Re-training plan modified

By Chris Hunt

hunt0256@algonquincollege.com

Increased eligibility, an advertising surge and job loss have contributed to a rising interest in Algonquin’s Second Career program.

On November 10 of last year the province increased the eligibility period for laid off workers by about three years.

Before the change, only people who had been laid off a year prior to June 2008, which was when the program began, were eligible to be accepted into the program.  Now those who have been laid off as of January 2005 may apply.

The government has also been promoting the program extensively through television ads, with good results.

 “We have seen a tremendous increase in the amount of inquiries about Second Career since the provincial government advertising campaign started,” said Jamie Bramburger, an adviser at Algonquin’s Pembroke campus.

The flurry of inquiries is likely to continue, Bramburger continues.  “We expect the inquiries to continue because of layoffs.”

Nortel and Bell are among the local businesses that have been forced to shed some of their employees recently.  In other parts of the province, autoworkers have also been on the receiving end of lay-offs.  It’s possible that many could look to the Second Career program.

The Pembroke Campus receives around five inquiries a week, whereas the Ottawa campus receives between 35 and 50 during the same time period.

“We see those numbers continuously rising,” said Susan Killeen Ramsay, a Second Career advisor in Ottawa.  The Ottawa program has received over 1300 inquiries as of June 1 of last year.

She also says that there have been roughly 100 new student registrations at Algonquin because they have received funding from the province.

The program is funded by the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities and is designed to retrain those who have been laid off in other areas so they can find sustainable careers.

The applicants range from mid-twenties to mid-forties, and if an applicant is accepted into the program the government will provide funding for living expenses, tuition and travel costs up to $28,000.