Kitchener - College enrolments are booming as more and more Ontarians realize two things: a college education is a stepping stone to productive, rewarding career skills, and colleges provide great value for the consumer’s education dollar.

Conestoga College will host an Ontario college information fair at the Doon campus in Kitchener on Monday, October 19 and Tuesday, October 20, providing an excellent opportunity for secondary school students and the general public to meet with representatives of provincial colleges and institutes to discuss programs of study, careers, admissions procedures and the essential role that college education plays in the economic growth and prosperity of the province.

The public session is on October 19. It is a community open house from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Conestoga Recreation Centre and adjacent Doon campus E Wing. There is no admission charge, and parking is free. Visitors can obtain information from and ask questions of representatives of the 24 colleges, representatives of individual Conestoga programs and Conestoga student services personnel. Visits to teaching and lab areas will also be available.

The sessions for secondary school students are on October 20, and more than 2,000 visitors are expected.

The Tuesday activities are reserved for Grade 11 and 12 students from schools in midwestern Ontario, as well as their teachers and guidance counselors. Participants will be from Waterloo Region, and Wellington, Perth and Huron counties.

The program goes from 9 a.m.-12 noon. Student visitors can take campus tours, visit instructional areas, gather information and ask questions directly of Conestoga faculty and students, in addition to learning about the other participating colleges.

The event at Conestoga is an ideal time to learn about the benefits and opportunities to be found in college education, which offers everything from one-year certificates to apprenticeship training to three-year diplomas and four-year degrees, and even postgraduate programs. Ontario’s public colleges and institutes annually serve 200,000 full-time students and close to one million part-time students, and employ approximately 30,000 people in 200 communities across the province. They play a key role in meeting employer needs locally, provincially and nationally, and thereby contribute to productivity, innovation, economic development and global competitiveness.

Examples of the 24 colleges and institutes participating are: Conestoga, Algonquin (Ottawa), Cambrian (Sudbury), Confederation (Thunder Bay), Fanshawe (London), George Brown and Humber (Toronto), Georgian (Barrie), Mohawk (Hamilton), St. Clair (Windsor), St. Lawrence (Kingston), Sheridan (Oakville), an institute of health sciences (Michener) and the specialized colleges of the University of Guelph (Alfred, Kemptville and Ridgetown).