University Diploma - Environment and Society - Environmental Studies

The University Diploma in Environment and Society - Environmental Studies is the two-year social-science route into environmental work, and at $20,693 a year one of the more affordable credentials in CapU’s catalogue.

Coursework covers environmental policy and governance, resource and land-use management, environmental economics, sustainability planning, community engagement and consultation, Indigenous perspectives on land and stewardship, environmental ethics, and research and communication methods, supported by foundational ecology and an introduction to GIS so graduates can interpret technical material.

It suits students who want to work on the human side of environmental problems — policy, engagement, program delivery — and it transfers with credit into the four-year Bachelor of Environment and Society. As with all CapU diplomas, PGWP eligibility depends on IRCC’s field-of-study list rather than the automatic bachelor’s exemption.

Capilano University is a fully public teaching university (DLI O19280078102) holding university status since 2008, and the credential earned here is identical to the one awarded at the North Vancouver main campus — the transcript does not distinguish between campuses. Classes are small, faculty teach rather than delegate to assistants, and tuition sits well below the big Vancouver research universities.

CapU Squamish is an 18-acre purpose-built campus at 3200 University Blvd, opened to serve the Sea-to-Sky corridor — roughly 10 minutes from downtown Squamish, 45 from Whistler and an hour from Vancouver. It has its own library, athletic centre, sports field, dining and student housing on site rather than functioning as an outpost. Cohorts are very small, and housing costs materially less than Metro Vancouver, which is the practical reason many international students choose this campus over the main one.

Its field maps to CIP 3.0103 (Environmental studies). Important: this is a non-degree credential, so unlike CapU’s bachelor’s programs it is not exempt from the November 2024 PGWP field-of-study restriction — eligibility depends on this CIP field appearing on IRCC’s current eligible list at the time you apply. Confirm the live list with an Apply Study Visa counsellor before committing. Final decisions rest with IRCC.