NAIT refund policy/ High school and college education/ Happy Holidays!

I don't expect anyone to read this.  I wanted to post this to show my college program research.

You can go to "my week":

Apr. 11, 2019:

I was thinking about applying for that Bookkeeping 1 class.  It's 2 days and $300.  I'm nervous about I'm spending that kind of money, though I know it's important.

Step 1: Earlier this week, I made the step by call NAIT to get my ID #, so I can log in.

Step 2: I was worried about the refund policy so I called and looked it up: 

NAIT refund policy:

Credit Program & Course Refunds

Refunds normally take 4 to 6 weeks to process. Refundable amounts will first be applied toward any outstanding balance on the account, before a refund is issued. Payments made by credit card will be refunded to the original credit card. Payments by any other method will be refunded by cheque to the student unless payment was identified and setup as a Third Party payment.

Credit students who withdraw from one or more courses are eligible for a refund if the withdrawal is completed before 12% of the course has passed (check ‘My Deadlines’ to find the refund deadline for individual courses) and any of the following conditions are true:

• Their previous tuition total was below the term tuition cap for their program
• The withdrawals brought them below the tuition cap for their program, based on their remaining enrolled credits
• They were enrolled in Open Studies
• They were enrolled in a term that does not have a tuition cap for their program

Tuition deposits ($250 for Canadian citizens and permanent residents, $1,000 for international students*) are non-refundable.

Domestic Students will automatically receive any refunds they are eligible for, subject to the processing estimate noted above.

International Students must complete and remit the Refund Request Form for International Students (pdf), plus any other supporting letters and documentation, by email to askNAIT@nait.ca or by fax to 780.471.8426. Courses must be dropped before submitting a refund request form. Incomplete refund requests will not be accepted. All wire transfer payments are refunded in the form of a cheque in the name of the student, the exception being students' identified as Company Sponsored

*Exceptions may be considered in the event of a study permit / visa denial. Tuition deposit refund requests due to visa denial must include a copy of the IRCC denial letter and be submitted by the term start date indicated on the visa letter of acceptance, and prior to class start if any classes begin earlier than the term start date.

Non-Credit Program & Course Refunds

Tuition refunds are determined by the course type. To withdraw or transfer from an non-credit course, login to the MyNAIT Portal.

Visit the Continuing Education (Continuing Education and Industry Training Centre, room L159) or Computer Training Centre office (HP Centre, room W111)  for more information.

Face-to-face classroom and online delivery courses

Refund Timeframe	Academic Penalty	Refund Policy
Up to 5 calendar days before course start	None – course does not appear on student transcript	Tuition is refunded, less a $50 administrative fee. [1] Applicable material fees may also be refunded.
Less than 5 calendar days before course start	None – course does not appear on student transcript	No refund
First day of class	Grade of "W" (Withdrawal) awarded	No refund

[1]Exceptions may apply. Please contact program area for information.

Distance Delivery and Independent Study courses

Refund Timeframe	Academic Penalty	Refund Policy
14 calendar days after scheduled course start date (or the start date indicated in welcome letter)	None – course does not appear on student transcript	Tuition is refunded, less a $75 administrative fee. Applicable material fees will not be refunded.
15+ calendar days after scheduled course start date (or the start date indicated in welcome letter)	Grade of "W" (Withdrawal) awarded	No refund
Please note: A convenience fee of 1.75% is added when paying by credit card and is non-refundable.

International Students

The following information pertains to Continuing Education students attending programs and courses under the authorization of a Canadian Study Permit.

• Requests for refunds must be submitted in writing to askNAIT@nait.ca using the Refund Request Form for International Students (pdf).
• The refund deadline is a minimum of 5 full calendar days prior to the start of the Continuing Education program or course. Please refer to your Letter of Acceptance (LOA) for the program/course start dates.
• The payment for tuition and other applicable fees will be refunded, minus a CAD$250 administrative fee plus any additional fees for dropping the program/course(s).
• Please note: In the event a refund is required, ALL  Wire Transfer Payments are refunded in the form of a cheque in the student's name, the exception being students' identified as Company Sponsored.  Therefore, students choosing this method of fee payment should be advised to first confirm with their financial institution that a foreign cheque will be accepted and negotiated.

If you are unable to attend NAIT and do not notify us by the refund deadline as noted in your Letter of Acceptance, any tuition and other applicable fees paid for the first term will be retained by the institution and will not be refunded.

Refunds normally take between 4 to 6 weeks to process. Payments made by credit card will be refunded to the original credit card. Payments by any other method will be refunded by cheque to the student unless payment was identified and setup as a Third Party payment or if Third Party has been identified on the refund request form.

