Webinar Wednesday Recap: Personal Support Worker
Last week, we hosted a Webinar Wednesday session shining a spotlight on our Personal Support Worker (PSW) program. If you couldn’t join us virtually, don’t worry. Below are the highlights from the session, along with the full recording below to watch at your convenience.
Fleming College’s PSW program, within the School of Health and Community Services. is recognized for its hands-on learning, immersive clinical experience, and supportive learning environment. During the webinar, prospective students heard from Shannon in Student Recruitment, along with Carlie Conlin, Program Coordinator, and Madison Dimacakos, Clinical Coordinator, who shared what the program looks like in practice. They highlighted flexible delivery options across multiple campuses, including the unique living classroom model, as well as the strong focus on lab-based learning, simulation, and early clinical placements. The session also explored career outcomes after graduation, showcasing the high demand for PSWs and the range of opportunities available in healthcare settings.
Why Personal Support Worker at Fleming?
Choosing the PSW program at Fleming College is about more than earning a certificate, it’s about being fully prepared for the realities of healthcare from your very first semester. Whether you’re starting a new career or building on existing experience, this program is designed to help you enter the workforce with confidence. Through a strong blend of foundational theory, hands-on skills labs, simulation-based learning, and approximately 300 hours of clinical placements, students build both the technical abilities and the confidence needed to succeed in real care environments. With early exposure to long-term care, community settings, and real clients, you graduate with meaningful, practical experience already behind you. Combined with strong industry connections, career support, and opportunities to continue into nursing through bridging pathways, Fleming equips you with the skills, experience, and professional readiness to step directly into a rewarding and in-demand healthcare career.
Three Key Takeaways
1. Early and extensive hands-on clinical experience
One of the biggest advantages of Fleming’s PSW program is how quickly you move beyond theory into hands-on learning. With about 400 hours of coursework and 300 hours of clinical placement, you’re not just learning in a classroom, you’re actively building skills in real care environments. Students begin placement as early as the end of their first semester, applying skills they’ve already practiced in lab. These placements progress from supported group settings in long-term care or retirement homes to more independent, preceptor-led experiences in community settings. This step-by-step approach helps students build confidence, competence, and real-world readiness before graduation.
2. Flexible program delivery, including a fully immersive “living classroom”
Students can choose from multiple program streams at the Sutherland (Peterborough) or Frost (Lindsay) campuses, or opt for the living classroom model, where learning takes place directly inside a long-term care home. In this immersive option, students work alongside healthcare teams from day one, building relationships with residents and gaining hands-on experience in a real care environment throughout the program. All streams follow the same curriculum and lead to the same credential, allowing students to choose the format and location that best fits their lifestyle and learning preferences.
3. Strong employment outcomes and clear pathways for career advancement
The webinar highlighted a 94% graduate employment rate, reflecting the high demand for PSWs across Ontario. Students often secure job opportunities directly through their placements, sometimes even before completing the program. Graduates can pursue roles in long-term care, retirement homes, hospitals, and community care settings. For those looking to advance further, Fleming also offers a PSW to Practical Nursing bridge, allowing graduates to continue their education and enter directly into the second semester of the nursing program after completing a small number of additional courses.
CHECK OUT THE FULL WEBINAR:
HAVE QUESTIONS OR WANT TO LEARN MORE?
If this session sparked your interest or you’re considering a future as a Personal Support Worker, we’d love to connect with you. Our Student Recruitment. team and program representatives are here to answer questions, help you explore admission pathways, or guide you toward the right next step. Be sure to check out our upcoming Webinar Wednesday sessions online. We’re hosting new topics in the months ahead and it’s a great way to learn more about programs that excite you.
CAN’T MAKE A LIVE WEBINAR WEDNESDAY EVENT?
No problem! We’ll save video recordings on Fleming’s official YouTube channel. And don’t worry, Program Coordinators are always available to answer your questions!
For more information about Webinar Wednesdays, please contact Student Recruitment.