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FAT Program Courses
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 Ornithology
 Botany
 GIS
 Environmental consulting
 Management
 Ecology
2009 Catalogue
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EARTHQUEST (Canada) for the Environment
EARTHQUEST Biological Field School
EARTHQUEST Environmental Consultants
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Contact Details
www.oocities.org/earthquestcanada
 E-mail: earthquestcanada@yahoo.com
8122 Rogers Rd. S., RR#5 Rogers Rd. S.,
Aylmer West, Ontario, CANADA.
N5H 2R4.
Tel: (519) 875-3340
FAX: (519) 773-5489 (to the attention of Mr. D. Jolly, President and Founder - Biological Field School)
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General Field Assistant Training (FAT) Program
What is the FAT Program?
The Field Assistant Training (FAT) Program was developed to give people who are encountering difficulty with finding and maintaining employment in the environmental industry cutting edge experience and skills through high qualify courses, projects and programs. To date, numerous people have upgraded their skills in field research methodology, data collection, entry and analysis procedures, environmental consulting, GIS techniques, ELC and wetland evaluation, field identification techniques, communication skills, management/leadership skills, habitat assessment and remediation. Greater than 97% of our graduates have found work with conservation authorities, environmental consulting firms, school boards, Canada and Ontario Parks, research and conservation organizations as well as with EARTHQUEST.
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How does it work? To enroll in the General FAT Progam in Canada full time students must choose a minimum of 3 courses from the course/program catalogue. Once you have paid your non-refundable deposit and application fee you may elect to participate in your courses via correspondence or by attending field sessions at our Biological Field School location, near Aylmer, Ontario, Canada. All full time students in attendance of field sessions will receive direct hands on practical training in field survey methodology, data collection, entry and analysis, field identification techniques and scientific report writing. Full time students also receive job finding strategies in how to make your resume and cover letter attractive to employers as well as interview preparation. Full time students will also receive weekly job postings to apply to.
Near the end of their program students may be eligible to apply to internships and job opportunities to use their skills if they achieve 75% or more on all tests, assignments and tasks plus they are in good standing with the Field School through performance appraisals. The length of time to obtain internships and jobs varies with each student, but the average is within 3 - 6 months of applying. |
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Courses: The following is a list of General FAT Program courses offered for the 2009/10 semesters;
Plant courses
Butterflies of Ontario
Dragonflies of Ontario
Aquatic/wetland plants of Ontario
Grasses, sedges and rushes of Ontario
Ferns of Ontario
Level 1 FAT terrestrial plant course (families)
Level 2 FAT terrestrial plant course (genera)
Level 1 FAT Aquatic/wetland plant course (families)
Level 2 FAT Aquatic/wetland course (genera)
Bird courses
Level 1 FAT terrestrial bird course (families)
Level 2 FAT terrestrial bird course (genera)
ACCESS Data collection, entry and analysis
GIS course
Management courses
Level 1 management/leadership course
Ecology courses
Principles and concepts of Ecological Land Classification (ELC)
Principles and concepts of Wetland studies
Environmental consulting
Mushrooms of Ontario (written and designed by FAT Program graduate - Dan Werner)
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Class schedule: For the 2009/10 academic year the following schedule will apply;
A total of 21 hours of classes per week; Wednesdays in class (9 am - 4 pm), Thursdays in field (9 am - 4pm) at Pinecroft, near Aylmer, Ontario, Canada, Fridays in field (9 am - 4 pm) at a field site somewhere in Ontario.
Students who are unable to attend field sessions may elect to participate via correspondence for all courses, partly correspondence and partly through field session attendance with permission from the Senior Instructor. We are flexible to suit your schedule and you may work our timetable around part time or full time jobs. We can also customize the program to provide courses which will suit the needs of your employer, if you are applying to upgrade your job skills for your employer. Ocassionally on Fridays field trips to natural areas will be scheduled to enhance field knowledge and build up your portfolio. In May of each year an overnight camping field trips may be conducted, but are treated as mini courses whereby food, accommodations and insurance may be charged. These field trip are typically 3 days/2 nights and are not included in the cost of tuition. Students are expected to cover the cost of $60.00 CAD/person/day to cover these field trips. It is from these field trip that students may be selected for internships working on the various projects, for example the Bruce Trail Project. For more information on the Bruce Trail Project please go to;
Bruce Trail Project
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Cost: All courses offered through the General FAT Program in Canada are $800.00 CAD each, effective Aug. 15, 2009. The 3 month semester program costs $4000.00 CAD. The 6 month program costs $9000.00. The 9 month program costs $11 000.00 CAD and the 12 month program is $15 000.00 CAD and the 2 year program is $27 500.00 CAD.
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Application Procedure: Please note that due to the annoucement by the Hon. Minister of Education - Chris Bentley about our school to the general public and the media we are experiencing a higher than normal volume of applications. It is highly recommended that you consider enrolling in the courses, or programs of your choice at least 1 year in advance in order to avoid disappointment. This is because we can only accept a maximum of 15 students per semester (including correspondence students). To ensure that you gain a spot please submit full payment of the $680.00 CAD registration fee + 1st course (ie. $800 - $1440.00 CAD) = $1480 - $2120.00 CAD with your completed application form. Applicants who fail to do this will not be guaranteed a spot as we can only accept applications on a first come, first pay basis. Spots do fill quickly and there may be a waiting list for some certification courses or programs. For example, the Ecological Land Classification certification course is only offered twice a year and fills at least 1 year ahead. Please download an application form and email/mail with your non-refundable application fee. Once accepted you'll be required to pay a $680.00 CAD (effective Aug. 15/09) non-refundable deposit to secure placement + the 1st certification course (ie. = $800.00 - $1440.00 CAD). All deposits and application forms must be received within 24 to 48 hours to guarantee placement. Payment must be received by 12 Noon on the due date and should not be postmarked for that date, if mailing a cheque or money order. The forms of payment are; i) international money order or certified cheque payable to EARTHQUEST, ii) direct deposit to the EARTHQUEST account through a bank and iii) wiring funds through Western Union. We do not accept credit cards at this time. For instructions on direct deposit please go to;
Wire funds
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Upon graduation: You may apply to EARTHQUEST for internships and jobs. Please note: General FAT certificates are only issued to students upon successful completion of all certification courses and sent out with transcripts. Students must enroll in the management/leadership course in order to apply for teaching or management positions at the Field School. Generally, students who successfully pass the General FAT program with a 75% or better average plus remain in good standing with the Field School may apply to the following jobs with EARTHQUEST;
Teaching Assistant
Level 1 Field Assistant (FA)
Species at Risk intern
Species at Risk Biologist
Project Manager
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- © Copyright EARTHQUEST (Canada) for the Environment. Please e-mail earthquestcanada@yahoo.com for permission to copy.
Last updated 08/10/09
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