The types of programs which colleges and institutes would categorize as being “access programs” differ from one province/territory to another. For most institutions, access programs are the Adult Basic Education and upgrading programs. However, NVIT and SIIT and some mainstream institutions have introduced access programs which are focused on specific career/technical fields or pre-trades. These types of access programs are designed to meet specific needs of Aboriginal learners by adapting career/technical programs to include:
Approximately 70 percent of colleges and institutes which participated in the survey and interviews confirmed that they offer access programs or preparatory programs. This combines institutions which defined access programs as adult basic education and upgrading and those which defined them as career/technical programs.
In order to profile the types of access and preparatory programs offered by colleges and institutes, the following categories will be used: career/technical access programs, pre- trades programs, adult basic education programs.
Mainstream institutions identified career/technical access programs, some offered specifically for Aboriginal learners and others offered for all students but available to Aboriginal learners. The colleges located in the northern territories, Aurora College, Nunavut Arctic College, and Yukon College, and University College of the North in northern Manitoba offer career/technical access programs which are not specifically for Aboriginal students however the majority of learners benefiting from these programs are Aboriginal. Participating institutions identified access programs in diverse fields including: