 Experiential Learning Is Our Focus
Our Forestry Technician students participate in exceptional experiential learning opportunities through their interactions with our many community partners. See our Partnerships page to see how you will gain valuable hands-on learning through many projects.
Find out why our Forestry Technician Program will benefit you when considering a forestry career.
Training for Canada and Beyond ^Top
If you want a career as a forestry technician, our diploma will provide you with a sound knowledge to work anywhere in Canada or abroad.
Students will learn tree identification, the importance of soils and growing conditions, diseases and insect damage, and how to maintain a healthy forest.
Classroom lectures are combined with field trips so students can see firsthand how the theory is applied. Building on their classes, students will learn how to plan, schedule, budget and analyze forest operations. They will plan, conduct, compile and audit various environmental and ecosystem activities.
Additionally, our students are trained in all aspects of harvesting operations including utilization, wood measurement and movement, fire prevention, forest renewal and tending.
Students can also earn several industry-recognized certifications such as tree marking, forest fire fighting, chain saw operating, bear awareness, GPS and GIS applications and much more. Our students also complete a two-week forestry-related field placement with a forestry employer of their choice, anywhere in the world.
To become a Forestry Technician means you will be knowledgeable and aware of the environment and its ecosystems and how interconnected forestry is to the overall health of the planet and to all living things that inhabit it.
You will become a "steward" of the land, someone who helps monitor and protect our forests, soil, water, air, fish, and wildlife habitat.
Articulation Agreement ^Top
You can turn your one-year diploma into a university degree through our articulation agreement with Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
International Study ^Top
Why would someone from the United States of America want to take the Forestry Technician diploma program in Pembroke, Ontario, Canada?
Firstly, students learn in a fast-track, one-year diploma program that provides the same amount of hours as a traditional two-year diploma program and receive more hands-on practical experiences than any other forestry program.
Secondly, the monetary exchange rate is favourable which means that the cost per semester is less expensive in American dollars.
And thirdly, with the North American Free Trade Agreement, an Algonquin College graduate can go to the U.S.A. and be recognized as a professional Forestry Technician. Algonquin College is a member of the Council of Eastern Forest Technician Schools which are forestry schools from the eastern U.S.A. and Canada. What you learn at Algonquin College in the Ottawa Valley is applicable to American forestry practices as well.
"It was very rewarding to come here from Vermont as the forest is very similar and the program offers a great dea, and variety of field experiences." David Hall, international student, pictured here interpreting a Landsat photo.
Students Get Into The Workforce Sooner ^Top
 Algonquin's Forestry Technician college diploma program is committed to your success as a student. Our accelerated program is just 47 weeks long. This fast-track feature has attracted students who wish to get into the workforce more quickly, whether they come directly from high school or previously from the workforce. It also saves our students money as they pay for only three semesters instead of four, and one year of room and board, instead of two.
Over the years, many "mature" students, some with prior experience in forestry, have enrolled in the program so they could gain both the experiential skills and theoretical knowledge required and then obtain employment in the forestry profession as soon as possible.
Impressive Statistics Among Our Students ^Top
Once enrolled in the Forestry Technician program, the class has maintained an average retention rate of 83%. Approximately 40% attain an honours academic standing (a GPA of 3.60 or higher). Twenty percent of our graduates continue on to higher learning at other colleges or universities, and we have one of the highest job placement rates in the province.
The Canadian Institute of Forestry ^Top
As the national voice of forest practitioners in Canada, the Canadian Institute of Forestry recognizes the Forestry Technician Program at Algonquin College as graduating forestry technicians who have successfully completed courses appropriate to their chosen profession.
The CIF presents a 'Silver Ring' to each graduate and awards a Gold Medal to a top student every year.
Visit their website.
|
