11 Child Development Degree Programs in Canada

With the Diploma in Early Childhood Education, learn everything you need to know to create experiences and environments that enhance young children's development from infancy to school age. Use observation skills to create experiences for young children based on their interests and needs, and more.

During this program, you will study the development of the child in all its aspects: physical, social, emotional, intellectual and language. The program touches on children's learning, but also other areas, such as their health, nutrition, and creative spirit.

Earn while you learn with this flexible delivery option. There is an increasing demand for child development practitioners. The majority of the training takes place while working on the job as a paid apprentice, and the formal education portion can be taken via distance education. This program can be completed in as little as three years.

In this immersive program offered exclusively at Trent University Durham GTA, Child & Youth Studies students take a multidisciplinary and practical approach to understanding this crucial period in human development. Advance your knowledge of child and youth studies through sociological, psychological, Indigenous, and educational approaches to the field, and get hands-on experience through work placements and undergraduate-led research opportunities. Graduates of this program also benefit from a direct pathway into the Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) program, with guaranteed spaces reserved for Child & Youth Studies graduates.

Graduates from the Child Studies degree program at the University of Guelph are indeed eligible to apply for membership in the College of Early Childhood Educators (CECE) in order to become Early Childhood Educators (ECEs). The CECE is the regulatory body for early childhood educators in Ontario, Canada, and it sets standards for entry to the profession, including the education requirements for becoming a registered ECE. Completing a Child Studies degree program that meets the CECE's standards is one pathway to eligibility for registration as an ECE in Ontario.

UFV’s Bachelor in Child and Youth Care, with an optional specialization in Child Protection, prepares you to explore and address the issues that affect children, youth, families, and communities who are experiencing social and developmental challenges. Based on the values of social justice and inclusiveness to support people of all abilities, cultures and beliefs, the program equips you to meet the highest standards of practice and places you at the forefront of current trends in the field of child and youth care.

The three-year Child and Youth Care Ontario College Advanced Diploma program prepares you to support vulnerable children, youth, and families with complex needs. Learn a wide range of prevention and intervention strategies that foster positive change and healthy development. Assess the strengths and needs of young people and families and develop interventions to meet those needs. Apply the principles of relational practice, life space engagement, and anti-oppressive practice while working with children, youth, and families. In classes, you learn practical and theoretical concepts and then apply them in field placements.

Confederation College’s Child and Youth Care (CYC) advanced diploma program will give you the skills and knowledge needed to relate to, engage with and empower vulnerable children and their families. Through a wide range of courses including trends in child and youth care, sociology of family, youth substance use and marginalized youth and crisis experiences, you will be provided with a solid foundation to engage relationally while being developmentally responsive, trauma-sensitive and self-reflective. You will also gain a strong understanding of issues of oppression and racism, along with approaches to support health and wellness for Indigenous youth.

If you are contemplating a career in education, social work, or psychology, the Education, Family and Childhood Profile of Dawson’s Social Science Program is designed especially for you! It could also interest students who would like to pursue other fields of work related to health and social services for children and families. We take a multidisciplinary approach to studying and understanding the social, psychological, and cultural development of children from birth to adulthood. Students will learn how society, community, education and public policy influence the structure of the family and the development of children. In addition, this profile has a fieldwork component in the second and fourth terms in collaboration with schools, community centers and daycares around Dawson and all of Montreal.

The two-year Early Childhood Education Ontario College Diploma program, delivered in a compressed format over 42 weeks, prepares you to become an educator of children in a variety of early learning settings. Gain the knowledge and skills necessary to work with families and other professionals to support children`s learning and development.

According to the Ontario job market analysis, kindergarten teachers and kindergarten teaching assistants' job opportunities will continue to increase in the next five years.