Certificate in Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Technician

at Loyalist College - Belleville Campus Canada

Get on the road to success! The fast-paced, ever-changing automotive trade could be the perfect career for you. To become an apprentice, you must be registered with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities and work for an employer who accepts full responsibility for your instruction in all aspects of the trade. Your in-class learning is completed at Loyalist.

Experiential learning

• Learn while you earn, with on-the-job training and education.
• Students in the Automotive Service Technician Apprenticeship program must be employed by a registered garage and signed on with the Ministry of Colleges and Universities (MCU) as an Automotive Service Technician Apprentice.
• Once you are employed and signed on with the Ministry, you will be notified when in-school training is available.
• Your apprenticeship requirements include completing a skill set book, 6,000 hours of on-the-job training and three levels of in-school training for a total of 720 hours.
• You can attend three full-time blocks of training, each eight weeks long, or study at Loyalist one day per week to complete your three levels.
• Learning combines classroom instruction and practical theory labs.
• Put your knowledge to the test in state-of-the-art service bays.

Art and Design Foundation offers a stimulating hands-on, studio based curriculum in which aspiring artist and designers learn a broad range of art and design disciplines. Traditional skills in drawing, painting, printmaking and sculpture are covered as well as a range of digital techniques and computer-based software, all of which contribute to the development of a quality portfolio.

Experiential learning

• Gain a balance of skills in fine art and design while exploring a variety of media.
• Grow and connect professionally while learning hands-on in small classes.
• Focus on both traditional art making techniques and digital media – including 3D printing technology.
• Earn valuable experience through professional workshops in a variety of art and design-related areas.
• Investigate a wide array of creative career pathways.
• Develop a broad-based portfolio that reflects flexible creative abilities, or build a targeted portfolio for further study.
• Design, curate and participate in an exhibition that brings together other Loyalist programs – an opportunity to gain recognition, enhance your portfolio and celebrate a dynamic creative learning environment.

Accounting is more than filing taxes and bookkeeping. It’s about understanding a business from the ground up and guiding it through sound financial practice. Every business has a numbers story. Whether it’s in the fields of art, health, fashion, real estate or sports — the options are endless. Explore a career path that can take you virtually anywhere.

Experiential learning
This program delivers concrete, marketable skills with a dual focus on financial and management accounting:

• Develop managerial skills in budgeting, product costing and price setting, eliminating financial waste and finding operating efficiencies.
• Access opportunities to gain certification in industry-leading software such as MS Excel, Sage 50 Accounting and QuickBooks.
• A third year of study provides advanced knowledge of financial and management accounting, corporate taxation and audit techniques, focused on obtaining the ACAF certification.
• Collaborate and formulate strategy in simulated business competitions.
• Learn from case studies and guest speakers from the local business community.
• Put your skills to work in Loyalist’s student-run tax clinic. For the 2016 tax year, students completed more than 200 returns — putting more than $245,000 back in the hands of Loyalist students.
• In year three, put your skills to work in our Money Matters clinic and gain customer service experience assisting students with budgeting and financial matters.
• A four-week field placement in third year provides valuable industry experience and networking, and the opportunity to graduate into a job.

A horticultural technician works with plants and has knowledge and skills in ornamental horticulture and plant health care. Using tools and machinery, this person installs, grows and maintains indoor and outdoor plants; builds urban and rural landscapes; maintains outdoor properties; cares for turf grass and golf courses; and installs and maintains irrigation systems. The fundamentals of grounds keeping, including safe snow and ice removal, as well as sustainable agriculture practices and green technologies are also introduced.

Not sure which career path to choose? Find the right fit before you commit. Sample a wide range of programs. Discover your strengths and new possibilities while developing practical skills you can apply to further your studies.

Experiential learning
Get a hands-on, creative introduction to media that will lead you to a career you will love:

• Balance your time between the lab and the classroom, working on a range of media-based projects.
• Get practical experience in design, visual and oral storytelling, media writing and presentation.
• Observe, practise and implement new skills each week, sampling a buffet of media and design-related activities.
• Work with cutting-edge technology in Loyalist’s Digital Media Centre.
• Get hands-on practise with video recording, Photoshop and state-of-the-art editing equipment.
• Learn from industry guest speakers and faculty in various programs

A certificate in Media Experience will prepare you for further studies at Loyalist. Explore your options while learning skills that can be applied in your chosen diploma program:-

• Broadcasting – Radio
• Interactive Media Development – Animation and Game Development
• Interactive Media Development – Film and Television Production
• Journalism – Communications
• Photojournalism

The Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Techniques and Technician programs provide students with a balanced blend of theoretical knowledge and experiential learning to enable its graduates to install, service, maintain and update heating, refrigeration, and air conditioning systems. With multiple pathways to follow and a variety of career options to choose from, Loyalist's HRAC programs are designed to prepare its graduates to operate in an environment dominated by climate change, rising fuel costs, and sustainable choices.

