UPEI offers new Bachelor of Integrated Studies starting in September 2008
Beginning in September 2008, the University of Prince Edward Island will offer a
Bachelor of Integrated Studies (BIS) for mature students who want to combine part-time
study with full-time employment and/or family responsibilities.
“Mature students really add to the fabric of the university through their career and life experiences,” says Dr. Richard Kurial, Dean of Arts at UPEI. “The BIS program is an excellent new learning opportunity for adults who either want to earn their first degree, finish an uncompleted degree or add to an existing college diploma, while maintaining their careers.”
The new degree also has benefits for employers and the workforce, says Jeannette MacAulay, Director of the UPEI Centre for Life-Long Learning, which will coordinate the program.
“Employers realize that employees who have higher education are more likely to generate new knowledge and to innovate,” says MacAulay. “Increasingly, post-secondary degrees are required to obtain employment. By continuing to learn, people in the workforce increase their employability, confidence and career satisfaction.”
Currently only 19 per cent of undergraduate students at UPEI are over 25 years old, well below the national average of 30 per cent.
Students in the BIS program will complete 30 courses instead of the usual 40 in arts, science or business, which makes the degree more attainable for learners who have established careers. Eight of the courses will cover an area of the students’ personal or career-related interests.
The name of the degree recognizes that adult learners have gained knowledge and skills outside formal education, says MacAulay. By re-entering the formal education system, these learners will integrate their personal and practical knowledge with theoretical and research-based studies. Students will also be permitted to apply for credit for learning from experience through prior learning processes such as the presentation of a portfolio.
Applicants must be at least seven years out of high school. Under UPEI’s mature student policy, applicants may be admitted without a high school diploma. Applications are being accepted now for a September 2008 start.
For detailed information, visit upei.ca/clll/ or contact Isabelle Christian, BIS Coordinator, at the Centre for Life-Long Learning at (902) 566-0336 or lifelong@upei.ca.
Photo: Isabelle Christian (left), coordinator of UPEI’s new Bachelor of Integrated Studies, and Dr. Richard Kurial (right), Dean of Arts, discuss the program with students Darlene Peters, of Montague, and Scott Taylor, of Charlottetown. Peters and Taylor are part-time students at UPEI who will be taking advantage of the new degree program.
