Start your health-care career as a Personal Support Worker (PSW)
Personal Support Worker Ontario College Certificate program
Develop your skills during placements. Become an integral part of a health-care team. Graduate job-ready or pursue further studies.
Part-time
Program information
Program description
The Personal Support Worker (PSW) program is a two semester Ontario College Certificate that provides you with the knowledge and practical skills to offer safe, supportive care to clients in settings such as private homes, long term care and acute care facilities. As a member of an interprofessional health care team, PSWs assist with daily living and the provision of person-centred care to individuals with a range of health conditions and/or individuals experiencing responsive behaviours. Through theory and hands-on lab classes, you learn how to provide a comfortable, safe environment for clients while assisting with personal care and home management. Two clinical placements in long term care and other healthcare settings, provide training in the delivery and documentation of care, and expand your ability to provide holistic, compassionate care throughout the lifespan to clients and their families.
Intake information
| Start date | Campus |
|---|---|
| Winter 2025 | Barrie, South Georgian Bay |
| Summer 2025 | Barrie, Owen Sound |
| Fall 2025 | Barrie, Muskoka, Orangeville, Owen Sound |
*Program delivery methods apply to full-time programs only. Please contact recruitment for more information about the delivery method at the campus you’re interested in.
Tuition and fees
- Visit our tuition and fees page for detailed information on the cost to attend Georgian.
- You can afford this! Explore OSAP as well as awards, scholarships and bursaries to help you pay your way to graduation.
Work-integrated learning
- This program includes a clinical placement component where you’ll get clinical experience under the supervision of an experienced registered or licensed professional.
- Learn about types of work-integrated learning at Georgian.
What are the admission requirements for the Personal Support Worker program?
Personal Support Worker admission requirements
- Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent, or mature student status
- Grade 12 English (C or U)
Mature students, non-secondary school applicants (19 years or older), and home school applicants may also be considered for admission. Eligibility may be met by applicants who have taken equivalent courses, upgrading, completed their GED, and equivalency testing. For complete details refer to: www.georgiancollege.ca/admissions/academic-regulations/
Pathways
Applicants who have taken courses from a recognized and accredited post-secondary institution and/or have relevant life/learning experience may also be considered for admission; refer to the Credit for Prior Learning website for details:
www.georgiancollege.ca/admissions/credit-transfer/
Criminal Reference/Vulnerable Sector Check
Placement agencies require an up-to-date clear criminal reference check and vulnerable sector check prior to going out on placement. Students should obtain their criminal reference three months prior to placement; checks conducted earlier may not be considered current. As some jurisdictions require longer lead-time for processing, please check with the program coordinator to ensure you allow for sufficient turn-around time. It is the student’s responsibility to provide the completed document prior to placement start.
NOTE: Individuals who have been charged or convicted criminally and not pardoned will be prohibited from proceeding to a clinical or work placement.
Additional information
Clinical Placement Requirements:
In order to provide quality practicum placements, students will be placed in a variety of agencies in the region serviced by the campus. Students are required to provide their own transportation to and from all clinical placements. Student practicum placements will involve working the same shifts as the PSWs in the practicum agency. For example, day shifts may start as early as 6:00 a.m. and evening shifts may finish at 11:00 p.m.
Applicants must have an up-to-date immunization record in compliance with the Public Hospitals Act. Completion and submission of this record is required during registration in order to ensure your placement in clinical placement facilities.
To be eligible for all practicum placements, students must have:
- a completed Clinical Preparedness Permit – current (within 1 year) Level HCP CPR and Standard First Aid on admission to the program. Level HCP CPR must be renewed annually while in the program;
- a current police check including a vulnerable sector screen (see Criminal Reference Check above);
- a record of mask fit test (will be done at the college in semester one). Mask fit testing must be renewed every 2 years.
Information about placement requirements
To help you navigate the requirements to complete the clinical placement component(s) of this program (e.g. immunization, First Aid and CPR, criminal record screening and other non-academic requirements), please review the details below.
For more information about placements, visit the Placement Offices webpage.
In order to provide quality practicum placements (“Placements”), students are placed in a variety of agencies, largely in the region serviced by the campus. Students are required to provide their own transportation to Placements. Placements may vary in length (e.g. six to 12 hour days) and may include weekends and evenings, with varying start and end times (e.g. day, afternoon, overnight).
