College Diploma - Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Technician

The Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Technician diploma is a two-year program in building climate systems, and at $13,675 one of the lowest-priced credentials at the North campus.

Coursework covers refrigeration theory and the vapour compression cycle, refrigerants and environmental handling regulations, heating systems including gas, electric and hydronic, air conditioning and heat pump systems, ventilation and air distribution design, electrical controls for HVAC equipment, system installation, brazing and piping practice, commissioning and balancing, troubleshooting methodology, and preventive maintenance. Required gas and refrigerant handling certifications are built into the program.

HVAC has an unusually strong demand outlook in Ontario. Building electrification is driving heat pump adoption, commercial refrigeration is essential infrastructure for food retail, and the existing technician workforce is ageing out faster than it is being replaced.

One point international students should understand about Ontario trades: this program is a college credential, not an apprenticeship. It gives you the theory, shop skills and safety certifications employers want, and it can shorten an apprenticeship, but full trade qualification in Ontario runs through a registered apprenticeship with an employer sponsor and a certificate of qualification. Plan for that step rather than assuming graduation completes it.

Humber Polytechnic — formerly Humber College — is Ontario’s largest public college and a Designated Learning Institution (DLI O19376943122). The North campus in Etobicoke is its main site, running technology, engineering, health science, business and skilled trades programs in purpose-built labs and shops rather than lecture halls, with three intakes a year and the deepest employer network in the Greater Toronto Area.

Its field maps to CIP 47.0201 (HVAC and refrigeration technology). Important: this is a college credential rather than a degree, so it is not exempt from the November 2024 PGWP field-of-study restriction — eligibility depends on this CIP field appearing on IRCC’s eligible list when you apply. Humber publishes a PGWP-eligible program list with CIP codes; check it, and confirm with an Apply Study Visa counsellor before committing. IRCC makes the final decision.