Environmental Protection Technology at Norquest Collage

Overview

Are you passionate about the environment? Start a rewarding career to protect and sustain the health of our environment and ecosystems.

Through extensive, hands-on training in both laboratory and field settings, you will prepare for technical work in the environmental sector and gain practical knowledge and skills in compliance auditing and contaminated site management to impact assessment and pollution prevention and monitoring.

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.

The program will be offered on campus and will include hands-on training in both laboratory and field settings. Students will also have the option of participating in a co-operative work term. Following completion of the program, students will receive a diploma in Environmental Protection Technology and be eligible for designation as a certified technologist or technician.

Career Potential

Successful completion of the two-year program prepares graduates for employment at the technology level within consulting firms, government, and industry, with excellent potential for upward mobility as job experience grows.

A majority of graduates will enter the workforce as environmental technicians/technologists or environmental scientists at consulting firms servicing the environmental industry or government agencies. In this capacity, graduates can expect to work as a field technician, collecting field data, assisting in environmental assessment and monitoring, and assisting in technical report writing.

A list of potential job titles in the environmental field include:

• Environmental Scientist
• Environmental Technician
• Environmental Consultant
• Environmental monitor
• Environmental Specialist
• Environmental Advisor
• Environmental Coordinator
• Environmental Auditor
• Field Technician

Many individuals in the environmental industry are self-employed and work as a contractor or sub-consultant; EPT graduates may choose to embark on this career path. Contractors and sub-consultants work in a variety of capacities, contracting their services to large industrial clients, agricultural producers, government agencies, and consulting firms.

Some graduates may choose to continue their studies and pursue a Bachelor’s degree upon completion of their Environmental Protection Technology Diploma. These graduates may embark on similar career paths to those outlined above, or choose a career in academia by continuing their studies into graduate school.

Once the program has launched, NorQuest will undertake an accreditation process that may allow graduates to apply for professional designation depending on their career goals and professional experience.