Many programs, including Health and Wellness, have immunization, First Aid and CPR, criminal record screening and other non-academic requirements that need to be met prior to Placements starting. You are responsible for carefully reviewing and meeting these requirements. The failure to meet them may mean that the host agency may refuse to accept you for a Placement or, if you have started one, that you may be prevented from continuing. The result may be that you cannot complete your program. Program-specific requirements can be found on page 2 of the Clinical Preparedness Permit specific to your program.
You are responsible for meeting all immunization, criminal screening and other requirements by the deadline provided by your program and before you start your Placement.
Notes regarding the Criminal Record Check (“CRC”) and Vulnerable Sector Screening (VSS)
Individuals who have been charged or convicted criminally and not yet pardoned or who have adverse entries on their CRC or VSS will be prohibited from proceeding to a Placement. Such a student will normally be counselled to withdraw from the program because the successful completion of a Placement is a program requirement.
Obtaining the CRC and VSS usually requires a processing time of up to 12 weeks and can vary between police jurisdictions. As some jurisdictions require longer lead time for processing, ensure you allow for sufficient turn-around time. Record checks and screenings conducted earlier than six months may not be considered current and not be acceptable. Refer to your Clinical Preparedness Permit for information regarding this. A host agency may refuse a Placement if the CRC or VSS is not satisfactory to it. It is the student’s responsibility to provide the necessary completed documents prior to the start of a Placement at the designated check time, and in the format set by Georgian College and stated in the Clinical Preparedness Permit Information Package. More information can be found on the Placement Offices webpage.
The costs associated with the provision of the CRC and VSS, anything related to them (including, if applicable, obtaining a pardon), and meeting any immunization and other Placement requirements, are to be borne by the student. The non-academic requirements of clinical agencies as described in the Clinical Preparedness Permit are subject to change at any time and host agencies may accept or decline students for any reason at their discretion. Georgian College is not responsible for any of the costs associated with the foregoing, nor for the consequences of failing to comply with, any of the requirements set out above.
What career paths can I take as a personal support worker (PSW)?
Your Personal Support Worker certificate gives you many career opportunities
Graduates provide and facilitate clearly identified personal care and routine activities of daily living in order to assist clients in being as healthy and as independent as possible. PSW graduates may find employment in retirement homes, long term care facilities, homes for the aged, various community agencies (private and public), acute care facilities, as well as in independent practice.
Review program admission requirements and information about career opportunities.
Is the Personal Support Worker program right for you?
Passionate about helping people?
You can become a personal support worker in just eight months. There is a high demand for PSWs and opportunities for local placements and jobs.
Why this program?
- Get real-world experience with two clinical placements at a local agency.
- High employment rate in your local area.
- Our faculty bring expert knowledge to the classroom from both private and public practices and institutions.
- High demand for PSWs, including hospitals that prefer to hire Georgian grads.
- Get local placements in your community.
- Grads receive credentials to work in long-term care facilities and hospitals.
- Grants and loans available – many students qualify for Better Jobs Ontario (formerly Second Career) funding.
Why study at Georgian?
- Our grads get jobs – Georgian has the highest graduate employment rate among all colleges in Ontario.
- We are known for cultivating strong partnerships with local and international employers, and for providing industry with high-skilled graduates to sustain and grow their operations.
Flex MORE. Study Personal Support Worker part-time
Benefits of studying part-time:
What you need to know:
Next steps:
What courses are included in the Personal Support Worker certificate program?
Course overview
7 Program Courses
2 Professional Practice Courses
1 Communications Course
1 General Education Course
Program-specific courses
Semester 1 courses are listed below. For a full list of courses in the program including course descriptions, view the Personal Support Worker program outline.
- PSWR 1036 – PSW Laboratory Skills
- PSWR 1037 – PSW Community Care
- PSWR 1038 – Palliative Care
- PSWR 1043 – Human Structure and Function
- PSWR 1044 – Professional Foundations
- Select 1 course from the communications list during registration.
- Select 1 course from the general education list during registration.
Your course delivery method(s)
Hybrid
This program has a hybrid delivery method. Some parts are online and other parts are delivered in person. You’ll need to come to campus for part of your program.
In person
This program is delivered fully in person and requires you to attend campus.
Please note, delivery methods are based on planning for the upcoming semester and are subject to change.
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Do you have questions about Personal Support Worker? Contact us!
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