On January 25, a team from the BCIT SITE Centre went to the #Cannexus16 conference in Ottawa. The national event explored innovative approaches to career counselling and development. BCIT was on hand to talk about the Legion Military Skills Conversion Program and how it is going to be expanded across the country.
The industry-leading program helps military personnel transition into the civilian workforce. One way it does this is by assessing knowledge, skills, and abilities acquired in the military and granting educational credits toward BCIT programs. It’s a simple but powerful way to help our service men and women start their new lives.
It’s such a popular idea, BCIT has been tasked with building a database system that other post-secondary institutions can use to help grant course credits for military experience. A database is being built with funding from Employment and Social Development Canada. That database – the National Advanced Placement and Prior Learning for Canadian Forces Reservists and Veterans Portal – will give veterans and reservists both easier access to education and greater mobility within Canada.
“We are all very excited about the potential of this project,” says Program Administrator Justine Arsenault. “It will increase accessibility for military members to post-secondary schools by recognizing what they’ve already accomplished.”
The portal will allow partner schools to link their program matrices, courses, and learning outcomes to military training. The goal of the project is to offer the services currently available at BCIT to veterans and reservists in every province in Canada.
Partner schools in attendance included the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, TriOS College, Fanshawe College, Okanagan College, and John Abbott College. Memorial University is also a partner, but was unable to attend.