Diploma in Police and Investigations - Investigative Studies

at MacEwan University Canada

In the increasingly complex field of emergency telecommunications, there is a need for personnel who have the ability to assess situations quickly and respond in an appropriate manner. Emergency communicators are the critical link between the public and those who provide police, fire and emergency medical assistance. As the field evolves, the need for highly skilled and knowledgeable professionals is critical. The field demands professionals who are able to multi-task, use high-tech equipment, think critically and quickly in a stressful setting, and respond to the challenges of the field.

The Emergency Communications and Response program develops the broad knowledge and skills required of call evaluators or dispatchers and the unique knowledge and skills in police, fire and emergency medical environments. The program is a full-time, eight-month certificate. Full-time program entry occurs each fall. The full-time program may be offered as a combination of day and evening courses. The students participate in a short field placement with a communication centre in the final month of the program.

The major in Journalism provides students with a strong set of writing, research, reporting, and digital media production skills. Option courses let students specialize based on their interests: online digital storytelling, television production, arts and culture reporting, feature writing, current affairs reporting, or investigative reporting.

Bachelor of Communication Studies
In our fast-paced world of evolving and conventional media, communication is key to interpersonal, organizational, and career success. The Bachelor of Communication Studies program provides students with a solid foundation in the fundamental skills of critical thinking, writing, editing, and research. Common coursework for professional communication and journalism majors builds a foundation in language, composition, visual communication, communication theory, communication law and research methods, supported by a liberal arts framework. The courses in the majors offer depth, specialization, and choice. The minors provide additional scope and depth to your studies. The program offers many opportunities to integrate what you have learned in the classroom with real-life projects that engage the community and provide students with an enhanced learning experience. The field is forward-looking, and so is this program of studies.

Years 1 and 2 include common coursework for both professional communication and journalism majors that builds a foundation in language, composition, visual communication, communication theory, communication law, and research methods. Years 3 and 4 provide specialization in editing, strategic communication, technical communication or film studies (in the professional communication major), or in news gathering, digital media production, or film studies (in the journalism major).

Early childhood educators care for our youngest citizens and foster their growing sense of identity and well-being through play-based learning. They are essential.
As a Bachelor of Early Childhood Curriculum student, you learn about the unique curriculum needs for early childhood learning, with a focus on equity, social justice and advocacy. You work closely with children in early childcare settings at MacEwan and in the community. Through field placements and a fourth-year internship, you connect theory to professional practice.

The first two years of the degree meet the certification requirements for Child Development Supervisor (Level 3) Certification through Alberta Children’s Services. You have the option to exit the program with a diploma after you complete the first two years of course work.

The Arts and Cultural Management major prepares students for a management career in the creative sector and encompasses all things arts and culture: working in music, theatre, dance, galleries and museums, archives and heritage conservation, and the literary arts. Students will learn the practical skills and specialized knowledge they need to enhance an organization’s creative capacity—or to take their own career as an artist to the next level. The core of this major is leadership and project management, supported by community-engaged learning, including eight weeks of practical, hands-on work in the field.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
In this major, students will:
• Critically reflect on the role that artists and cultural organizations play socially, culturally, and politically.
• Advocate strategically for the importance of arts and culture in society.
• Identify and secure a diversity of revenues and resources to support strategic initiatives.
• Exhibit the financial literacy necessary to manage the long-term sustainability of cultural organizations.
• Plan and implement strategies that increase community engagement, public interest, and patron participation.
• Analyze the production and consumption of culture nationally and internationally.
• Plan and promote programs, spaces, projects, and social events related to the arts and cultural sector.
• Anticipate, identify, and respond to trends that impact the cultural sector.
• Prepare, present, and implement strategic operational plans of the arts and culture organization.
• Manage and support human resources in the cultural sector within a variety of governance structures.
• Lead and support others in an accountable, sustainable, and ethical manner.

Succeeding in the insurance industry means meeting clients’ diverse needs and running an efficient operation. Whether you’re an entrepreneur who wants to own your own brokerage, or someone looking for a large corporate environment, you’ll be sure to draw on your skills in business, management, finance, communication and problem solving.

