Indigenous Community Support Worker Certificate is a certificate in Indigenous Focus programme taught at Okanagan College in Kelowna, Canada. The programme runs for 1 year, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition is CAD 6,511 per total for local students.
At a glance
Degree:Certificate
Field:Indigenous Focus
Duration: 1 year
Delivery: On Campus
Language: English
Local tuition: CAD 6,511 / total
Information for the 2027/28 academic year · Last reviewed September 2026 ·
Program details
Overview
This one-year, part-time certificate totals 375 hours, delivered online with classes held two evenings a week plus roughly two Saturdays a month. Its 13 core courses address Indigenous histories and the effects of colonization, traditional knowledge systems and cross-cultural communication, Indigenous law and governance frameworks, and professional and ethical practice within human services, alongside person- and family-centred approaches to holistic support planning, foundational substance-use counselling concepts, group facilitation, and motivational interviewing and interpersonal communication skills for human-services work. The program also includes a 70-hour practicum placement at an approved community organization, and at least half of the coursework must be completed through Okanagan College. Admission requires B.C. secondary school graduation or equivalent (or being at least 19 and out of secondary school for a year), English 12 at a minimum of 60 percent, and a clear criminal record check. Graduates are prepared for entry-level roles such as Indigenous community support worker, education assistant, community support worker, band office support worker, health centre support worker, or friendship centre worker.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Admission requires B.C. secondary-school graduation or equivalent, or standing as a mature applicant at least 19 years of age and out of secondary school for at least one year. The published language requirement is English 12 at a minimum of 60 per cent, or an equivalent; no IELTS, TOEFL or other standardized test score is listed. Every applicant must obtain a criminal record check clearance from the B.C. Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General's Criminal Records Review Office and submit it by the deadline the Admissions office sets, or the offer is cancelled. Prior experience working with Indigenous communities is described on the program page as an asset rather than a requirement. The certificate is not eligible for student loan funding. As of this review the program page stated it 'has not been scheduled' for a further intake.
Application Details
Application Deadline:Domestic applicants apply through EducationPlannerBC (a $30 CAD fee): Okanagan College sets no fixed closing date for most programmes in the 2026-27/2027-28 cycle. Applications for a Fall intake open at 8:30 a.m. on October's first business day of the preceding year, and for a Winter intake at 8:30 a.m. on February's first business day of the preceding year (exceptions apply); Practical Nursing's January intake opens at 9:00 a.m. on April's first business day of the preceding year. Most programmes accept applications until seats fill, though Nursing and Dental programmes set their own fixed or ranked deadlines on their own pages. International applicants also apply through EducationPlannerBC, paying a $100 CAD per-programme fee; the College publishes no institution-wide international closing date and directs applicants to each programme's own page. Admission is otherwise rolling. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
