Bachelor of Commerce (Digital Marketing) - Postsecondary ...

Over ten universities in Ontario currently offer Human Resources bachelor’s degrees, but only two
colleges offer specialized HR Management programs – Humber College’s, HR Strategy and
Technology and Seneca College’s HE Management Program. Both colleges are the only postsecondary
institutions to offer co‐op placements. Both programs show relatively high number of firstchoice
applicants relative to enrollments, indicating substantial interest. First‐choice applications to
Humber’s program ranged from 82 to 119 over the past five years, with enrollments capped at 20 to
30 students per class. This program attracts approximately 10% of applications from the Western
catchment areas, while Seneca’s program attracts approximately 5% of applications from this same
region.
Similar to Current Students in Accounting, Current Students enrolled in Human Resources were more
likely to consider university only as an option for pursuing a degree program than those who are
enrolled in Marketing or Business. This may be explained by the importance they place on
professional accreditation. Nevertheless, over half of Current HR students said they are interested in
applying to this program.
The HR specialization with the most appeal among Students and Employers is Human Resources –
Recruitment and Selection, Training and Development, and Occupational Health and Safety. Other
specializations valued by Employers were HR and Organizational Behaviour/Psychology,
Compensation and Benefits, and labour Relations.
Overall, half of Employers believed that the supply of qualified HR candidates will be sufficient to fill
expected job openings over the next five to 10 years, but one‐tenth believed that supply would not
be able to keep up with demand. The majority of those predicting future shortages believed that
needs would be greatest for Labour Relations Representatives, Health & Safety Specialists, and HR
Generalists.
Occupational projections for two areas of Western Ontario (London‐Woodstock and Kitchener‐
Waterloo‐Barrie) offer good employment prospects for Specialists in Human Resources over the next
few years.
Business Management
There are literally dozens of colleges and universities offering programs in general management and
while the overall research suggests that a new general Business Management degree offering may be
the least differentiating program, the generalist nature of the degree itself may be its strength.
Importantly, as a foundation of business skills can be applied to any organization and given the
estimated rate of retirements in London and surrounding region over the next ten years, a business
management program appears to be viable as it will help sustain labour supply in the local area. The
greatest benefit is for the student who enters the college without having decided upon a specialization.
This provides them the opportunity to explore options and the ability to continue in a general program
or to switch into a more specialized program.
Caution should be noted, however, that applications to the program area of General Business
Administration and Management are decreasing at the college level relative to other business
programs. Applications to International Business Management, however remains relatively steady,
with significant numbers applying to degree programs.
LKSB Degree Program Feasibility Study • 2011
56