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HOME / DEPARTMENT PROGRAM AND SERVICES / ACCREDITATION, CERTIFICATION AND QUALIFICATIONS / PRIVATE TRAINING SCHOOLS / THINKING OF OPERATING A PRIVATE TRAINING SCHOOL /

Private Training School Registration

STEP 1: Screening - to determine whether registration is necessary

1.1 What is the proposed training?

The person who is interested in offering training provides the following information to help the Administrator get an understanding of what training is planned and how it will be operated:

• What is the subject matter?
• Duration - length, amount of time?
• Scale of cost - tuition/other fees?
• What body is delivering it?
• What is the structure? - e.g. classroom, one-on-one mentor, self-study?
• Does instruction happen via physical presence in PEI (vs. distance-ed from elsewhere)?
• Who are the clients? - e.g. are they already employed? in what work? by whom?
• What is the objective/purpose of the training? Why would people take it: what sort of skills and credential will they receive? What will it prepare them to do or work at?

1.2 Can the proposed training be exempted or is it a "school" that must be registered?

• Is it career training - does the training lead to work cited in the National Occupational Classification (NOC) as an occupation? (e.g. not life-skills, language, upgrade adult basic education)


• Does it fit into any of the exemptions of the Private Training Schools Act?
  • Chartered university
  • Chartered community college
  • Government (federal or provincial) department
  • PEI school board (under the School Act)
  • internal, operated only for employees


• Does it fit any of the exemptions-by-custom?
  
  
  • Extra skills vs career-entry: enhancing a worker's range or intensity of certain skills only - rather than training in the overall occupation, to prepare graduates for career entry
    Example: cooking or reservations management for workers in tourism
  
  
  • Small scale: approximately 30 hours a week or low tuition (e.g. $400)
    Example: one-week introduction to real estate
  
  
  • Employees as students: training is for persons who are employed by, or are about to be employed by, the trainer or sponsor of the training
    Example: tourism agency giving basic training to a group of summer student applicants
  
  
  • Quasi-internal clientele: trainer or sponsor of training is an employer or employee association, and students are persons who have been working in that industry
    Example: upgrade or safety courses arranged for several firms, a union or a labour pool
  
  
  • Distance education based elsewhere, with no physical presence on PEI - correspondence or on-line courses

If registration as a private training school is not needed, the Administrator will write a formal letter of exemption.

STEP 2: Information about application

The Administrator provides a package of information about becoming a registered private training school which includes:

• Act and Regulations
• application form and guide
• contents of an application/materials to provide
• sample description of a training program
• guide to security bonding and model forms
• guide for a student contract
• essential rules for refund of fees
• application for instructors, with guide
• information about student tax credits
• list of officials connected with taxation, fire and health inspection, student loans, etc.

Private training school applicants are encouraged to phone or send an e-mail note if any questions arise as they work on the application.

STEP 3: Application

The applicant completes and submits the application form and the various materials. Most of this can be completed on-line, but it is also possible to deal partially or completely in written form. It does not all have to be submitted in one package; it is common for an applicant to send a few things at a time.

Applications and their review are a lot of work: the process appears on average to take between 6 weeks and 3 months.

Hint: What seems to be most time-consuming and sometimes frustrating for applicants is making arrangements with an insurance company or bank for the security bond.

STEP 4: Reviewing the application materials

The Administrator keeps a running check-off list as required items are received and approved. It is possible that more information and possibly revision of some pieces may be requested.

• The Administrator checks the core information of the application (names, contact addresses/numbers), mainly to understand the accountability structure. This is so that the Administrator will know whom to deal with for various kinds of contact, and whom the Province will hold responsible for compliance with the law.


• The Administrator analyses the description of the program(s) to be offered – objective, curricular content, structure and methods, texts/instructional materials, etc. – in terms of the industry standard. It is common to consult with others who know about the work and the training it requires - e.g. national occupational analysis, occupation regulatory authority, other government rules or experiences, Public Service employment requirements, employers who are likely to hire graduates.


• The Administrator looks at plans for the proposed facilities – the physical accommodation and equipment – to verify that they would suit the training.


• The Administrator examines the administrative and student protection practices - admission requirements, fee system, student contract, refund rules, advertising and recruitment information, diploma.


• The Administrator studies the instructional staffing plan, and (if the instructor/s is/are already lined up) the applications are processed for instructor authorizations – looking at adequacy of the instructor-to-student ratio, fit or suitability of staffing, and qualifications of the individuals.


• The Administrator confirms that the security bond is acceptable – that it is right in amount (according to enrolment numbers, fees and fee-collection system), in format, and in duration.


• The Administrator processes the fees for registration and instructor authorizations and issues a receipt.

STEP 5: Interim go-ahead

It is common that an operator wants to make sure that the school will be registered, before taking the steps of signing a lease, purchasing expensive equipment, and hiring instructors. The Department of Innovation and Advanced Learning can accept that these steps be delayed – that they are done as a sort of 'stage two' after all of the paper-work elements of the application process are done.

So the Administrator may be able to issue a tentative approval at this point. This is a formal statement that, based on the materials received, the Administrator will be able to register the proposed school, provided that appropriate facilities and instructors are put in place.

STEP 6: Final requirements

The applicant makes the final arrangements (if not already completed) for physical facilities and staff and submits the information about address, phone number, on-site contact person etc., plus the application(s) for instructor authorization(s).

• Accommodation/facilities: The Administrator will check that there are approvals from fire and public-health authorities and an on-site visit will be conducted to check suitability of the space and equipment.


• The Administrator will process (if this was not completed in Step 4) applications and fees for instructor authorizations. This includes checking the person's training credential, total months of relevant work experience, and occupational license (if that is required).

STEP 7: Registration

If everything is satisfactory according to the law the Administrator will:

• issue a Certificate of Registration, which cites the authorized training programs
• issue Instructor Authorization certificates
• provide receipts for fees paid
• add the new school to the two government web-sites
• notify Student Financial Assistance and Human Resources Development Canada (so that students may be eligible for loan/aid)

Applying for Registration:

You can find directions, forms and sample materials at Application for Registration as a Private Training School.