FAQ WCBC - PCU-WHS Scholarship FAQs

For additional information, please view the WorkSafeBC – PCU-WHS Scholarship page on the website at:
https://www.pcu-whs.ca/programs/bdm/worksafebc-pcu-whs-scholarship/

To register an expression of interest or to request an application form, please contact:
Jennifer Murray
Student Services & Records Coordinator
Pacific Coast University for Workplace Health Sciences
4755 Cherry Creek Road
Port Alberni, BC V9Y 0A7
Phone: 778-421-0821, ext. 209
Email: education@pcu-whs.ca

All courses at PCU-WHS are offered online by highly qualified faculty with a depth of multidisciplinary experience.

Students require a computer, an Internet connection (high-speed internet is recommended), and Internet browser software to participate in the courses. Ideally, students will have a computer with a sound card and speakers to listen to course videos and audio. All courses require a word processing application such as Microsoft Word. Individual courses may have additional software requirements. Technical assistance is available for all courses.

The online platform provides you with:

• 24 hour access to course resources and materials.
• More opportunities to directly communicate with faculty.
• Constructive interaction with other students.
• Greater flexibility and convenience in managing your time.
• Courses are not self-paced, however, timelines for course work are provided.
• An environment to participate at a time and place best suited to your needs.
• Additional time to reflect before responding to discussions and other activities.
• An environment where the independent learner flourishes.

• An application fee of $100 is required.
• The costs of elective courses or additional courses (such as Level 3 Practicum course), if required, are not covered by the Scholarship.
• There may be other incidental costs including textbooks and other materials.
• The cost of a Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR) request for any course is not covered by the Scholarship.
• Fees for any course not completed within the Scholarship period of 2 years will be the responsibility of the student.
• The percentage to which the $6,000 annual scholarship will cover actual tuition costs will be contingent on the number of transfer credits with which prospective students will enter the degree program.

• Successful candidates are required to attend the PCU-WHS online program on a full-time basis beginning in September 2020.
• Are required to attend an online orientation to the program in advance of the first academic term.
• You must maintain an academic standing of 3.0 or higher each trimester throughout your studies.
• If you fail to achieve this, you will be given the following trimester to restore your standing.

• All expressions of interest and applications must be addressed to the Office of the Registrar at PCU-WHS (see contact information below).
• Once you have determined your interest, you may submit a WorkSafeBC – PCU-WHS Scholarship application package which includes:
  • WorkSafeBC – PCU-WHS Scholarship Application & Declaration Form
  • Reflective essay
  • Official transcripts issued from previous post-secondary institutions
  • Letters of Attestation (2) for previous work experience
• Applications must be submitted between the February 14 and July 31, 2020
  
• Successful candidates will be informed within 2 weeks of the closing date for applications.

The Scholarship program is open to candidates with landed immigrant or Canadian citizenship status who are permanent residents in British Columbia.

Successful candidates:

• Must meet the admission criteria of PCU-WHS.
• Have graduated with a 2-year diploma, degree or other relevant educational prerequisite:
  • Current students must be attending a BC post-secondary institution.
  • Students converting from an existing career path who have graduated from any university or college.
• Preference will be given to candidates who have accrued a minimum of 60 transferrable academic credits from a recognized post-secondary institution.
• Submit a reflective essay of approximately 1,000 words outlining their reasons for wishing to pursue a career in disability management.
• Be in a position to register as full-time students in the program beginning in September 2020 and to complete the degree within a 2-year period.
• Have access to online facilities and high-speed internet.
• Are required to attend an online orientation to the program in advance of the first academic term.

Candidates with an average post-secondary GPA of 3.0 or higher will be preferred.
Preferred domains of previous study include:

• Human Resources
• Business
• Allied Health
• Mental Health
• Occupational Health Safety
• Health Promotion
• Social Work
• Social Care
• Nursing

Students who have not completed relevant work experience in the field will be required to complete a Level 3 Practicum course, which is outside of the scope of the Scholarship.

• Graduates are deemed eligible by the Canadian Society of Professional in Disability Management (CSPDM) to write the professional certification examinations for the designations of:
  • Certified Disability Management Professional – CDMP
  • Certified Return to Work Coordinator – CRTWC

• In a recent survey, the Canadian HR Reported states that 90 percent of business leaders say the value of professional designations is increasing.

• Having met the following eligibility criteria:
  • Bachelor of Disability Management (BDM) degree
  • A minimum of 1 year performing the roles and responsibilities (during the last 5 years) with at least 50% or more of the time in the delivery of DM services, supervised by qualified DM supervisor or management representative responsible for DM.

• The BDM is accepted by the Ted Rogers School of Management at Ryerson University as a qualifying program for consideration of acceptance to its:
  • Master of Business Administration
  • Master of Science in Management
  • Master of Health Administration

Disability Management Professionals work as human resource professionals, workplace health specialists, case managers, return to work coordinators or in a variety of related areas.

Prospective places of employment for Disability Management Professionals include:

• Industrial work sites
• Corporate offices
• Insurance companies
• Service providers
• Human resources departments
• Workers’ compensation organizations

There is an opportunity for experienced professionals to establish their own businesses offering disability management contract services to local employers.

Disability Management Professionals work internally within their own organizations or externally as providers to:

• Develop positive workplace health and job retention policies.
• Promote a positive and proactive workplace health and return to work organizational culture.
• Promote and protect the health and productivity of the workforce.
• Support workers with health conditions to remain at work.
• Assist workers absent on health grounds to safely return to the workplace.

Disability Management Professionals work collaboratively with management, unions or employee organizations, insurance providers, government agencies, health care providers and others.

• Approximately 80 percent of disabling conditions occur during an individual’s working life.
• Disability benefit recipients have less than a one percent chance of exiting the social security benefit system and in to employment.
• This results in dependency and poverty for individuals with disabilities, unsustainable social protection costs, and increasing numbers of disability benefit recipients.
• About 25 percent of all Canadians living in poverty today ─ an estimated 1.2 million individuals ─ are people with disabilities.
• Effective Disability Management programs can make a crucial contribution to reducing poverty in Canada by promoting workplace health, preventing disabilities, and avoiding loss of employment due to a disabling condition.

Disability Management interventions are designed to:

• Reduce the likelihood that workers will acquire an impairment that could place their jobs at risk.
• Engage with workers with disabilities, before they have lost their attachment to their employer, to enhance the likelihood they will retain and return to their jobs.
• Reduce the number of workers exiting the active labour market and entering into the disability benefits system.

Early intervention is at the core of an effective Disability Management approach.

A key success factor in effective Disability Management programs is a consensus-based process based on collaboration between management and worker representatives, often enshrined in a collective agreement, and overseen by a joint management-labour committee.

The WorkSafeBC – PCU-WHS Scholarship program is designed to:

• Significantly increase availability of Disability Management Professionals for both the WorkSafeBC internal workforce as well as other British Columbia employers.
• Support a key public relations strategy to build enhanced recognition of the importance of effective Return to Work programs and the priority of maintaining employment for disabled workers.
• Reduce the unacceptable poverty rate of people with disabilities.
• Improve socio-economic outcomes for disabled workers, employers, and society at large through greater professionalization of those working in the Return to Work / Disability Management field.

• The scholarship program is a joint initiative of WorkSafeBC and PCU-WHS.
• Each successful candidate will be entitled to $6,000 annually for each of two years to cover most of the course tuition for the specialized courses required to complete the Bachelor of Disability Management (BDM) degree.
• Preference will be given to candidates who have completed at least 60 transferable academic credits from a recognized post-secondary institution.
• The scholarship program duration is 2 years and recipients are expected to graduate within that time frame.
• The percentage to which the $6,000 annual scholarship will cover actual tuition costs will be contingent on the number of transfer credits with which prospective students will enter the degree program.