Post-Secondary Institutions

Publicly funded colleges

Alberta's publicly funded colleges may offer academic upgrading, job readiness, apprenticeship, certificate, diploma, university transfer, baccalaureate and applied degree programs. Refer to the institution’s mandate statement for details about the type of credentials the institution is approved to offer.

Alberta College of Art and Design Bow Valley College Fairview College (NAIT as of July 1, 2004) Grande Prairie Regional College Grant MacEwan College Keyano College Lakeland College Lethbridge Community College Medicine Hat College Mount Royal College NorQuest College Northern Lakes College Olds College Portage College Red Deer College

Technical Institutes

Alberta also has two technical institutes that offer programs tailored to workplace requirements. Technical institutes may offer certificate, diploma, baccalaureate and applied degree, apprenticeship and continuing education programs. Refer to the institution’s mandate statement for details about the type of credentials the institution is approved to offer.

Northern Alberta Institute of Technology Southern Alberta Institute of Technology

Universities

Main campuses for Alberta's three campus-based universities are located in Calgary, Edmonton and Lethbridge. There is also one distance-learning university located in Athabasca. The four universities offer a wide range of undergraduate degree programs as well as a comprehensive range of graduate studies. The universities are responsible for the majority of research undertaken within the province's post-secondary system.

Athabasca University University of Alberta University of Calgary University of Lethbridge

Private Colleges accredited to grant degrees

Alberta has eight private colleges accredited to grant specific academic degrees at the university level. The Campus Alberta Quality Council (CAQC) reviews all proposals for new degree programs from both public and private institutions to ensure they are of high quality before they are approved. The Council also conducts periodic evaluations of approved degree programs to ensure that quality standards continue to be met.

Alliance University College Canadian University College Concordia University College of Alberta DeVry Institute of Technology-Calgary The King's University College Nazarene University College St. Mary's University College Taylor University College and Seminary

The Banff Centre
The Banff Centre is a publicly-funded institution that provides advanced continuing education opportunities in fine arts, management studies, language training and environmental training for people who already have academic credentials and/or professional experience in their discipline.

Private vocational schools
There are over 140 private training institutions in Alberta that offer programs licensed under the Private Vocational Schools Act. These institutions offer vocational training that is designed to provide graduates with an occupation capable of providing a person with a livelihood. For information on how programs at private vocational schools are licensed, contact the private institutions branch of Alberta Advanced Education.

Community Consortia
Community consortia provide educational opportunities for residents in areas where there are no nearby post-secondary institutions. There are four community consortia in Alberta.

Non-resident institutions approved to grant degrees
Nine degree-granting institutions from outside the province (Canadian and foreign) have the permission of the Minister of Advanced Education to offer specific degree programs in Alberta.

City University (Washington) DeVry University (Arizona) Gonzaga University (Washington) La Sierra University (California) Loma Linda University (California) Union College (Nebraska) University of Northern British Columbia University of Phoenix (Arizona) University of Portland (Oregon)

For more information on how non-resident institutions obtain approval to offer degree programs in Alberta, please contact the Campus Alberta Quality Council.

Interprovincial training agreements
Interprovincial agreements enable provinces to provide access to training programs in other jurisdictions. These training programs are either too costly to duplicate or too costly in proportion to the need being addressed to maintain in the home province.

Through existing training agreements, spaces are reserved for Alberta learners in:

• veterinary medicine at the University of Saskatchewan
• the School of Optometry at the University of Waterloo
• the prosthetics/orthotics program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology