Overview

Micro-credentials are rapid training programs offered by postsecondary education institutions across the province that can help you get the skills that employers need. Micro-credentials help people retrain and upgrade their skills to find new employment.

About micro-credentials

Micro-credentials:

  • take less time to complete than degrees or diplomas
  • may be completed online and may include on-the-job training
  • are often created with input from business sectors, so the skills being taught match employer needs

Apply now

The micro-credentials portal is a starting point to explore the hundreds of micro-credentials available in °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû, with more being added regularly.

This resource is part of °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû’s Micro-credentials Strategy, helping learners access more opportunities to train or upskill for in-demand jobs.

Loans and grants are also available to eligible learners to rapidly upskill and reskill for in-demand jobs. Hundreds of micro-credentials are approved for financial assistance through the °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû Student Assistance Program (OSAP), with more to come.

You can also check your local postsecondary education institution’s website to see more information about the micro-credentials they offer.

How to enrol

Once you have selected a micro-credential you’d like to take, register with the school directly. If the micro-credential is OSAP-approved, you can then apply for financial assistance through OSAP for Micro-credentials.

to apply for funding for micro-credentials.

°ÄÃÅÓÀÀû Micro-credentials Challenge Fund

Background

Announced in April 2021, °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû provided $15 million through the °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû Micro-credentials Challenge Fund Round 1 to accelerate the development of micro-credentials and expand program offerings. After a successful call for proposals, °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû approved over 65 projects at colleges, universities, Indigenous Institutes and career colleges across the province, creating over 300 new micro-credentials to support approximately 6,000 learners.

Round 2

°ÄÃÅÓÀÀû is providing $5 million through the °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû Micro-credentials Challenge Fund Round 2 to support the co-creation or expansion of micro-credentials to help address °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû’s labour market gaps.

°ÄÃÅÓÀÀû has allocated funding to 36 postsecondary institutions, that are working with local industry and employers to develop new or to expand existing micro-credentials focused on °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû’s priority labour market sectors.

About the fund

The Challenge Fund Round 2 will expand the number and types of micro-credentials available in the province that help to address °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû’s labour market gaps. These micro-credentials will increase collaboration between the private and public sectors through formal partnerships among postsecondary institutions, training providers and employers.

The micro-credentials developed from this fund will focus on training that is:

  • employer responsive and leads directly to local/regional jobs
  • designed to fill labour market gaps in priority sectors , for example:
    • health care
    • advanced manufacturing
    • electric vehicles
    • critical minerals
    • mental health services/accessibility
    • housing

The funding was available to:

Funding recipients

A total of 88 projects are receiving funding in 2024–25:

Brock University

  • Supervisory Skills in Advanced Manufacturing

Canadian College of Healthcare and Pharmaceutics

  • Wound Care and Management for Healthcare Professionals
  • Intravenous Therapy for Health Professionals
  • Mental Health-Suicide Crisis Responder
  • Health Data Analytics for Health Professionals
  • Cybersecurity (Medical Device) Project Management for Healthcare Professionals

Canadore College

  • Digital Health Skills
  • The Business of Broadband – Beyond Borders

Carleton University

  • Climate Change and Youth Mental Health

Centennial College

  • Process Development and Scientific Molding in Injection Molding
  • Fundamentals in Design & Virtual Commissioning for NX
  • Electrical Utility Control Centres (System Control)
  • Electrical Utility Distribution Stations (Monitor and Maintain)
  • Hybrid Electric Vehicle Program (Maintenance and Repair)

Collège Boréal

  • Sensibilisation aux besoins particuliers dans le domaine de l’éducation de la petite enfance
  • Battery Electric Vehicle Automotive

Collège La Cité

  • Approche intégrée et culturellement adaptée en santé mentale / Intervention en santé mentale en milieu scolaire

Conestoga College

  • Manufacturing Leadership

Confederation College

  • Surveyor Assistant Theory

CRD College of Health Care

  • Pathway to Health Care Jobs – Care Support Aide/Developmental Disability Support Assistant
  • Transforming from Developmental Disability Support Assistant to Developmental Services Worker
  • Transforming from Care Support Aide to Certified Personal Support Worker

Evergreen College

  • Primary Care Clinical Assistant for Seniors

Fanshawe College

  • Manufacturing Fundamentals Part 1
  • Manufacturing Fundamentals Part 2

First Nations Technical Institute (FNTI)

  • Introduction to Indigenous Worldviews
  • Meaning of Treaties, Agreements, and Land Claims
  • Truth and Reconciliation
  • Healing from an Indigenous Foundation
  • Safety in Practice

Fleming College

  • Introduction to Biomanufacturing
  • Embedded Systems Design 1
  • Embedded Systems Design 2
  • Embedded Systems Design 3
  • Indigenous Perspectives in Economic Development

George Brown College

  • Housing Maintenance and Construction
  • Infectious Disease Control

Georgian College

  • Industrial and Construction Controls Micro-certificate
  • Hydrogen 101

IBT College

  • Hospitality Micro-credentials Leading to a Hospitality Management Diploma using Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality

Lakehead University

  • Specialized Skills for Northern, Rural, and Remote Health: Perinatal Healthcare, Health Leadership, Mental Health and Addictions
  • Risk Management for Indigenous Land-Based Practitioners
  • Archaeological Monitoring and Mapping for Indigenous Communities (AMMIC) Program
  • Health Information Management

Lambton College

  • Improving Access to Staffing through a Standardized HR Orientation Training and Digital Passport System for SW °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû Developmental Services Agencies
  • Gap Training to Support °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû’s Advanced Biomanufacturing Sector

Laurentian University

  • Urban Aging and Inclusive Design Practitioner
  • Music in Northern Care
  • Applied Behaviour Reduction Techniques

Loyalist College

  • Land Surveying Techniques
  • Child Protection Worker Authorization
  • Getting Ready for the Trades
  • Trauma-Informed and Mindfulness Practitioner
  • Facilities Supervisor

McMaster University

  • Leadership in Bioinnovation
  • Digital Decode: Bridging the Digital Marketing Skills Gap in Today’s Connected World
  • Generative AI for Knowledge Workers
  • Foundational Competencies and Tools for Equity-Based Co-Creation
  • Nuclear Safety and Technology

Mohawk College

  • City School Community Learning Alliance: From Employment Precarity to Workforce Integration
  • Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE) Upskilling for Electricians

Northern °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû School of Medicine (NOSM)

  • Local and Traditional Food Handler Training and Certification
  • Clinical Teaching for Health Care Professionals (CT-HCP)
  • Artificial Intelligence for Health System Transformation

°ÄÃÅÓÀÀû Tech University

  • Digital Technology Use and Competence within Health Care and Industry 4.0

Oshki-Pimache-O-Win: The Wenjack Education Institute

  • Revitalizing the Role of the Community Health Representative

Pharma-Medical Science College of Canada

  • Health Professional Career Development

Sault College

  • Business Analytics: Content Creation Using AI
  • Business Analytics: Business Analysis Fundamentals
  • Business Analytics: Microsoft Power BI Fundamentals
  • Business Analytics: Data Analysis Using Power BI
  • Business Analytics: Business Analysis Using Excel

Seneca Polytechnic

  • Supporting Labour Market Demand and Job Continuity in the Behaviour Technician Field

Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU)

  • Clinical Teaching Skills for Academic Clinicians

Trent University

  • Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Training for Healthcare Professionals

Université de Hearst

  • Initiation à la gestion de petites entreprises pour les personnes professionnelles de la santé

University of Guelph

  • Companion Animal Primary Care
  • Effective Veterinary Teams
  • Veterinary Healthcare Delivery to Underserviced Communities
  • Equine Primary Care

University of Ottawa

  • Creation of French Language Health Care Management Micro-credentials
  • Managing Innovation and Change in Health Care
  • Managing Performance in Health Care
  • Financial Management in Health Care

Victoria International College of Business & Technology

  • Artificial Intelligence Programing

York University

  • Upskilling for Co-Op: Preparing for the Workplace
  • Vaccine Production and Quality Assurance
  • Breaking Down Barriers: Understanding and Addressing Racism in Canada

For more information about the Challenge Fund, contact psepolicy@ontario.ca.

Progress on our plan

Since 2020, we’ve announced investments of   to support the province’s Micro-credentials Strategy.

So far we have:

  • created to access micro-credential training opportunities
  • supported the creation of over 300 new micro-credentials in response to regional labour market needs through the Micro-credentials Challenge Fund Round 1
  • strengthened partnerships between postsecondary institutions, training providers and employers
  • promoted micro-credentials among learners and employers
  • supported students with financial need to pay for education geared to in-demand jobs, through OSAP
  • piloted a virtual passport that allows a learner to track, store and share their learning experience

Pilot programs

eCampus°ÄÃÅÓÀÀû

In 2019, we funded micro-credential pilots through our partner organization eCampus°ÄÃÅÓÀÀû.

is a provincially funded centre of excellence and global leader in technology-enabled teaching and learning. They lead a consortium of publicly funded colleges, universities and Indigenous Institutes in °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû to support digital transformation and encourage innovation, collaboration and partnerships to connect °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû’s campuses to the future of learning. With funding from the government of °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû, has facilitated 36 pilots at °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû colleges and universities.

Learn more about these pilot programs at .

We will update this page as we continue to develop and expand micro-credentials.