How You’ll Learn
Experiential learning
In the Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning (HRAC) Techniques program students will:

• Gain solid skills and knowledge in the design, operation and maintenance of energy-efficient, building environmental systems, in heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R).
• Learn to size, install, repair and maintain building environmental systems for the residential and light commercial sector.
• Develop practical skills through hands-on experience in Loyalist's labs, working on a wide range of furnaces, air conditioners, refrigeration equipment and other appliances, including the latest sustainable heating and cooling technology.
• Develop cross-disciplinary, industry-ready skills in soldering, wiring and electrical control circuitry and troubleshooting for HVAC and gas installations.
• Use computer-aided design software to assess building heating and cooling requirements, select appropriate equipment, review HVAC system drawings and specifications for the residential market and light commercial market and confirm building code requirements.

This program prepares participants to monitor and control radiation exposure and to implement safety measures. Radiation safety technicians and specialists work together with physicists, occupational safety and health specialists and public health officials in various nuclear, health care and natural environments.

How You'll Learn
The Radiation Safety program will include instruction in the following:

• Radiation physics
• Environmental radioactivity
• Radiological instrumentation
• Electronics of radiation detection equipment
• Radioactive waste management and control
• Safety and handling procedures
• Decontamination procedures
• Radioactivity testing and analysis
• Communication skills

Help with personal care can mean the difference between people living independently and giving up their homes. The demand for personal support workers is greater than ever and keeps growing in order to meet the needs of a retiring population. Make a difference every day by helping people live with independence and dignity.

Experiential learning
In this hands-on program, you will learn to effectively support clients in their day-to-day activities, emphasizing trust, respect and individual choice:

• Learn in small clinical and lab groups under the guidance of experienced faculty.
• Practise monitoring and recording changes to clients’ conditions in Loyalist’s Human Simulation Lab with manikins simulating realistic scenarios.
• Learn from guest speakers about a wide variety of topics pertinent to supporting residents in long-term care and clients in their own homes.
• Learn how to shop for clients and provide nutritious meals on a balanced budget.
• Learn and practise skills in a virtual learning environment (VLE) as an avatar.
• Learning combines theory, laboratory practice and clinical placement all in the same week so students can apply what they’ve learned in a real-life setting.
• Students have completed placements with Belmont Long-Term Care Facility, Moira Place, Hastings Manor, EJ McQuigge Lodge, Trent Valley Lodge Nursing Home, Pine Meadow Nursing Home, Hastings Centennial Manor, Helen Henderson Care Centre Lodge, the Victorian Order of Nurses, Canadian Red Cross, ParaMed and St. Elizabeth’s Belleville.

Apply the principles of entrepreneurship to develop a scalable, repeatable and successful business model with guidance from experienced faculty and a powerful network of expert advisors and community partners. Graduate with the skills to launch and grow your own start-up in less than a year.

Experiential learning

• Beginning with a two-week start-up boot camp, move your ideas forward through flexible scheduling that fits your already busy life. 
• Work in teams to nurture high-growth ideas or existing early-stage start-ups and be guided through the building process.
• Create and deliver executive-style presentations before an audience of prospective customers, employees and investors during industry showcase and pitch competitions.
• Participate in monthly educational “pit stops,” providing tailored, rigorous training on strategic entrepreneurship issues.
• Utilize the Business Model Canvas to develop the nine key components of your business.
• Meet regularly with, and be mentored by, seasoned entrepreneurs and top industry executives.
• Apply current and emerging research, systems and technologies to effectively manage and accelerate the growth of your new venture.

As our dependence on electricity grows, so too does the demand for skilled electrical workers. Electrical Engineering Techniques students are introduced to electrical principles and building construction wiring while technician students advance into industrial automation and PLC programming, preparing for tomorrow's trends in next-generation robotics.

Experiential learning
Get practical, real-life training in a supportive learning environment that nurtures one-on-one relationships with instructors:

• The first year provides a working understanding of electricity and electronics, as well as the fundamental skills needed in electrical construction and automation.
• Develop skills in electrical installation, motor control and the basics of industrial processes — including Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs), fluid power and process control.
• Hands-on work with actual PLCs in your first year, not just simulation software.
• Students gain a solid understanding of the Ontario Electrical Safety Code.
• A second year of study delivers skills required in installing, configuring, maintaining and calibrating industrial control systems, including industrial robotic and automated production systems.
•  Students can apply their knowledge to extracurricular projects, such as building a racecar simulator arcade game using only automation equipment and software.