Employment Outlook

The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically ... intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education.
- Martin Luther King Jr.

It’s common knowledge that earning post-secondary education is beneficial to an individual’s success in life ... but to what extent? Getting a post-secondary education can be expensive – is it all really worth it? We think so! And we’re not the only ones ... here’s why:

• More job opportunities
• Less susceptible to unemployment
• 70% of new and existing Canadian jobs require post-secondary credentials
• 44% of Canadians possess some form of post-secondary credentials; to remain competitive, a post-secondary education is critical
• The fastest growing professions, including natural and applied sciences, health professions, teachers, professors and social workers, require a post-secondary education
• Post-secondary grads are more likely to be able to think critically
• Higher education contributes to an innovative society
• The ‘stamp’ on your résumé is important – post-secondary education is paramount for employers
• It’s who you know -  college will allow individuals to create a network of individuals that will one day be in the business world
• Learn how to learn – individuals who’ve attended post-secondary education gain transferable skills required to seek and compile new information
• Time management – individuals who’ve attended post-secondary education learn how to accurately prioritize, plan, set goals and meet deadlines; skills critical for the career world
• College graduates have lower smoking rates, more positive perceptions of personal health and healthier lifestyles than individuals who did not graduate from college
• Higher levels of education are correlated with higher levels of civic participation, including volunteer work, voting and blood donation, as well as with greater levels of openness to the opinions of others
• Higher income – in a 40-year working life, a university graduate will earn about $1.3 million more than an individual who did not completed university
• The 2006 Census showed Canadian full-time workers with bachelor’s degrees earned 57% more annually than workers who had not completed university
• Between 1990 and 2006, jobs filled by university graduates doubled from 1.9 million to 3.8 million

References:
  Canadian Council on Learning
  Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC)
  CollegeBoard

RDC Employment Statistics

• From six to nine months after completing their program(s) at RDC, 90.3% of the completers were employed
• Out of the employed program completers, 12.2% indicated they were self-employed in their main job
• Most of the program completers, 91.7%, were working on a full-time basis six to nine months after completing their programs at RDC
• Overall, 85.6% of the employed program completers indicated their current job was related to the program which they completed at RDC