My opinion: I'm writing this so I can see if Bookkeeping 1 is a non-credit course.

http://www.nait.ca/programsandcourses.htm?searchType=course&PCCredential=N%2CCertificate%20-%20Non-Credit%2CNon-Credit

Step 3: Today I talked to my dad about it:

Cons:

1. It's too intense, too fast for me to learn it.

Counter argument: I can take a lot of notes and read and study it.

2. It won't help you get a job.  My dad says I won't get a job even if I do level 1 and 2.

3. Accounting is knowing how to use the software, not the math.

4. This course is for someone who knows accounting, and not someone who is a novice with no experience or knowledge.

5. My math marks have always been C.  I have a math tutor since gr. 6 to get a C.

High school and college education:

Applied Math 20 (2nd to lowest math class in gr. 11): 52%

Applied Math 30 (2nd to lowest math class in gr. 12): 50%.

Pure Math 30 (grade level average in gr. 12): 63%.

These 3 yrs, I had a math tutor once a week, and my sister tutors me in math.  It was 20-25 hrs a week of tutoring to get me to pass those math classes.

6. My dad and I both think the course needs to be longer and spread out, so I can pass and learn it.

This reminds me of Grammar for Writers college class.  English is my best subject.  

  You need at least 60% to pass.

I got a 58%.  I had to take it again.

I didn't get a good mark because:

1. There is a 4 month course crammed into 2 months when I took it in summer school.  There is more work in a shorter period of time.

2. The grammar teacher was also a hard marker. 

3. There was no Writing help like when I was in the Professional Writing program full-time.  I need someone to look over my work.

Apr. 12, 2019: 

4. I remember I took Pure Math 10 for summer school in gr. 10.  I failed it because I had to learn all of this in 1 month.  It's my worst subject.

However, when I took Social Studies 20 for summer school in gr.11, I passed.  I would have to look at my report card to know the exact grade.

If I sign up for that Bookkeeping class, I feel like I'm going to fail.

My next plan of action is to research more college programs.

Apr. 13, 2019 Writing: I was in Professional Writing in MacEwan for 2 yrs.  I was a full-time student with 4 or 5 classes a semester.  I never had a tutor.  I went to Writing help so the consultant Nancy would proofread and edit my work.

I write the whole thing, and she looks over it and polishes it.  This is nearly all English class.

There was psychology as an elective.

Math: As for the math tutoring, my sister had to be beside me the whole time.

This week's theme is about NAIT:

"NAIT adds technology stream for project management"

Tracy's blog: "NAIT adds technology stream for project management" (badcb.blogspot.com)

How to become a project manager/ Plural Sight

Tracy's blog: How to become a project manager/ Plural Sight (badcb.blogspot.com)

My week: 

Dec. 22, 2020 "Dollarama to give workers up to $300 cash bonus after posting higher profit": This was from Dec. 9, 2020, but I'm writing about this now:

Dollarama Inc. said it will pay a bonus to employees for their work during the pandemic as it raised its dividend and reported a higher third-quarter profit that beat analyst expectations.

The discount chain had come under fire earlier this year from employees and their supporters who demanded that Dollarama enact greater health precautions in its warehouses and extend the pay raise it offered to employees at the start of the pandemic.

"I wish to recognize our people for their efforts and dedication as the pandemic has become our new reality and with COVID-19 safety measures now part of our everyday operating procedures," Dollarama president and CEO Neil Rossy said in a statement Wednesday.

Under this year's bonus program, full-time employees will receive $300, while part-time workers will receive $200.

In March, Dollarama extended wage increases to its store and warehouse employees, but ended the pandemic pay program in August, a month and a half later than expected. Dollarama said in September that the wage increase cost the company roughly $11 million in its second quarter.

At a demonstration in August protesting the end of the pay raise, Dollarama employees described inconsistent adherence to health measures at company facilities and said it was not possible to maintain physical distancing inside its warehouses.

Discount stores such as Dollarama have fared well during the pandemic, as consumers spend less on discretionary items but continue to buy food and household essentials.

My opinion: That's some good news.

Janine Webster: I saw some Hong Kong news a few weeks ago.  This is to the best of my memory.  She was a white woman in her 30s and she was delivering food and gifts to households.

Himalayan Life: I tried to look for her, but I found this charity:

PROTECT, NURTURE, AND EDUCATE

This is our mission and we do this through:

i. Providing comprehensive care to street children, abandoned children, slave children,

and other socio-economically disadvantaged children.

ii. Touching the lives of a wide range of regular children through meaningful school

- and community-based programs.

Our Story | Himalayan Life

CHRISTMAS GIFTS OF LIFE

Looking for a present for someone you love? Make your gifting even more meaningful

by purchasing a Gift of Life in the name of a loved one! These gifts will go directly to

children

in need in the Himalayas and you will receive a digital Christmas card(s) to pass on.

All gifts are tax-deductible and best of all, a Nepalese child in need receives the gift of

your choice. 

Add the power of transformation to your Christmas giving!

 Gifts of Life | Himalayan Life

"Meal kit popularity explodes during pandemic, putting more pressure on traditional grocers to change": Today I found this article about how meal kits have increased during the pandemic in the Financial Post.  The article was published on Dec. 21, 2020.

However, today when I looked it up, I found this Aug. 2020 article from them:

 The popular meal kit service HelloFresh SE more than doubled its revenues during the most turbulent months of the pandemic as the trend toward food delivery continues to dramatically transform the Canadian grocery landscape.

The Berlin-based global retailer on Tuesday reported sales of 972.1 million euros in its second quarter, from April to the end of June, representing a 122 per cent increase from a year ago.

 The company attributed most of that success to economic lockdown orders that have forced consumers to eat at home, giving them more reasons to try meal kits that deliver a set of pre-portioned ingredients, and corresponding recipes, to make it easier to prepare meals.

HelloFresh’s customer base grew by 74 per cent in the quarter compared to last year and there was “strong habit formation” among people who had never tried the meal kit model before, HelloFresh chief executive Dominik Richter said on a Tuesday conference call with investors.

Meal kit popularity explodes during pandemic, putting more pressure on traditional grocers to change | Financial Post

One comment on the article:

AUGUST 12, 2020

Why anybody would WASTE their hard earned money on this stuff is just bazaar.....LEARN TO COOK EVERYBODY. It’s not hard......

My opinion: Have you ever tried these meal kits?  I might try this once.

The highlight of the week:

Next: I watched the season 1/ series finale.  This was an average show.  I like the story of a very intelligent AI that could destroy humans, and a tech billionaire and FBI cybercrime unit has to stop it.  However, there wasn't a lot of action.

LA's Finest: I watched the season 2 finale/ series finale.  This was an average show.  I like all the action in this.

How to become a project manager/ Plural Sight

I don't expect anyone to read this.  I wanted to post this to show my college program research.

Dec. 5, 2019 How to become a project manager: I found this on the website Workfront.com:

How to Become a Project Manager: Two Paths

Maybe you’re wondering how you become a project manager. Or maybe you’re already deep in the throes of project management work, whether by careful planning or accident. No matter which path you’re considering (or which you’ve already taken) there are advantages and challenges for the accidental PM and for the traditionally trained PM. This post will help you thrive in your job duties, no matter how you got here.

Path #1: The accidental project manager.

Many managers, team leads, and directors find themselves working as project managers, without having been hired specifically for such responsibilities as creating a project scope, maintaining a communication plan, managing resources, or mitigating risks. 

Without preparation or training, these can seem like daunting tasks. But there are many ways you can get up to speed quickly on the basics of project management, then dive deeper into each management area. 

Taking training and education into your own hands is not always as smooth or straightforward as enrolling in a certification course, but you can become a strong project manager through hands-on experience, research, and a commitment to ongoing learning.

Step 1: Take stock of the experience you already have. 

You may already have more project management experience than you think. Consider the key project management knowledge areas:

• Integration management
• Communications management
• Cost management
• Quality management
• Time management
• Resource management
• Scope management
• Risk management

Note the projects you’ve led in the past, and compare the areas you managed with the knowledge areas above. This will give you a sense of how your hands-on experience stacks up to the standard requirements of a project manager. 

You may discover that you’ve got deep experience in communication and time management, and be pleasantly surprised to learn that you are already mastering some crucial project management skills. The point here is to get a clear picture of what you know and what you know how to do, so you can move on to step 2 below.

Step 2: Determine the knowledge and skills you need.

If you foresee a future in project management, you can round out your accidental experience with focused, intentional learning. But before you commit yourself to a training or certification course, determine your knowledge gaps. 

First, get clear on the project management knowledge areas you are less experienced with, and the skills you still need to build or refine. 

Can you gain these with further experience in your current role? 

Can you take on new or different tasks where you are now?

 Can you receive mentoring or professional development from within your organization or professional area?

Once you have an understanding of the things you still need to learn, you can make a plan and take advantage of opportunities at work and outside of the office to fill in your knowledge gaps.

Step 3: Take advantage of learning opportunities.

Before you reach outside your organization for supplementary training or education, start by talking to your own manager or other project managers in your network. They can lead you to professional associations like PMI, and help you get started on learning what you need.

If you decide based on your experience or needs that informal and self-guided learning is right for you, you can find classes or skillshares that hone in on specific components of project management. 

Or you can take advantage of classes offered through PMI or online learning platforms like Pluralsight. 

There are also project management books, training companies, and organizations that can help you take the reins on your own learning. Or maybe there’s simply a new software you need to get trained on. 

