Medical Office Assistant Certificate is a certificate in Health Sciences programme taught at Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo, Canada. The programme runs for 9 months, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English.
At a glance
Degree:Certificate
Field:Health Sciences
Duration: 9 months
Delivery: On Campus
Language: English
We have no tuition fees on record for this programme yet.
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Information for the 2027/28 academic year · Last reviewed September 2026 ·
Program details
Overview
VIU's Medical Office Assistant certificate is a nine-month, part-time program delivered through set-schedule online classes, offered in partnership with Okanagan College so that Vancouver Island students can take the coursework remotely and complete their 90-hour practicum locally in their home community. The program trains students to support doctors and other health-care professionals in a range of medical settings, with intakes offered each January and September. Admission requires Grade 12 or equivalent, English 12 at a minimum 60%, a negative tuberculin test within six months of the start date, and clearance from the BC Ministry of Public Safety's criminal record check program. Students who have already completed VIU's Medical Terminology and Anatomy & Physiology courses within the past two years can apply for transfer credit into the program, and applicants apply directly through Okanagan College, indicating a Vancouver Island practicum placement as their preference.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Vancouver Island University asks Medical Office Assistant Certificate applicants for Grade 12 graduation or an equivalent, with English 12 completed at 60% or higher. The programme page publishes no IELTS, TOEFL, PTE, Duolingo or CAEL score for English proficiency; VIU's general domestic-applicant route instead accepts a "C" in English Studies 12 or English First Peoples 12, or admission under the university's academic mature-student category for applicants who are or turn 21 during their first semester. Before starting the clinical placement, admitted students must submit a negative tuberculin (TB) test taken no more than six months before the programme start date, or evidence of follow-up on a positive result, and must obtain a satisfactory criminal record check clearance from the B.C. Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General's Criminal Records Review Office. Applications for this VIU-delivered programme are processed through Okanagan College, which issues the criminal-record-check instructions and forms once an initial application is submitted.
Application Details
Application Deadline:Domestic (Canadian) applicants apply through EducationPlannerBC; Vancouver Island University sets no institution-wide equal-consideration date, and its admissions FAQ states deadlines vary by programme, with applications for most academic programmes opening 1 October in the year before a September start. VIU publishes no general closing date for that window; applicants are directed to each programme's own page for its own deadline. International applicants use the same portal; VIU publishes no international-specific institution-wide date either, and several health programmes (Practical Nursing, Nursing Unit Assistant) are stated as not currently open to international students. Each programme's own page carries its own Start Date, Deadlines, and Additional Application Details table for the 2026-27 cycle, and admission for programmes without a stated window is treated as ongoing/rolling until the intake fills. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
