Provincial Program Standards and Provincial Program Descriptions

The first place to start when designing the curriculum for a new program or renewing an existing program is the Provincial Program Standards or the Provincial Program Descriptions. These documents are frequently confused as the same thing, but there are important differences to note.

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Office of Academic Quality

Provincial Program Standards

Provincial Program Standards have been established by the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) for many of the programs in the college system, based on achievement of vocational and essential employability learning outcomes and general education goals.

Programs developed according to existing Provincial Program Standards must include the Provincial Vocational Learning Outcomes (VLOs) as they appear on the standard, word for word; however, a program can exceed the number of outcomes if necessary. Examples include adding institutional outcomes that embed entrepreneurship and environmental sustainability.

Included with the Program Standard are the Essential Employability Skills and the General Education Requirement.

Essential Employability Skills (EES)

EES are those skills, attitudes and behaviours needed to succeed in nearly every workplace. EES are identified by employers as critical for successful employees as they complement the learned vocational outcomes. Critical skills include communicating, managing information, working with others, problem-solving, and learning continuously. Programs are expected to integrate EES into their curriculum and thread them through vocational, and communications and general education courses.

General Education (GNED)

GNED courses are designed to strengthen “generic skills, such as critical analysis, problem solving, and communication, in the context of an exploration of topics with broad-based personal and/or societal importance” (MTCU’s Framework for Programs of Instruction). Courses are developed by the GNED department under the themes of Arts and Society, Civic Life, Social and Cultural Understanding, Personal Understanding, and Science and Technology.

The number of GNEDs required by a program depends on the credential and the nature of the program.

  • Ontario College Certificate programs: One (recommended)
  • Diploma and Advanced Diploma programs: Three to five (required)

GNED courses contribute significantly to the breadth of student learning, and to the development of EES. Students are free to choose whatever GNED courses appeal to them.

Provincial Program Descriptions

Provincial Program Descriptions are used for programs not standardized across the college system. When working with Program Descriptions, curriculum teams have the flexibility to adapt the vocational learning outcomes provided, as long as they remain vocational and communicate the intent of the original outcomes. Programs working from Descriptions must also meet EES and GNED requirements.

Important: Ask a member of the Office of Academic Quality (OAQ) to check with the Credentials Validation Service (CVS) for Program Descriptions. Sometimes, there may not appear to be an existing Program Description to which a program can be mapped; however, CVS may require the team to map to a Program Description they determine to be similar enough, or to a Program Description with the same name but with a different credential.