Leader staff

In the world of academia, there are approvals and re-approvals of programs.

The maximum length for a program to be approved is seven years, says an Northern Lakes College news release. That’s how long its Social Work Diploma has been re-approved.

Alberta College of Social Workers recently did a review of the program.

The news release describes this as “rigorous, including a review of curriculum, administrative practices, staffing, and both faculty and student experiences.”

Diploma graduates can either go into entry-level positions in the social work field or be accepted into the third year of a bachelor of social work, which takes four years.

NLC has campuses or community access points in Slave Lake, Wabasca, Loon River First Nation, Peerless Trout First Nation, and other northern Alberta communities.

Courses are done with Supported Distance Learning (SDL), which means students do not have to be on campus.

Seven courses within the Social Work Diploma are also part of NLC’s Dual Credit program, which means students can take these while still in high school.

The news release says that the fall 2022 program is almost full, but applications will open for 2023 in the fall.