More structured or formal training, like a certification course, can also be a huge asset. For those with plenty of informal project management experience, certification can help you transition into full-time project management. For those with little to no experience, the education requirements for certification can give you a head start on gaining the knowledge needed to land a project management job.

Step 4: Implement what you’ve learned.

Back at work, you will likely have many opportunities to use what you’re learning. If your team hasn’t been following any formal project management processes, you can start building and implementing them immediately. You’ll probably start to see lots of opportunities to use resources more effectively or make things easier on your team members.

Project-based work requires a lot of cooperation and communication between team members. Understanding the intricacies of project management can help you be a better team member as you work towards a project management role.

Step 5: Decide on your next move.

While you may never be completely finished developing your project management skills, you will reach a point where you’ll have a good sense of your next right move.

If your learning has been mostly self-guided, you might decide to pursue some more formal training. If your current position isn’t fulfilling the interest that brought you to project management in the first place, you might start looking for a formal project management position somewhere else.

Remember that each project management position will differ depending on the organizational and team culture. A laid-back software company will manage projects quite differently from, say, a major healthcare institution.

It’s also important to remember that project management will evolve right along with technology and best practices. Listen for new terminology in your organization or industry, and stay open to learning more about unfamiliar processes. This way you’ll be sure to lead your team with the latest knowledge and not get left behind as the field advances.

Path #2: Planned project management education and certification.

Step 1: Commit to becoming a project manager.

It’s an exciting day when you decide project management is the career for you. There are so many opportunities in almost every industry for a highly organized, self-motivated leader. Setting out to become a project management begins with learning as much as you can from industry experts, and then starting on your path with learning, training, and certification.

Step 2: Decide which certification you will pursue.

Two well-known project manager certifications, the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM), and the Project Management Professional (PMP) certification, are both offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI).

The biggest difference between the two is that it’s possible to get a CAPM certification without project management experience, while the PMP certification requires at least 4,500 hours of experience. There are different prerequisites for both, and they also require an exam.

You can qualify for the CAPM certification if you have at least 1,500 hours of work experience (about 10 months in a full-time job) plus a high school diploma or associate’s degree, or if you complete 23 hours of education, which we’ll cover in the next step.

There are two ways to qualify for the PMP, both of which require 35 hours of education. The first requirement includes a four-year degree, minimum 4,500 hours of work experience (about two and a half years in a full-time job), plus required project management education.

The second includes a secondary degree, 7,500 hours of experience (about four years in a full-time job), plus the required educational training.

Someone with minimal experience might decide to pursue the CAPM certification first, then work as a project manager until they qualify for the PMP certification. Someone who already has years of informal project management under their belt might decide to go straight for the PMP. Review the prerequisites and decide which certification is best for you.

Step 3: Begin your project management education. 

The hours of project management education required can be obtained in a variety of ways, but they must be completed before you sit for your exam.

PMI offers training through Registered Education Providers and PMI chapters across the world that will qualify you for CAPM and PMP certification. You can also count related university and continuing education classes towards your hours, along with hours from dedicated training companies or employer-sponsored programs.

You’ll need to record all your education hours in the certification application, so keep records of when you took the class, what organization offered it, and what the subject matter was. This will help you complete your application and avoid having to retake any forgotten or unrecorded classes.

Once you’ve completed, or are very close to completing your hours, you can begin studying for the exam.

Step 4: Prepare for and take your certification exam. 

For both the CAPM and PMP exams, you will need to study the entire Project Management Body of Knowledge Guide (PMBOK) published by PMI.

To help you study, both exams have accompanying Exam Content Outlines that lay out the content covered in each section of the exam. You can buy materials and study on your own, or you can purchase specific prep classes, depending on how you study best and what works for you.

The CAPM exam has 150 questions and can be taken online or in a designated testing center. The PMP exam has 200 questions and must be taken in a testing center. Once you have completed the exam and a short survey, you will find out whether you passed.

You can tout your certification on your resume and LinkedIn profile, and leverage your knowledge and accomplishment as you seek a position or promotion. If you don’t pass the exam, you can attempt it two more times within the year, which may come with additional fees. Check out this helpful Certification FAQ page for more details.   

Step 5: Maintain your certification.

Both certifications require holders to maintain them in different ways. 

You must pass the CAPM every five years to maintain your certification. The CAPM exam changes periodically, so it’s important to prepare well each time. 

PMP certification requires you to complete 60 professional development units (PDUs) each year to maintain your certification. There are many ways to earn PDUs, including in-person and online courses, giving presentations related to your certification, and even volunteering your services to certain organizations. 

In both paths to project management, you’re continuously learning, avoiding stagnation, and keeping up in a dynamic field.

 https://www.workfront.com/blog/how-to-become-a-project-manager-two-paths


Plural Sight: This website is all about technology programs to study.

https://www.pluralsight.com/learn#