Student Experience

Gain hands-on experience

Half of the program hours are spent outdoors. Two days a week, students take part in practical training at the Wilderness Tours‘ Beachburg or Mt. Pakenham facility. During this time, students learn the practical aspects of the Outdoor Adventure industry and work towards certification as guides or instructors in their chosen fields.

The other three days are spent learning fundamental industry, business and management skills that will allow students to step into a supervisory or management role, or start their own adventure or outfitting business.

Students enrolled in the Outdoor Adventure Program (ODA) taking the Cycle Tour Guide elective create an annual blog to document their five-day excursion and to create some amazing beta for a very unique region of Canada. Check out the Cycle Tour blog.

Applying to this program was one of the best decisions I have made. Not only was the program packed full of technical, hands-on training in a variety of outdoor adventure activities, my time at Algonquin College’s small Waterfront Campus was simply black and white compared to my previous time spent in university. Instructors quickly learned my name, my interests, and made it a pleasure to come to class. My peers were a great group of like-minded guides in training that truly made my two years in the Ottawa Valley memorable.

-Miles Arbour, ODA Grad 2016

In addition, students participate in four multi-day expeditions, including rafting in Quebec and Maine, winter camping in the Ottawa Valley, sea kayaking off Georgian Bay, and a self-planned and executed ‘final expedition’. Past final expeditions have included trips to Costa Rica, Italy, Mexico, the Canadian Rockies, and the Florida Everglades. Students also put their training to use during a 10-week self-directed work term.

As a student in the Outdoor Adventure program, you have the summer off from the program, but that doesn’t mean you stop using what you’ve learned. Check out what our students do with their skills and certifications with the video below!

Program Readiness Camp

The Program Readiness Camp is a mandatory orientation weekend full of activities and acts as an introduction to the Outdoor Adventure Program. Students meet the program instructors and other students, are introduced to our skills training activities, learn program policies and expectations, have their physical readiness assessed, and learn the details of the program. As the Outdoor Adventure Program is like no other college education, it is imperative our students are fully prepared and know what is expected of them to be safe and successful in our program.

Final Expeditions – “An experience of a lifetime”

At Algonquin’s Pembroke Campus, our Outdoor Adventure students self-plan and execute a ‘final expedition’ in their last semester of studies. Watch these videos shown below to get a better understanding of the adventures that await you such as, hiking the Lost Coast, rafting in Utah, or hiking the Santa Catalina Trail to name a few! Check out our Video Room page too.

Our Industry Partners

	Wilderness Tours (WT) is Canada’s largest whitewater rafting/kayaking and adventure resort, and outdoor training center. It was founded in 1975 when Joe E. Kowalski and five others (Sean Mannion, Jimmy Casilio, Robbie Rosenberger, Ken Czambel and Paul Fogal) took rafts down and navigated the section of the river known as Rocher-Fendu. Their mission is to provide the best rafting experience on the Ottawa River and to protect its natural splendour. Watch this video to learn more about our 20-year partnership with Wilderness Tours.
	Bear Creek Outdoor Centre is located on 400 acres, contains two private lakes and miles of wooded trails perfect for nature exploration, orienteering, and hiking. Their philosophy is to explore, play, learn. Bear Creek Outdoor Centre is a small, family-run, overnight camp near Ottawa Ontario. Our students get to learn the joy of creating programs and opportunities that challenge, stretch and grow children and youth with the help of the Bear Creek team.
	Mount Pakenham is Eastern Ontario’s premier family ski, board and tubing area. They have three of the newest lifts in the region and we’re just a short drive from Ottawa, Arnprior, Almonte, and Renfrew. Our students learn from some of the best ski and snowboard instructors in Eastern Ontario.

Applied Research

Students from the Outdoor Adventure Naturalist (ODAN) and Outdoor Adventure (ODA) programs led Algonquin College’s inaugural International Multidisciplinary Applied Research project. As a key part of their Rainforest Ecology course, which included a trip to beautiful Costa Rica, six students from the Pembroke campus investigated the use of emerging mobile hand-held technologies for the collection and production of digital marketing media and educational materials. Read more about the MIST applied research project.

Learn from the best

Professors and instructors in the Outdoor Adventure program are all leaders in their field and recognized across North America. Your instruction team represents national team athletes, international expedition leaders, the highest-level instructor trainers, and industry experts. We have also partnered with Canada’s leading adventure and learning institutions to ensure students learn to be successful. Not only do you get to learn from the best, but you also have access to the best in equipment including NRS gear!

Put your diploma towards further study

Articulation agreements or degree pathways are agreements between Algonquin College and other post-secondary institutions that facilitate recognition of prior post-secondary study and transfer credit or admission to upper levels of study. As a result, it may take you less time to complete your degree or, result in a reduced course load. This means that you may enter the job market sooner and potentially save time and money.

Graduates of the Outdoor Adventure program can apply their credits towards a university degree through one of our articulation agreements:

• Royal Roads University (Canada): Bachelor of Arts in Global Tourism Management; Algonquin College graduates with a GPA of 3.0 (73%, B) or greater will be granted acceptance to the 3rd year of their degree, provided space remains available in the Bachelor of Arts in Global Tourism Management. Students can expect to complete their degree in an additional 2 years of full-time study. Degree is available via on-campus or blended (mainly online with a few short on-campus residencies) delivery models.
• Thompson Rivers University (Canada): Bachelor of Tourism Management; Graduates with a minimum GPA of 2.0/4.0 (63%, C) will be granted up to 60/120 credits towards their degree. Students can expect to complete their degree in an additional 2 years of full-time online study.

* Best efforts are made to ensure the accuracy of this information. Please visit the full list of Articulation Agreements.