Experiential Education

At Pearson, we pride ourselves on the wide range of experiential opportunities we make available to our students. These opportunities include programs that run over the school year within the Halton Board (to view offerings click here), those that take place outside of Halton, and still others that run over the March Break or in the summertime. While many of these programs are advertised through our morning announcements, we encourage students to drop in anytime to meet with a counsellor or spend some time researching these programs using our library of information packages.

The following links should be useful as a starting place for students who are looking for the opportunity to explore a particular career area of interest through a specialized program, participate in an academic or recreational summer program, or explore another part of the world by doing an exchange.

Halton Board Experiential Programs

The Halton Public and Catholic School Boards have developed a coterminus relationship which allows them to offer students in both systems a broad range of exciting experiential programs. All of these programs can be explored in greater detail at www.schooltocareer.ca. These programs have been divided into four key categories:

Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP) The Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program helps students prepare for apprenticeship by combining technology courses with a coop placement to help them gain the knowledge, skills and work experience necessary to begin an apprenticeship.

Listed below are the fours sectors of OYAP, including the related programs offered in the Halton Region: Construction Sector: Carpenter, Cabinet Maker, Industrial Woodworker, Electrician Construction and Maintenance, Landscaper, Greenskeeper, Horticulturalist
  • Industrial Sector: Industrial Mechanic, Millwright, Machinist, Tool & Die Maker, Welder, Welder Fitter Motive
  • Power Sector: Autobody and Collision Damage Repair, Automotive Painter, Automotive Technician, Small Engine Mechanic
  • Service Sector: Chef, Baker, Pattisier, Early Childhood Educator, Child and Youth Worker, Hairstylist, Information Technology Technician

Career Exploration Programs
These include experiential programs that provide students with the opportunity to explore a variety of different career areas of interest. These include the Cooperative Education Program, Halton Internship Program and LINK.

Specialty School to Career Programs
There are four specialized programs in Halton that provide students with unique opportunities to gain hands-on experience in a very specific career-related field. These include the Canadian Forces Coop, Construction Transition Program, Halton Home Builders Program and the Health Care Science/Medical Technology Program.

Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) Programs
These programs typically run over 1-2 academic years and require that students complete a bundle of 8-10 courses, along with a variety of relevant certifications to earn the Specialist High Skills Major designation in a particular career area. At the conclusion of the program, students will receive a high school diploma that indicates that they have earned this designation. Currently, the Specialist High Skills Major programs can be taken in the following areas: Manufacturing, Landscaping, The Environment, Business, Arts & Culture and Health & Wellness.

Any student interested in learning more about the above programs, or beginning the application process should see Mrs. Galay in Student Services. Interviews typically run from early December to late January.

International Exchange Programs

The following sites include a variety of organizations that offer summer and academic-year exchange programs to high school students.

Summer Programs

The following sites include links to special summer programs that may be of interest of students.


Special Academic Year Programs