Conestoga news

September 29, 2008 3:55 PM

College Information Fair for Students, Public at Conestoga

Its a shopping bargain. You can visit 24 Ontario colleges at one time, in one place, and find out what makes college education such a great value now and in the future.

Conestoga College will host an Ontario college information fair at the Doon campus in Kitchener on Tuesday, October 7 and Wednesday, October 8, providing an excellent opportunity for secondary school students and the general public to meet with representatives of provincial colleges and institutes to discuss programs of study, careers, admissions procedures and the essential role that college education plays in the economic growth and prosperity of the province.

The public session is on October 7. It is a community open house from 5:30-7 p.m. at the Conestoga Recreation Centre and adjacent Doon campus E Wing. There is no admission charge, and parking is free. Visitors can obtain information from and ask questions of representatives of the 24 colleges, representatives of individual Conestoga programs and Conestoga student services personnel. Visits to teaching and lab areas will also be available.

The sessions for secondary school students are on October 8, and more than 2,000 visitors are expected.

The Wednesday activities are reserved for Grade 11 and 12 students from schools in midwestern Ontario, as well as their teachers and guidance counselors. Participants will be from Waterloo Region, and Wellington, Perth and Huron counties.

The program goes from 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Student visitors can take campus tours, visit instructional areas, gather information and ask questions directly of Conestoga faculty and students, in addition to learning about the other participating colleges.

The event at Conestoga is an ideal time to learn about the benefits and opportunities to be found in college education, which offers everything from one-year certificates to apprenticeship training to three-year diplomas and four-year degrees, and even postgraduate programs. Ontario's public colleges and institutes annually serve 150,000 full-time students and close to one million part-time students, and employ approximately 30,000 people in 200 communities across the province. They play a key role in meeting employer needs locally, provincially and nationally, and thereby contribute to productivity, innovation, economic development and global competitiveness.

Examples of the 24 colleges and institutes participating are: Conestoga, Algonquin (Ottawa), Cambrian (Sudbury), Confederation (Thunder Bay), Fanshawe (London), George Brown and Humber (Toronto), Georgian (Barrie), Mohawk (Hamilton), St. Clair (Windsor), St. Lawrence (Kingston), Sheridan (Oakville), an institute of health sciences (Michener) and the specialized colleges of the University of Guelph (Alfred, Kemptville and Ridgetown).

Contact: Jan Stroh, jstroh@conestogac.on.ca; John Sawicki, 519-748-5220, ext. 3336