This program is an accelerated program, with students studying continuously for a 13-month period to earn a full diploma. The Insurance and Risk Management program integrates business studies with industry-specific courses.  Business topics include: management, finance, communications and accounting -- along with specialized courses in insurance principles, underwriting and claims.

Career prospects are exceptional in the insurance and risk management field, with a graduate employment rate at almost 100% - and you can block transfer your credit to MacEwan's Bachelor of Commerce degree, graduating with a specialized diploma and a degree.

Criminals are getting more sophisticated, the world is changing rapidly and technology is constantly evolving. All of this creates a strong demand for educated professionals in investigations and public/private security.

This two-year diploma program equips you with the knowledge and skills to investigate, analyze and act using a combination of intuition, expertise and communication skills. Field placements provide insight into professional security and investigative environments, and a crime lab allows you to practice the investigative techniques as you learn them.

The Business Management diploma is a comprehensive general business program that prepares students to take on any business challenge. Using more than traditional books and theory, this program teaches through lectures, individual and group case-studies and real-world examples.

To help develop and demonstrate the potential of our students to become managers, administrators, entrepreneurs and leaders, we emphasize the integration of soft skills such as professionalism, interpersonal relations, teamwork and communications with quantitative and strategic decision-making abilities.

Project-based course work, creative research, visiting artists, off-campus activities and arts and culture venues—as a Studio Arts major at MacEwan University, you receive a truly hands-on education. Let your artistic expression soar, while learning to manage the many paths your career will take you.

Our dedicated faculty maintain a range of professional art and research practices, sharing their skills in performance and sound art, painting, drawing, video, sculpture, fibres and more. In this interdisciplinary environment, you are challenged to think critically and creatively about contemporary art.

What to expect
After building a rigorous and comprehensive foundation in the first two years of the program, you can choose from three pathways in the Studio Arts major:

• Two-dimensional art
• Three-dimensional art
• Intermedia/extended media art

The technical and theoretical foundations supporting each pathway prepare you for both traditional and emerging media and concepts.

Starting in the fourth term, you choose to focus in one area or to combine paths for greater breadth. As you progress academically and develop the flexibility and fluidity prevalent in contemporary art practice, you also take courses from the other arts and communications disciplines.

In your final term, you undertake a project that prepares you for a contemporary, multi-dimensional career or for future studies at the graduate level.

Since the Library and Information Technology program started more than 40 years ago, the proliferation of information has led to a dramatic increase in the use of technology to organize, control and provide access to information resources.

Information personnel require excellent interpersonal and communication skills coupled with the ability to deal accurately with detail. They are versatile and can quickly adapt to a rapidly changing work environment.

Students in the Library and Information Technology program develop the expertise needed to organize, retrieve and manage information. Graduates are equipped with the skills necessary to work in any setting that handles information management, not just traditional libraries.

This program exposes students to practical aspects of the profession, including cataloguing, reference, circulation, research techniques, information systems design, records management, and services to various types of library patrons. Using a wide array of electronic and print resources, students become familiar with the broad scope of information organization and retrieval. Students will also develop strong professional skills and competencies to work effectively within an organizational structure and in a customer service role. They will examine the central purpose of libraries in society, and consider ways that social responsibility, ethical behaviour, and social justice are important philosophical foundations for the library profession.

In combination with Arts & Science courses taken, students potentially may receive 60 credits towards a Bachelor of Arts degree.

To respond to society’s increasing concern for security, the demand for educated personnel in both the public and private sectors of protective services continues to grow at a phenomenal rate. To meet the emerging challenges and responsibilities of this growing profession, the two-year diploma emphasizes the knowledge and skills necessary to conduct investigations and develop and implement comprehensive security programs.

Evidence of the growth in this profession is often visible. However, there also exists a less visible side of private investigations and security that includes a diverse group of specialists who engage in investigative work for banks, retail outlets, corporations and government. As the roles continue to expand and become increasingly complex, individuals must be well-grounded in the law and investigative techniques and develop a broad understanding of the field.

The diploma consists of 61 credits and can be completed through full-time day or part-time evening studies. The full-time day program is completed over a two-year period, with one intake in the Fall term. Part-time evening studies can be completed over a three-year period or longer, with one intake in the Fall term.

Admission to the program is competitive and is subject to a quota. The competitive admission average may be considerably higher than the posted minimum.