The answer to that is: it depends on where you are. In fact, outside of Alberta, polytechnics don’t (legally) exist as separate from colleges (Usher, 2024). So polytechnics like Kwantlen (in BC) and Seneca (in Ontario) are—legally speaking—colleges. However, they are still part of Polytechnics Canada, an organization representing publicly supported polytechnics, colleges and institutes of technology. 

Polytechnics Canada (2024) defines polytechnic education as: 

• Applied and hands-on
• Industry-driven and responsive to industry demand
• Flexible and built for lifelong learning
• Innovation-oriented
• Focused on full-spectrum workforce transition

This is a good start, but let’s layer those criteria with other post-secondary teaching institutions in Canada. 

To put it plainly, a polytechnic sits somewhere between a college and a university.  

While a college is focused on teaching marketable, applied skills for ‘real-world’ application, and a university is focused on teaching theory and conducting research, a polytechnic teaches applied skills and researches new applications for skills. 

A polytechnic offers real-world applied skills training like a college but includes research like a university. 

The truth is that Lethbridge Polytechnic was acting a lot like a polytechnic when it was still a college. In many ways, this redesignation is more of a recognition of what we are already doing than a significant change to who we are. 

It has, however, opened new pathways to higher learning for our students. Plus, it allows us more room to grow and create an even bigger impact with our applied research efforts, like the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). 

To reflect these new opportunities, Lethbridge Polytechnic leadership created four new strategic imperatives: 

1. Develop and deliver dynamic, responsive programs 
2. Enhance holistic student development and success 
3. Enrich inclusive, adaptive, and thriving workplace culture  
4. Engage local and global communities for robust partnerships  

At CTLI, we are proud of the courses we have supported instructors to create as they strive to stay relevant and take advantage of the technology available. It starts with supporting instructors with program and course design but doesn’t stop there.  We also:

• Offer key professional development resources like CanvasCon and Camp Horizon
• Connect instructors with applied research opportunities, like SoTL and CARIF

This research leads to questions like:  

• How can we do things differently to push teaching and learning forward? 
• What are the different modalities we might use?  
• How might we work with the DLT team to integrate technology? 
• How might we work with Accessibility to make courses more accessible to students? 

Answering these questions helps us develop relevant, engaging programs for learners. 

We support students by ensuring they can make the most out of every moment here at the Polytechnic. A big part of that is fostering holistic student development in an inclusive learning environment. That can mean something as simple as ensuring courses are presented in plain language to make them accessible for all, or as complex as designing and building whole new learning supports to help students better engage. 

We support our instructors through continuous faculty development programs such as:

• Partnering with them to ensure they continue to grow—not just in their fields but as instructors.
• Providing mentorship and guidance to pursue the new opportunities available to them as members of a polytechnic, especially research.
• Connecting instructors with the STAR grant, and specifically for SoTL research.
• Providing other ongoing support for active research projects.