College Diploma - Developmental Services Worker

The Developmental Services Worker diploma is a two-year program training practitioners to support people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Coursework covers developmental disabilities and their causes, person-centred planning and self-determination, communication and augmentative communication systems, positive behaviour support and applied behavioural principles, health and medication administration, supporting community inclusion and employment, dual diagnosis and mental health, aging and developmental disability, advocacy and human rights legislation, family and caregiver support, and professional ethics. Field placements run in residential, day program and community settings.

The philosophical shift in this sector is central to the curriculum. Developmental services in Ontario have moved from institutional care to supported community living and individualised funding, and practitioners are trained to facilitate a person’s chosen life rather than manage a caseload. Demand is steady and the sector is chronically short-staffed.

Field placement requires a police vulnerable sector check and, in most settings, immunisation records and CPR certification. Students who cannot clear these cannot be placed, so arrange them early.

The work placement is a graded part of the program, so you finish with documented Canadian experience and a referee rather than only a transcript.

Humber Polytechnic — formerly Humber College — is Ontario’s largest public college and a Designated Learning Institution (DLI O19376943122). The Lakeshore campus sits on the shore of Lake Ontario in south Etobicoke, next to Colonel Samuel Smith Park, and is home to Humber’s business degrees, media and creative arts, and social and community services programs. Heritage buildings, a residence opened in 2024 and a free shuttle to the North campus make it the most distinctive of Humber’s sites.

Its field maps to CIP 51.1502 (Psychiatric/mental health services technician). 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.