BCCAT Web Resources
One important aspect of the work of BCCAT is the development and management of resources to support BC students in planning their post-secondary education. BCCAT provides two main student-focused websites, EducationPlanner.ca and BCTransferGuide.ca. EducationPlanner.ca provides access to information on almost 2,000 undergraduate programs at post-secondary institutions throughout BC and BCTransferGuide.ca is the key resource for learning about transfer options.
The development and improvement of BCCAT web resources is an ongoing process. This year, we refreshed the three BCCAT websites: BCCAT.ca, EducationPlanner.ca, and BCTransferGuide.ca. The updated sites offer more streamlined and accessible content in a new visual format.
Information in the BC Transfer Guide continues to expand. This year saw BC's four research universities (SFU, UBC – Vancouver and Okanagan Campuses, UNBC, and UVic) embark on a pilot project to list agreements amongst each other as both "senders" and "receivers." Early feedback on this development has been very positive, and the research universities are working on expanding the scope of articulations currently listed. In addition, Okanagan College is now listed as a receiving institution, and several other institutions have expressed an interest in an increased presence in the BC Transfer Guide.
The lessons learned from these projects can be applied towards eventually enabling all institutions to expand their transfer pathways to and from their institutions.
EducationPlanner.ca continues to be highly used and is a well-regarded resource for students exploring programs in BC. This year saw an increase to the number of programs listed, improvements to the search functionality, and the creation of videos to help introduce users to different aspects of the site. BCCAT also worked closely with the Industry Training Authority (ITA) to include programs from private trades training providers that have been designated to offer trades. BCCAT completed work with BCIT to develop a web service connection that enables information pulled from the BCIT website to be displayed in Education Planner program profiles. This pilot project could serve as a model to help introduce greater efficiencies in content maintenance.
