Selkirk College offers Mental Health and Substance Use Certificate, a certificate in Health Sciences programme in Castlegar, Canada. The programme runs for 6 months, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition is CAD 2,500 per total for local students.
The Mental Health and Substance Use Certificate is a six-month certificate offered online by Selkirk College's School of Health and Human Services. It is structured in two parts: six online theory courses delivered in a blended format, mixing asynchronous and synchronous learning, over the first fourteen weeks, followed by an in-person practicum of five to six weeks completed in the student's own home community or place of hire. Coursework builds the knowledge, skills and ethical grounding needed to work in the multidisciplinary mental health and substance use field, combining theory with practical application for roles in health care and social services settings. Admission requires BC high school graduation or equivalent, or mature-student status for applicants 19 and older, English Studies 12 with a minimum of 60%, and a Ministry of Justice criminal record check completed before the practicum begins. The certificate is aimed at people already working or seeking to work in diverse community and facility settings supporting clients experiencing mental health and substance use challenges, and its online-plus-local-practicum format particularly suits learners who need to study flexibly from their home community.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Applicants must meet Selkirk College's general admission standard: BC high-school graduation or equivalent, or academic mature-student status (19 or older at the start of the first term). Academically, English Studies 12 or equivalent is required with a minimum of 60%. Students whose first language is not English must meet one of the English-language-proficiency assessments set out in Policy 8611 at the level appropriate for this program; no specific IELTS or TOEFL score is published on the program page. Before starting the practicum, applicants must show compliance with any Public Health Officer vaccine orders applicable to the practice area, and must complete a Ministry of Justice criminal record check, valid within 90 days of the practicum start; some types of record may limit or prohibit acceptance into field placement, which is required for program promotion. Intake is Winter only, with the 2027 winter intake currently open.
Application Details
Start Date:Winter
Application Deadline:Selkirk College's general programmes admit on a rolling, first-qualified-first-admitted basis: applications for Fall 2027 open 1 October 2026, Winter 2028 applications open 1 February 2027, and Spring 2028 applications open 1 June 2027, with no fixed closing date. Both domestic and international applicants apply through EducationPlannerBC, or international applicants may instead apply directly to Selkirk with a $100 application package; admission stays rolling until seats fill. The Bachelor of Science in Nursing is competitive-entry with its own published timeline for the 2027/28 intake. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
