-level students establish a foundation of knowledge in psychology, before concentrating on applications of psychology to modern community and workplace settings for their upper-level work. Required courses provide students with general, transferable workplace skills (e.g., Interpersonal Relations), as well as specific knowledge and skills used in a variety of public and private sector jobs such as program evaluation and technical writing. Electives provide further training in additional areas selected by the student.

Students also participate in a workplace practicum coordinated by KPU and co-supervised by faculty and employers in relevant fields of employment. This practicum placement will assist students in gaining workplace experience and in meeting potential future employers.

Those interested in further study and graduate school or who prefer more extensive research experience may augment their knowledge and skills by taking the  research-focused Honours program in Psychology. The Honours program affords students an opportunity to develop and report on a research project under the direct supervision of a faculty member within the Psychology Department.

The Associate Degree is designed to provide an educational experience that prepares students for work, citizenship, and an enriched life as an educated person, and to lay a solid foundation for further study in the field of Psychology.

Students with an Associate of Arts Degree in Psychology who are interested in continuing their degree studies at KPU can pursue the Bachelor of Applied Arts, Psychology degree, a Bachelor of Arts, Major in Psychology degree, a Bachelor of Science in Applied Psychology degree, or a Minor in Psychology when combined with another bachelor’s degree program. For more information, please see the BA Major or Minor in Psychology and BAA or B.Sc. Psychology program descriptions.

The Bachelor of Arts, Major in General Studies degree program provides you with the opportunity to develop a degree program that suits your unique interests, combining courses across different Arts disciplines. Working with an Arts Degree Advisor, you can create a personal program of study that helps you reach specific career and personal goals, intentionally developing a broad interdisciplinary liberal arts education. Completing this degree will normally involve a selection of courses from a number of departments that form around a unifying theme.

The program includes:

• Development of disciplinary knowledge, core competencies, and transferable skills characteristic of traditional Bachelor of Arts programs
• Preparation for entry into the labour market by incorporating essential and employability skills in all courses
• Increasing your capacity to respond innovatively to emerging trends in society
• Opportunities for forging connections within the South Fraser region by completing research, volunteering, or working in your field of interest while completing your KPU degree

You have a passion for communication and connecting with people, and a desire to make a positive impact on society. In our two-year, hands-on diploma program, you will learn the theory and practice of public relations, and will develop the skills and knowledge necessary to successfully manage relationships on behalf of businesses and other organizations through the use of creative and strategic communication.

Upon graduation, you will be prepared for careers in PR and communications, social media, publicity, media and influencer relations, public affairs, organizational communications, special events and fundraising, or continuing your studies in a Bachelors of Business Administration (BBA) or Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree program at KPU.

The PR Diploma curriculum is carefully aligned with the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management’s Global Capabilities Framework and Global Body of Knowledge, and was developed in consultation with an advisory committee consisting of senior PR and communication practitioners from industry, government and the nonprofit sector.

Co-operative Education
The Public Relations diploma is offered with a Co-operative Education option. Co-operative Education gives a student the opportunity to apply the skills gained during academic study in paid, practical work experience semesters. Students can complete two work semesters while completing their diploma. Work semesters alternate with academic study.

Students wishing to enter and participate in the Co-op Option must meet the following requirements:

• Declaration and Entrance Requirements
• Currently admitted to the Diploma in Public Relations program.
• Good Academic Standing
• Maximum of 30 credits completed

The Bachelor of Arts Major in Sociology provides students with critical, practical and transformative studies that aim to prepare them for life and work in a diverse and globalized world. It is a flexible and well-rounded program, offering academic rigor and a solid grounding in sociology theory and research methods, and the study of societies in local and global contexts. Opportunities for engaging in applied, experiential and community-based learning are provided throughout the program.

Students may choose to gain a broad understanding of the discipline by taking courses in a wide range of sub-fields in sociology or streamline their programs by concentrating on particular subjects of interest to them such as gender and sexuality, racialized and ethnic minority groups, Indigenous studies, media and cultural studies, education, global social problems and social justice. In their final year, students may opt to hone their research skills by taking courses in Canadian and global studies with a primary research component. Or they may choose to take one of the community services courses to gain practical work experience by volunteering in an organization within the local community or participating in a field-school overseas in a developing nation. 

The Bachelor of Arts, Major in History, will provide you with the opportunity to study the many peoples and cultures whose contributions have created the world in which we live today.
Our BA degree allows you to develop the knowledge and core competencies characteristic of a traditional BA program, while preparing you to respond creatively and innovatively to a range of challenges in our community and our world. You will gain the literacy and analytical competencies demanded by twenty-first century employers. Equally importantly, you will become a better-informed citizen of our increasingly interconnected world.

