Guidance Services
2024-2025 Course Offerings
5 TERMS a year! Only 2 months each Term!
AM and PM Classes: Sept 4, 2024 – June 25, 2025
Please complete this following form and a guidance counsellor will be assigned to assist you with course selection, and/or academic planning:
Guidance office hours:
Monday – Friday 8:30am – 4:00pm
If you need a copy of your transcript, please complete the transcript request form.
Transcript Inquiries: Mary.Germann@wcdsb.ca , Guidance Dept. Administrative Assistant
Guidance Email for sending documents only: stlouisguidance@wcdsb.ca
Please check your email (including junk folder), the St Louis and WCDSB websites regularly for updates.
Guidance consultation is available before registering for all St. Louis courses.
The following guidance services are available for St. Louis students registered in any of our credit courses:
Talking to a Guidance Counsellor at St. Louis is not entirely like when you were in high school last. St. Louis Guidance Counsellors are certified teachers with Guidance qualifications and experience, however they also understand your adult responsibilities, perspectives and sense of urgency to get where you want to go.
To consult about academic planning, please complete a Guidance Intake Form to connect with a St. Louis Guidance Counsellor during Guidance Office Hours Monday to Thursday (no Fridays or weekends) – in person, phone or virtual – by appointment.
Location: St. Louis – 80 Young Street, Kitchener
Office Hours: Monday to Friday , 8:30am – 4:00pm
If you plan to register for a credit course, these items are required:
- Documents with your Legal Name and Date of Birth
- Documents with your Status in Canada
- Photo Identification
- Previous High School Transcript or Graduation Summary
- Up-to-date Resume (if you wish to have your work and volunteer experience recognized under PLAR)
- Principal to Principal Transfer Request Form (if you attended another high school in the last year without having completed a diploma)
- Letter to verify completion of CLB 6 (if you are a LINC or ESL student)
St. Louis Guidance Counsellors will work with current and prospective students to determine what is still required to meet graduation requirements and achieve your OSSD. Click here for Graduation Requirements. If you already have your OSSD, and need to upgrade credits for a better grade or take a College or University level Secondary School Credit, Guidance will provide direction on how taking a credit class at St. Louis will impact your overall grade average and updated transcript.
Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (mPLAR) is a process that helps mature students obtain recognition for learning outside of formal education settings. PLAR focuses on what adults already know and what they can do. For example, have you lived on your own and managed your own money, do you have children, have you worked or volunteered and learned new skills. These elements are just a handful of the situations we evaluate to determine how that life experience may be attached to secondary school credits. At St. Louis, we can help you obtain recognition for this life and work experience.
Click here to view the PLAR information video: Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR)
Who is Eligible?
PLAR is available to mature students who entered an Ontario high school after 1999, or would like to graduate under the current Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) requirements.
Are you:
- At least 18 years old on or before December 31 of this school year?
- Enrolled in a Secondary School Credit program for the purpose of obtaining an OSSD
- Out of high school for at least 10 months before returning as an adult
- New to the Ontario Secondary School system, as of February 1, 2004 AND working toward an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD). (Students who have studied out of province or out of country would also qualify under this criteria)
You may earn up to 26 secondary school credits using PLAR for Mature students. The last 4 credits MUST be earned via any combination of our day class, hybrid, correspondence, online, language credit, skills training or Credits@Work options. Credits offered in Skills Training programs are elective credits only.
To receive a PLAR application and connect with a St. Louis Guidance Counsellor, please complete a Guidance Intake Form. A guidance counsellor will contact you via email (in queue) during our office hours.
Guidance Office Hours: Monday – Thursday 8:30am – 12:30pm / 1:30pm – 4:00pm. Friday hours are for scheduled appointments only.
International Visa Student Program – https://international.wcdsb.ca/
St Louis Adult Learning & Continuing Education Centres
Overview
St Louis Adult Learning & Continuing Education Centres offers High School credit courses taught in English for the purpose of obtaining the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) and/or upgrading for post-secondary education. Credits can be earned through our Adult Day School program (5 Terms) , Correspondence / Self Study program (continuous Intake) or any of our three school to work / skills training programs: Culinary Arts Credit courses & Certificate program, Hairstyling and Barbering Certificate, and Personal Support Worker (PSW) Certificate.
Acceptance into a St Louis Adult & Continuing Education program in the Waterloo Catholic District School Board will be determined by:
- An assessment of the student’s educational background and present academic standing as indicated on their transcripts. Secondary students must have a performance grade level of 65%. (High School Transcripts must be faxed or emailed to stlouisguidance@wcdsb.ca prior to acceptance (see Procedures section).
- The availability of space in specific secondary credit courses. Early enrolment is recommended to ensure access to the course of choice and desired program.
- An assessment of the student’s English language proficiency. Students will need to provide evidence of a TOEFL score between 79-93, or IELTS at 6.5, or CLB at level 6 (in listening, speaking, reading, and writing) in order to be accepted into our adult high school credit courses. If you have taken language tests other than those listed above, please contact St Louis directly to determine whether they will meet language testing requirements.
The WCDSB school tuition and RDO administration fees must be paid in full to the WCDSB Resource Development Office, 35 Weber Street West, Unit A, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada N2G 4G2 before the Letter of Acceptance (LOA) is issued. After receiving the school fees payment, the WCDSB will issue an official letter of acceptance. The official letter of acceptance is required for the student to apply for a Study Permit at the Canadian Embassy in order to study in Canada.
Please note: For students applying to study in Canada for the first time, their Study Permits must be obtained before entering Canada. Students who are already studying in Canada may renew their Study Permits from Citizenship & Immigration Canada from within Canada.
All students must apply for and receive a Study Permit from Citizenship and Immigration Canada before leaving their home country to attend a school in Canada. Guidelines and an application form can be found on the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website, http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/study/index.asp or at the Canadian embassy, high commission or consulate in the student’s home country. Students should contact the Canadian visa office in their home country to see if they are required to fill out any additional forms or provide any additional documents.
Procedure and Requirements
- Send an email to stlouisguidance@wcdsb.ca to begin your application process. In the body of the email please indicate the program you are interested in at St Louis and the reason you wish to study with us. Attach the following documents to this email:
- Scanned copies of high school transcripts from the most recent and previous two years of study
- Evidence of English proficiency
- Complete the International Student Application Form. Once this is completed and we have received your transcripts a guidance counsellor will contact you to help you select your courses. We will then send you a Request for Invoice for administration and tuition fees. You will then contact the ROD office to make arrangements for your tuition payment.
- The administration and tuition fees must be received prior to the Letter of Acceptance (LOA) being issued by the School Board. Payment may be submitted by certified cheque, wire transfer or money order.
- A student is responsible to apply for a Visa and Study Permit. Only students with a Secondary School Study Permit will be granted course credits.
- Students should ensure they arrive a couple days prior to the beginning of the term. This is important if the student wishes to begin classes the first day of the term.
- Students will receive their study permit once they have been processed through Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) at the point of entry.
- Upon arrival at St Louis, the student must present their passport containing the visa with stamped entry date, and study permit. You will also need to provide documentation showing your Canadian address, and a receipt showing your tuition payment.
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