News Archives: GPRC partners with SAIT in collaborative business degrees
Thursday, April 30th, 2020
GPRC business students (from left) Elizabeth Vidrih, Sarah Bateman and Mathew Fritz.
GRANDE PRAIRIE – Grande Prairie Regional College (GPRC) continues their partnership with the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) to increase degree completion options for students in northwestern Alberta.
In Fall 2019, GPRC and SAIT collaborated to offer a four-year Bachelor of Business Administration degree with a major in Management on GPRC’s Grande Prairie campus. This new opportunity for students builds upon the existing collaboration with SAIT which launched in 2017 to offer the Bachelor of Business Administration degree with a major in Accounting.
This new opportunity provides students with a new program option in the field of business.
Second-year GPRC business student, Sarah Bateman, is looking forward to continuing her education to the degree level through the SAIT Management program.
“Business was a natural choice for me as my dad has been a local business owner in the region for the past 25 years. Having grown up with a family-owned business, it was always something that interested me. I began working in commercial kitchens as a supervisor and I really enjoyed it. I realized that I loved being in command of an operation and that prompted me to enroll at GPRC and work towards a business degree,” says Bateman.
The Management programs offers engaging projects, practical experiences, and relevant skills. The program teaches students to develop leadership, teamwork, critical thinking, decision-making, problem-solving and communication skills.
Hands on learning is taught within the collaborative program as students are able to work on real world projects and events that take place at GPRC.
“For me, it’s all about being hands-on. I think a lot of people are like me in that respect and learn through hands-on experience; this program offers that. Getting involved, learning the roles and responsibilities and working as a team are all skills we’re learning. Management is great because you physically get to apply the skills you learn in the classroom to real scenarios such as Peace Country Rising Stars and the GPRC Business Conference,” says Mathew Fritz, second-year student.
Offering this program to students will now provide the opportunity to complete this degree option without having to leave the region.
Third-year management student, Elizabeth (Liz) Vidrih, believes this program will be extremely valuable to all current and future students. “I think it’s fantastic to be able to complete this degree through GPRC as it is creating more diversity in terms of program options. Before, students studying in this field would have to leave to finish a degree but now students can learn in the region. This allows them to build their careers, their portfolios and their connections. It allows students to transition into the workforce and to move forward while staying in the region.”
Applications for the 2020-2021 academic year are now being accepted.
To learn more, or to register for the program, please email SAIT School of Business Academic Advising at business.advising@sait.ca, call 403-284-8485, or head to the GPRC Business and Office Administration department webpage. You can also book an appointment to speak with one of GPRC’s recruiters at experience@gprc.ab.ca.
