Frequently Asked Questions

We currently have 3 Microcredentials to choose from when you are looking to help recognize your expertise and skills for Net Zero and Passive House construction. 

Our microcredentials are designed for those in the workforce seeking new skills and knowledge to deliver low embodied carbon, Net Zero Energy and Emissions projects in line with the BC Energy Step Code and Passive House standard.   

Our students are architects, tradespeople, building designers, building officials, energy advisors, licensed residential builders, project managers, site supervisors, etc.

Our microcredentials are a collection of short duration courses and can all be completed over 2 terms.  Learning time outside of class hours varies by microcredential – refer to the table below for estimates. 

If you are looking to train your project or corporate team it can be advantageous to talk to us about our private course offerings.  We will work with you to deliver a private offering of a regular course or create a tailored learning experience to help your team achieve specific learning needs.   

We are experienced at providing private and customized training to architects, developers, general contractors, specific trades, project teams – either design or construction, construction managers, supervisors, and sub-trades, etc. 

Reach out to us to at zeb@bcit.ca to request more information on private training courses. 

In addition to our public course offerings, we offer a number of private and customizable courses that are tailored to larger more complex buildings.  These courses are typically offered privately to allow content to be tailored to the specific types of buildings and areas of construction desired by a specific client. 

Reach out to us to at zeb@bcit.ca to request more information on training focused on larger Part 3 buildings. 

Most of our courses are offered at least once a year, often once a term. To see the upcoming course offerings, visit our Upcoming Course Offering Schedule on our Student Information page.

To register, each student must have a nine (9) digit student ID (A########).

• BCIT Alumni? Recover your student ID number
• New to BCIT? Create a student ID number

Registration Options

A) Regular Registration

Student registers and tuition is paid by student (see Payment Options below).

PROS – easiest and fastest registration option.
CONS –tuition refunds are issued to the student not the individual/business who paid tuition.

More details at: Register for Part-time Courses

B) Sponsorship Registration (e.g.: your employer pays)

Sponsorship is when a company or agency has agreed to be invoiced for a student’s tuition and wants to handle all payments directly with BCIT.  Two steps are required:

1. Student registers for the course on-line.
2. Business submits an Authorization Letter agreeing to sponsorship (Sample) to BCIT Student Information and Enrollment Services by e-mail to sponsorship@bcit.ca. BCIT will invoice the business.

PROS – business is invoiced for tuition and in the event of course cancellation, refund is issued to business not the student.

More details at: BCIT Sponsorship

Payment Options

BCIT does not accept credit cards.  The most common payment options are summarized below.  Full details are at BCIT Payment Options.

A) Online Banking

BCIT accepts payment from Canadian banks and credit unions in Canadian funds and it is the recommended method for paying fees.

• Use “BCIT – Tuition Payments” as a PAYEE to pay for your courses.
• Your nine (9) digit student ID (A########) is your account number. If the student ID is not present, the funds will be returned to your financial institution.

B) Cheque

Students will be dropped from courses for non-payment if payment is not received within a few business days of registration. If you are sending a cheque in the mail please do the following:

• List the nine (9) digit student ID (A########) is number on the cheque.
• Notify BCIT Payments by email to make clear that payment is in the mail to avoid being dropped for non-payment.  Send your email to BCIT_Payments@bcit.ca  and include student ID number.
• Mail Cheque to : Student Information and Enrolment Services, Building SW1 – First Floor  3700 Willingdon Avenue, Burnaby BC, V5G 3H2

StrongerBC future skills grant funding covers 100% of tuition costs in our microcredential courses up to $3500 total per individual.   

 Our microcredential courses are eligible for the StrongerBC future skills grant*, which covers 100% of your tuition costs.

Learn more about the StrongerBC future skills grant

For a limited time, the City of Richmond and the City of New Westminster are subsidizing tuition on these BCIT courses.  

What are the requirements?

Individuals working with business licenses and past, current, or upcoming construction projects in the City of Richmond or New Westminster. To check if you are eligible for tuition subsidy contact zeb@bcit.ca  

The B.C. Employer Training Program (ETG) is a possible way for an employer to receive grant funding to pay for course tuition fees. The B.C. Employer Training Grant provides funding to small, medium and large enterprises to support skills training for their workforces, including prospective new hires.

Learn more about the BC Employer Training Grant

Our courses are pre-approved for continuing education credits with AIBC, BC Housing, CACEA, but used my many others students to meet continued learning requirements.  The table below shows the total learning hours and pre-approved credits by microcredential.

Students who most frequently use these courses to satisfy continued learning requirements are: architects, building designers, engineers, building officials, licensed residential builders, passive house tradespeople, and energy advisors.

Learning Hours and Continued Education Credits by Microcredential 

MICRO CREDENTIAL	LEARNING HOURS & CREDITS	PRE-APPROVED BY
Essentials of Zero Energy + Passive House Construction	96 Learning Hours AIBC – 96 LU’s BC Housing – 192 Formal CPD/96 Informal CPD, 100% mandatory Energy Step Code Training Modules CACEA – 96 CEC
Supervising Net-Zero and Passive House Construction	120 Learning Hours AIBC – 96 LU’s BC Housing – 240 Formal CPD/120 Informal CPD, 80% mandatory Energy Step Code Training Modules CACEA – 120 CEC
Whole-Building Life Cycle Assessment Professional	90 Learning Hours AIBC – 90 LU’s BC Housing – 180 Formal CPD/90 Informal CPD CACEA – 90 CEC

Some of our courses are eligible for BC Housing BC Energy Step Code Training Equivalency. See the table below.

BCIT Transcript

Official and unofficial student records of course completion is in your BCIT Transcript.  You can access your transcript through your my.bcit.ca portal. You will need to enter your BCIT email and passphrase.

Certificate of Completion

If you successfully completed all the graded items and you need an interim documentation for formal learning credits before final grades are officially posted, you can access a temporary ‘Certificate of Completion’ under myTools –> Awards.  Please note that your BCIT transcript is the only proof of completion likely to be accepted by licensing bodies (BC Housing Builder Licensing).