Back on track to a higher education

Concordia’s School of Extended Learning (SEL), in partnership with Dawson College, recently held three information sessions for individuals interested in returning to higher education. The response was phenomenal, says Dave Gobby, Director of SEL’s Student Transition Centre.

“These are the most successful information meetings that I’ve been a part of, in terms of the enthusiasm of the audience, and their attention,” he says. “And the fact that they’re taking the next step and signing up for advising is wonderful.”

More than 200 people attended the evening sessions, which were held in Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Greenfield Park, and on Concordia’s downtown campus, with the majority of attendees requesting a follow-up session with an advisor from SEL.

The sessions detailed different options for individuals who have been out of school but who now want to return to pursue a university degree, including a new experimental program known as the Simultaneous Semester, made available through a grant from Quebec’s Ministry of Education, Recreation and Sport (MELS).

The new program allows individuals to complete required courses at Dawson while enrolled in courses at Concordia. “They may want to return to school, but they don’t have the prerequisites,” explains SEL Dean Noel Burke. “For example, they may have been in a Cegep program and had no math, but they want to go into an engineering program.”

The program is designed for people who don’t want to lose a year qualifying for university entry. “These people are coming from the labour market. While they’re in school, they’re suffering lost income,” Burke says. “We’re accelerating their re-entry into university by making it more flexible.”

Another problem the new program addresses is a reluctance among people who have been out of school to return to Cegep to complete their DEC. Instead, many of them go straight to university as independent or mature students, a route which is fraught with difficulty. As Gobby explains, the program challenges the view that Cegep is a place exclusively for 17- to 19-year-olds.

“This Dawson-Concordia relationship will hopefully change that perception, and might end up in us creating something that’s palatable to get students to finish their DEC before moving onto university,” he says.

Although the Simultaneous Semester program is designed to accelerate the transition to university, Burke points out that it’s also a way to ensure students are better prepared to enter a university program.

“It exists within the context of a larger notion of more properly preparing students for university studies, in particular students who are returning,” he says.

Advisors at SEL encourage those interested in pursuing a university degree to take their time and do their homework before deciding which option is best for them: returning to Cegep, enrolling in the Simultaneous Semester program, or going straight into university as a mature or independent student. “We’re talking about an approach that includes reflection, planning, and advising,” Gobby says.

More workshops designed to prepare individuals for the rigours of university study will be offered through SEL this fall. As well, advisers are available throughout the year. “People who are interested in returning to university can call us anytime to find out what their previous qualifications are, what their potential is, and what kinds of courses they can take,” Burke says.

During the evening information sessions, Gobby began his presentation by recounting his own story of returning to complete his university education when he was in his 30s, after spending five years working on a factory floor.

“It’s never too late to go back,” he says. “This is the time of year when they’re seeing all these people who are younger than them going back to school, finishing their degrees, getting good jobs, changing careers. They see themselves as stuck, and they don’t know where to go … We’re telling them it’s possible.”

To find out more, contact simultaneoussemester@concordia.ca or call 514-848-2424, ext. 3890.

Related links:
•    School of Extended Learning