At Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Surrey, Canada, Education Assistant Certificate is offered as a certificate in Education & Teaching programme. The programme is delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition is CAD 3,000 per total for local students.
At a glance
Degree:Certificate
Field:Education & Teaching
Delivery: On Campus
Language: English
Local tuition: CAD 3,000 / total
Information for the 2027/28 academic year · Last reviewed September 2026 ·
Program details
Overview
Graduates work with Kindergarten through Grade 12 students and assist teachers in providing personal care and behavioural and learning support to a variety of students in public and independent schools. There is a high demand for Education Assistants and they are employed by every school district throughout the province. The graduates work in a variety of settings, including regular classrooms, resource rooms, work experience sites, and in life-skills activities. To integrate the knowledge and skills learned in the program, all students complete two four-week, full-time practicums in the schools over the course of their studies, one in an elementary school and one in a secondary school. During this time, a student will observe, assist, and work with children and adolescents with diverse needs under the guidance and supervision of professional staff.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: The Faculty requirement here is KPU's undergraduate English Proficiency Requirement, set out in the university's own admission requirements. On top of it this programme asks for: a letter of intent of roughly 500 words setting out how you understand the education assistant's role in K-12 schools and what qualities make you suited to the work; and one reference letter from someone who can speak to that suitability. Everyone newly admitted must then produce a criminal record check cleared through the Criminal Records Review Program run by BC's Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General, dated no more than six months before the programme begins. Applicants who are not Canadian citizens must additionally obtain a vulnerable-sector criminal record search from their country of origin. KPU's calendar page sets out these requirements without separating domestic from international applicants, so the same standard applies to both.
Application Details
Start Date:The University Calendar lists this programme's own start dates as Fall (September); it lists no Spring (January) and Summer (May) start, so those terms are not an entry point for it even though KPU runs them institution-wide. Under the Senate-approved 2026-27 schedule the Fall term runs 8 September to 17 December 2026.
Application Deadline:KPU classifies this as a Limited Intake programme: the number of seats is capped, applications are assessed against one another, and meeting the published minimums does not guarantee admission. The University Calendar lists this programme with Fall (September) as its only start, so only the window below applies to it; KPU's institution-wide Limited Intake timetable also covers terms this programme does not admit into. FALL (SEPTEMBER) INTAKE: applications open on 1 October of the previous year and the Limited Intake deadline is 1 March, so the Fall 2027 window runs 1 October 2026 to 1 March 2027; offers to domestic applicants (Canadian citizens and permanent residents) begin in November and offers to international applicants in late January. Some Limited Intake programmes close early when demand is high, and others extend the deadline when seats remain - the current extension list is at kpu.ca/admission/deadlines-extended. KPU notes that selected Limited Intake programmes may still consider domestic applicants after the term's final application date (1 July for Fall); international applicants get no such latitude, because KPU accepts nothing after those same dates. Applications open at 00:00 and close at 23:59 Pacific time. Both applicant types apply through EducationPlannerBC at apply.educationplannerbc.ca/kpu; the non-refundable application fee is CAD 40 for domestic applicants and CAD 120 for international applicants, and the confirmation deposit for a Limited Intake offer is CAD 500 domestic or CAD 5,000 international.
