Students and graduates of the land agents’ diploma program at Alberta’s Olds College now have an option to put their diploma credits toward a bachelor of management degree.
Olds College graduates about 50 students from its land agent diploma program per year. About 1,500 land agents are registered in Alberta, working for energy companies as well as landowners, and play a “vital, irreplaceable” role in land access negotiations, the college said.
Land agents, or “landmen,” are responsible for negotiating access to the land and freehold mineral rights for activities such as exploration, development and transporting of onshore oil and gas, or erecting and maintaining power lines, the college said Wednesday.
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The agents are responsible for arranging “millions of dollars” in land claims each year, with the province’s oil and gas industry being a “significant” employer.
Now, under the agreement announced Wednesday, students who’ve earned a land agent diploma from Olds College will be “immediately” eligible to enroll in the University of Lethbridge’s Bachelor of Management degree program.
“In as little as two and a half years, students can obtain a General Management degree from the U of L at its Lethbridge, Calgary or Edmonton campuses,” Olds College said.
“They can choose from programs in Lethbridge or afternoon and evening programming in Calgary and Edmonton.”
