At Sheridan College in Oakville, Canada, Diploma in Computer Systems Technician – Cyber Security is offered as a diploma in Cyber Security programme. The programme runs for 2 years, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition for international students is CAD 19,700 per year (CAD 4,743 per year for local students).
This diploma can be completed in as little as 16 months and prepares students for entry-level cyber security roles without requiring high-level math courses. It develops two of the four skillsets in the Canadian Cyber Security Skills Framework -- Operate and Maintain, and Protect and Defend -- covering operating systems fundamentals, Python programming, cloud security, data communications, web and application security, and tools for cyber defence and penetration testing. Delivery mixes in-person, hybrid and online formats with multiple intakes, and students train within a cyber range modelled on a security operations centre.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Direct entry requires an Ontario Secondary School Diploma or equivalent, including Grade 12 English (ENG4C or ENG4U), or mature-student status for applicants 19 or older missing this course, who may need English, math or science testing or a free upgrading course. Eligible applicants are ranked on the average of their six highest senior-level credits, including the required course, and/or pre-admission test results. Applicants should communicate effectively, work well in team settings, remain calm under pressure and be interested in computing; prior experience with computers is highly recommended. Applicants whose first language is not English must meet Sheridan's institution-wide English Proficiency Requirements: for this Ontario College Diploma, IELTS Academic overall 6.0 with no band below 5.5, PTE Academic overall 58 with no section below 49, Duolingo English Test overall 105 with no sub-score below 85, or CAEL overall 60 with no section below 50.
Application Details
Start Date:Sheridan runs three terms a year - Fall starting in September, Winter in January and Spring/Summer in May. For 2026-27 the Fall term ran 8 September to 18 December 2026, Winter runs 6 January to 16 April 2027, and Spring/Summer runs 3 May to 13 August 2027. On 6 September 2026 this program's own page listed intakes in September 2026, January 2027 and May 2027 at the Hazel McCallion Campus in Mississauga, plus online-synchronous intakes open to domestic applicants. Sheridan's Start date table also carries a separate Domestic and International status for each intake (Available, Waitlisted or Closed) that changes as seats fill, so check this program's page on sheridancollege.ca before you apply.
Application Deadline:Sheridan publishes no deadline of its own for this program; the dates below are the college-wide ones. DOMESTIC APPLICANTS (Canadian citizens and permanent residents) apply through ontariocolleges.ca, which opened the Fall 2027 application on 26 September 2026 - Sheridan says it starts receiving those applications in early October for the academic year that follows. The equal consideration date is 1 February: apply on or before it and your file is weighed alongside every other one received by then for a Fall-term start, so for the cycle now open that means 1 February 2027 for entry in September 2027. Sheridan still accepts applications after that date wherever a program has not filled, but they are handled in the order they arrive, which leaves little room in high-demand programs. First offers for a September start may go out from 1 November; programs that require a portfolio, audition or resume begin issuing decisions later in March, and offers for the Winter and Spring/Summer intakes are made on a rolling basis. Confirm a Fall offer at ontariocolleges.ca by 1 May, or by the date printed on an offer issued after that, then pay the tuition deposit three months before the term begins. INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS apply instead through Sheridan's own International Application Portal, and Sheridan publishes no deadline for them - its Important Dates table carries only a note that the international dates are still to be posted. What limits an international application in practice is space: Sheridan tells international applicants to check that a program still has room before applying, and every program page shows a separate International status for each intake. Apply as early as you can and leave time for a study permit. Confirm the current dates at sheridancollege.ca and ontariocolleges.ca before you apply.
