Offered by Centennial College in Toronto, Canada, HD in Biotechnology - Advanced (Fast-Track) (Optional Co-op) is a higher diploma in Biomedical & Laboratory Sciences programme. The programme runs for 4 semesters, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition for international students is CAD 19,167 per year (CAD 2,775 per year for local students).
This fast-track route grants qualified college or university graduates advanced standing into the programme, teaching the scientific principles, techniques and skills needed in industrial microbiology and chemistry. Specialised study covers clinical and environmental microbiology, microbial genetics, biochemistry and biotechnology applications, combining theory with technical practice. Project work done in consultation with faculty builds research, laboratory technique, report-writing and presentation skills. Technical training includes aseptic technique, isolating and identifying microorganisms from samples such as the human body, water, soil, air and food, calibrating instruments including gas chromatographs, pH meters, centrifuges, PCR thermocyclers, gel electrophoresis equipment, spectrophotometers and HPLCs, preparing microbiological media and reagents, culturing pathogenic microbes, and designing advanced microbiology and microbial genetics experiments.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: This advanced fast-track diploma admits applicants who already hold a degree or three-year college diploma in chemistry, biology, engineering, or a related discipline; Centennial reviews the applicant's transcript as part of the decision. Applicants must also take Centennial's own English Admission Test or otherwise satisfy its English-proficiency standard. The program page defers that standard to Centennial's institution-wide requirement, which for fast-track and advanced-diploma programs sets IELTS Academic 6.5 with no band below 6.0, TOEFL iBT 81 with Reading at least 19 and Writing at least 23, and PTE Academic 58. Domestic applicants apply through ontariocolleges.ca; international applicants apply directly to Centennial. No minimum admission GPA is published for entry, though the optional co-op stream carries its own continuation requirements. The availability table currently lists only a Summer 2027 intake.
Application Details
Start Date:Summer 2027 only
Application Deadline:Centennial publishes no application deadline for this program; what follows is the Ontario college cycle that governs it. Domestic applicants apply through ontariocolleges.ca: for a program starting in Fall 2027 the equal-consideration date is 1 February 2027, and applications arriving after it are still assessed, but first-come first-served while places remain. Across the Ontario college system the application opened on 26 September 2026, offers may be issued from 1 November 2026, and an offer must be accepted by 1 May 2027. One $150 fee covers up to five program choices. International applicants apply directly to Centennial through its own international application process and are assessed on a rolling basis across the Fall, Winter and Summer intakes; the college publishes no fixed international closing date. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
