Certificate in General Agriculture

at Lakeland College - Vermilion Campus Canada

As you work towards your one-year certificate or two-year diploma, you’ll learn about:

• Human development
• Health, safety and nutrition to support child development
• How to create a creative and developmentally-appropriate curriculum and design a safe and inviting space for children
• How to support children with exceptionalities
• The business side of running a childcare practice.

Each semester has a practicum. Your third practicum is unique to Lakeland. You and your classmates will set up and run a play program. Together, you’ll:

• Create a parent handbook
• Plan the activities, snacks and schedule
• Create a dynamic theme for the space
• Put your theory into practice

Gain knowledge and skills through agronomy, production, precision farming and financial management classes.
Your learning isn’t confined to classrooms. You’ll learn in the field, by going to industry events and by hearing from local producers.
 
Your real world learning comes after your first year. You choose between:

• An industry practicum
• The Student-Managed Farm – Powered by New Holland

Whatever your choice, you’ll put theory into practice. You’ll have the chance to evaluate agronomic, marketing and financial decisions in real world situations.
As a crop technology graduate, you’re prepared to run your own farm or work in the retail agriculture sector.

Our innovative program bridges agricultural and environmental science. As well, it merges the concerns of both the public and producers. Consumers want to know where and how their food is grown. Farmers and ranchers care about conservation and productivity.
 
Through the program, you’ll be at the forefront of best practices and certified production.

You’ll spend time in field labs honing skills related to:

• Soil science
• Water management
• Grasslands
• Livestock production
• Crop production

You’ll apply that soil, water and plant knowledge to create solutions for sustainable food production.You'll also learn through an industry practicum.

Your skill set will be sought after by:

• Producer associations
• Certified value chains
• Conservation groups
• Municipalities

As you work towards your one-year certificate or two-year diploma, you’ll learn about:

• Human development
• Health, safety and nutrition to support child development
• How to create a creative and developmentally-appropriate curriculum and design a safe and inviting space for children
• How to support children with exceptionalities
• The business side of running a childcare practice.

Each semester has a practicum. Your third practicum is unique to Lakeland. You and your classmates will set up and run a play program. Together, you’ll:

• Create a parent handbook
• Plan the activities, snacks and schedule
• Create a dynamic theme for the space
• Put your theory into practice

Ecosystems and biodiversity are at the heart of conservation and restoration ecology (CARE).
The acronym fits. As a CARE graduate you’ll be making a difference for plants, soils, water and wildlife. Not just for now, but for future generations.

How you’ll do it is by learning practical field skills. Enough skills you'll be able to work in the field between 1st and 2nd year.
In second year, you’ll focus on best management practices and stewardship techniques. You’ll learn how to renew, restore and or conserve anything from grasslands to forest.

Field labs, outdoor classrooms, if where you practice [applied skills].  Some examples include:

• Identify critical habitat requirements for plants and animals
• Use environmental standards to classify wetland, forest and grassland
• Assess, inventory and map disturbed and undisturbed ecosystems
• Apply restoration techniques to real rural and urban landscapes
• Collect field data and report per industry standards

As a graduate you’re work-force ready. You also qualify for an Alberta Institute of Agrologists or the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists designations.

Through our program you’ll gain skills and experience to ensure industry and the environment can coexist. This means either reclaiming disturbed lands or minimizing industry’s effects on natural habitats

You’ll learn how to

• Classify, manage and conserve soils
• Recognize and understand a variety of ecosystems
• Do detailed site assessments
• Apply reclamation regulations, guidelines and techniques to disturbed lands

You’ll visit and study forested, mined and cultivated lands as well as native and reclaimed areas.

On field trips , you’ll see current industry practices and technologies. In hands-on field labs you’ll develop and practice more than 20 applied skills industry wants.

You’ll develop essential skills such as:  

• Observing, reporting and assessing skills in case management situations  
• Building therapeutic relationships  
• Helping children and youth who have behavioural or learning difficulties  
• Supporting family interventions  
• Recognizing symptoms of abuse & addiction  
• Building resiliency  
• Working with children and youth in diverse setting

You’ll start by learning a wide range of environmental concepts related to water, soil and plants. You start in the classroom, but you’ll be in outdoor labs within your first month.

Your training is fun, hands-on and useful. You'll apply and practice what you’ve learned using real-life situations. These are the same skills you’ll use throughout your career; skills that employers will notice. They include:

• Aquatic habitat assessments
• Wetlands & soil classification
• Water monitoring and sampling
• Environmental site assessment
• Plant identification

Spend a year putting theory into practice and earn a general agricultural certificate.

Focus on either crop or livestock production. Whatever your choice, you’ll learn common skills for modern agricultural operations:

• Computer training
• Keeping accurate business records
• Using up-to-date technology for precision farming

Half of your time will be on college farm putting theory into practice. Our Student-Managed Farm – powered by New Holland includes:

• Beef and dairy herds
• Range land
• Crop land
• Facilities such as the [Dairy Learning Centre] and Agricultural Technology Centre

On the crop side you’ll learn practical field skills such as how to

• Identify weed and plants
• Assess pest problems

On the livestock side, develop basic production skills for dairy, cow-calf, and sheep.

You’ll likely want to stay another year. Earn a [crop technology] diploma or choose one of our animal science technology diploma majors.

Combine your love of the outdoors with employable skills from Lakeland’s Applied Environmental Sciences major.

You now have 2 options:
Take the first year courses and earn a certificate or move into the 2nd year of the applied environmental major, or another of our environmental sciences majors.
 
You’ll start by learning a wide range of environmental concepts related to water, soil and plants. You start in the classroom, but you’ll be in outdoor labs within your first month.
Your training is fun, hands-on and useful. You'll apply and practice what you’ve learned using real-life situations. These are the same skills you’ll use throughout your career; skills that employers will notice. They include:

• Aquatic habitat assessments
• Wetlands & soil classification
• Water monitoring and sampling
• Environmental site assessment
• Plant identification