• Application Deadline: 
    March 1, November 1
  • Profile Code: 
    300.GE
  • DEC in: 
    Social Science
  • Program Length: 
    2 years

If you are contemplating a career in education, social work, or psychology, the Education, Family and Childhood Profile of Dawson’s Social Science Program is designed especially for you! It could also interest students who would like to pursue other fields of work related to health and social services for children and families. We take a multidisciplinary approach to studying and understanding the social, psychological, and cultural development of children from birth to adulthood. Students will learn how society, community, education and public policy influence the structure of the family and the development of children. In addition, this profile has a fieldwork component in the second and fourth terms in collaboration with schools, community centers and daycares around Dawson and all of Montreal.

This profile showed me what working with children would be like and confirmed this is what I want to do with my life.
— Sabrina M.

What you will learn?

  • The key stages of child and youth development
  • How different cultures experience motherhood, fatherhood and parenthood
  • How the institution of family developed in different parts of the world and how social, political, and economic forces shape the experience of family.
  • How the education system and public policy impact society and each of us as individuals
  • What it’s actually like to work with children and youth in fieldwork settings
  • To explain social phenomena and human behaviour using theories, perspectives, and approaches specific to the disciplines of social science
  • To integrate methodologies, perspectives, and approaches of inclusion, equity, diversity, decolonization, and anti-oppression when analyzing social phenomena and human behaviour
  • To conduct an interdisciplinary, individual research project
  • To explain how differences in social identities and world views could influence opinions, beliefs, values, and social interactions
  • To integrate an understanding of the root causes of environmental crises to take actions both locally and globally

Where will this program lead you?

Like all Social Science profiles, Education, Family and Childhood leads to a DEC in Social Science, which qualifies you for most university programs in the social sciences or humanities. The Education, Family and Childhood Profile is specially designed for students pursuing university studies in Education, Social Work or Psychology. Following university, graduates may pursue careers in teaching, family and social services, counselling, policy analysis, public health and research.

What else you should know?

  • Two courses include a fieldwork opportunity in the second and final semesters. Students who opt to participate in the fieldwork component can be placed in school, youth group or hospital settings in order to observe professionals and develop skills related to working with children and teenagers.
  • Students must pass a mandatory police background check in the first semester in order to be placed in a fieldwork setting.

What do you need to apply?

  • A Diploma of Secondary Studies (DES) or academic background judged equivalent to the DES
  • Secondary IV Mathematics: Cultural, Social & Technical option 563-404/414

Application Deadline

March 1

November 1



Last Modified: November 8, 2023