As a History student you will benefit from our faculty's commitment to teaching excellence and from the small class sizes at KPU.
In our lower-level courses, you will begin to build the critical thinking, intercultural, and analytical competencies necessary to succeed in upper level history courses. At the upper-level, you will undertake in-depth studies of particular areas or important themes in global development. Please see the History website at www.kpu.ca/arts/history for more information on our thematic streams.

The one-year General Business Studies Certificate Program is designed to provide students with a broad range of fundamental business skills and an understanding of the business environment. Many classes are offered in the evening to accommodate part-time students.  The Certificate program requires completion of 10 courses and emphasizes real world business applications in key functional areas.

Students may select their elective courses according to the following guidelines for specialization in Business Management or Marketing and have the specialization documented on their transcript.

Courses in the certificate program may also be applied towards the Business Management Diploma program at KPU.

The Philosophy Major at KPU provides students a broad-based, general education in the principal areas of Western Philosophy. Philosophy majors will complete courses in logic, epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and history of philosophy. The program is expressly set up to satisfy a variety of additional pedagogical and intellectual objectives, chief among these being the development of critical reasoning and writing skills, both in general and with regard to specialized research in the discipline. Philosophy majors at KPU will experience a learning environment that is supportive and challenging. It is one that prepares students for graduate work in philosophy. It develops effective citizenship, community leadership, and the critical reasoning, writing, and problem-solving skills required for successful careers in any area.

The Bachelor of Arts Major in Philosophy provides students the opportunity to build a sturdy educational foundation in one of the core areas of the Humanities. All Philosophy majors take a course in formal logic at the 1000-level. At the 2000-level, five courses in philosophy are obligatory: Moral Theory (the study of the nature of right and wrong), Metaphysics (the study of the nature of reality), Epistemology (the study of the nature and limits of knowledge), Ancient Greek Philosophy, and Modern Philosophy.

Upper-level students will have the following options: to take smaller, more participatory courses in Special Topics in Philosophy; to pursue an Applied Ethics Stream by taking specially designed courses in Business, Environmental, and Biomedical Ethics; to participate in a Practicum course where research and work skills are enhanced; and to apply to a selective sequence of honours courses with a focus on researching and writing an honours thesis.

Environmental protection technologists provide an invaluable service to society by helping protect and sustain the long-term health of our ecosystems.

Environmental consultants, industry and government seek out graduates from our Environmental Protection Technology program. They do this because our graduates have developed the skills needed to offer professional advice on a wide range of subjects, including: environmental impact assessment; hazardous and non-hazardous waste management; waste reduction and reuse strategies; air, soil and water pollution prevention and monitoring; compliance auditing; and contaminated site investigation and remediation. This skill set is based on an integrated, hands-on training program that gives graduates a good working knowledge of physical and life sciences, including general biology, ecology, toxicology, chemistry, physics and statistics. Specific topics covered by the program include:

• Air, water and soil field sampling
• Solid, liquid and air treatment methods
• Waste minimization
• Hazardous goods and waste handling methods
• WHMIS implementation and compliance evaluation
• Emergency planning and spill response methods
• Recycling and waste minimization program design
• Environmental issues analysis
• Environmental law and ethics
• Written and oral presentation skills
• Computer software competency

Although graduates typically work within a team of professionals, they must also be able to work independently and take initiative as required; the program helps promote these attributes. Successful completion of the two-year program prepares graduates for employment at the technology level within industry or government often with excellent potential for upward mobility as job experience grows.

Students may complete the program over the course of three years. This is recommended for students who intend to work part-time while enrolled in the program or for those who prefer a lighter academic load. Please contact the Program Chair for details.

Co-operative Education
This program operates with two four-month Co-op work terms. KPU has been successful in arranging unique and challenging placements with government agencies such as Environment Canada and the BC Ministry of the Environment, with environmental consultants, and with other industries. Most importantly, these Co-op placements facilitate entry into successful careers by the Environmental Protection Technology graduates.

Who Studies Environmental Protection Technology?
Environmental Protection Technology students vary in age and background. Some students come to us directly from high school, while others may be in their forties, looking for a change of career. There is usually a balance of genders, and about a third of our students come with some previous post-secondary credits. Typically our students seek a practical education that leads to varied careers that include opportunities for outdoor field work – and all are keen to make a contribution towards protecting our environment.