“Business as usual” is an expression we often hear, but how does it realistically apply to many of today's larger companies? The answer is simple with small businesses which operate on a very simplistic formula of making something or providing a service, selling the product or service, using the money from the sale to keep the business going and hopefully having some leftover for profit. But simplicity is rarely a factor with corporations or large companies. There are far more factors to consider and analyze when it comes to making business decisions, and for this reason we have the specialized role of the accountant to help asses and shape more complex decisions.

If a company isn't simply operating on a “business as usual” basis, it is most likely because it is constantly making plans to widen the scope of their business activities. This means developing new projects, expanding into new markets, buying or merging with other companies, investing in new equipment, or even considering the issuing stocks.

Accountants must be experts at creating and analyzing financial ratios from various financial data received from a company, like balance sheets, cash flow statements, income statements, company performance history, comparisons with other companies, and even future projections.

Once the figures have been laid out and their relationship to each other has been plugged into the ratio formulas, the main purpose of financial analyses is to determine four key factors: solvency, profitability, liquidity, and stability. The accountant then reports to the company's managers, allowing them to make more informed decisions.

Being able to formulate these ratios makes up an extremely important part of accounting training. From there, the accountant will look at those key factors:

Solvency

How much money and asset value does a company have, and how much are they expecting to make? Take these figures and subtract from them how much a company owes in total over a period of time. This is solvency, or in other words, a company's ability to meet its expenses, pay off its debts, and continue to grow.

Profitability

Unlike profit, which is a fixed number that simply refers to how much money is made from a sale or other business activity, profitability considers a company's ability to make profit over a period of time. This figure is then directly related to the ability of a company to sustain growth and potentially increase profits.

Liquidity

Also considered over a specific time period, in this case a short time, liquidity is the company's capability to meet is every day expenditures and liabilities. Unlike profit, liquidity measures positive cash flow against immediate debt.

Stability

Where liquidity takes a short-term view of a company's cash flow, stability is focused on the long term. This often considers that business will remain relatively stable and does not take into consideration unexpected significant losses, in other words, assuming business goes on “as usual.”

These may seem like simple descriptions but in fact these concepts can be sometimes tricky to understand and differentiate when one has mountains of data to sort and organize. It is not uncommon for an accounting diploma program to focus on training future accountants in these subjects extensively.

Visit Mohawk College for more information on accounting courses and other business programs.

By living in the big city, one has the advantage of having all of society’s urban amenities just steps from your front door. But every so often, it is wonderful to escape into the countryside, where fresh air, clean lakes, and peace and quiet replace the concrete jungle of cars, crowds and hustle. Some urban dwellers are lucky to be able to get out to the countryside on a regular basis. For others, with busy work schedules and regular family and social obligations, finding the time and means to get out of the city is much more difficult. This is especially true if one is balancing work and studying at the same time.

But what if there were a way to take advantage of the wilderness as part of an education? Nature is not only a wonderful environment to learn in, due to its tranquility and absence of distractions. It is also a great learning tool in itself. There are numerous valuable skills to learn in the countryside, covering everything from learning to identify which plants and trees are edible or medicinal, to learning overall survival skills living in the wilderness.

Now, it is safe to assume that the average person, or even the student of nature, does not actually require wilderness survival skills barring some grand urban catastrophe. Nevertheless, continuing education programs that offer non-credit workshops in the wilderness can be practical for everyday living, not to mention loads of fun. Most importantly, the experience gained from a real wilderness course is one hundred per cent irreplaceable, meaning these things cannot be taught in traditional classrooms, nor can they be learned in books.

Here are some activities one can have in a wilderness workshop:

·         Building shelter: learning the proper set-up of tenting gear, or even creating shelter from natural materials

·         Long-distance hiking and trekking: learn about appropriate packing, nourishment, and weather protection for extended journeys on foot, as well as navigation with or without a compass

·         Plant and Tree identification: learn to distinguish edible plants from harmful and poisonous ones, and learn to use plant life for first aid purposes

·         Fishing: learn techniques for proper fishing for recreation or consumption, how to properly prepare fish for eating, as well as conservation rules for preserving water wildlife

·         Animal Safety: what to do in case confronted with aggressive or dangerous animals, such as bears or wolves

·         Fire-making: effective techniques for safe and controlled fires, what to do in case of accidental fire spread

·         Water-Procurement: how to locate water, as well as treat and filter it if necessary

Activities such as these can give a whole new meaning to the concept of distance education. You will certainly be far from the traditional school setting, but that just means that the great outdoors is your expansive classroom to explore.

Visit Mohawk College for more information on continuing education and online learning courses and programs.

There is no doubt that raising children is hard work. Dealing with both the expected and unexpected situations with children can be as demanding as any full-time career, and the hours far exceed any 9-5. Although parents get some respite from teachers, there are sometimes circumstances where other specialists are called upon to assist the parents.

Three of these situations are the following:

1) Children facing mental health issues

2) Children in need of welfare services

3) Children with juvenile delinquent issues

For those interested in working with children facing any one of these issues, there are many ways to go about beginning a career. Here are examples of some of the specific issues surrounding the above three areas of special youth work:

Youth and Mental Health

·         Attention-Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder – ADHD is a behavioral disorder whereby the child has trouble either paying attention to people, being involved or interested in their surroundings, being patient, remaining calm, or controlling energetic outbursts

·         Conduct Disorder – This is characterized as when children have trouble or an unwillingness to get along with others, they are aggressive and dishonest, and it can lead to offenses such as destruction or theft

Welfare Youth Services

·         Adoption – Helping children deal with the loss or separation of their biological parents, adjusting to new families, schools and communities

·         Foster Care – Similar to adoption, but including helping children live within governmental institutions, or adapting to multiple transfers of institutions and homes

·         Abuse – Many issues surrounding the subject of child abuse, ranging from neglect and malnourishment, to psychological, physical and sexual abuse

Juvenile Delinquency

·         Crime – The many complications surrounding youth who engage in criminal activities, how they are treated differently from adults, and considering punishment, delinquent centres, rehabilitation and reintegration

·         Status offence – These are offences specific to the fact that they are committed by minors but otherwise are not illegal, such as alcohol and tobacco-related abuse, automotive crime, firearms possession, or runaway instances

It is to the future youth worker’s advantage to enroll in a program that includes theoretical classroom learning combined with real-world practical experience, most often through apprentice training. This will not only guarantee the most comprehensive form of education and training, but provide any necessary certification to practice in a given domain.

Apprenticeship programs may offer the chance to specialize in any one of these specific areas of youth worker training, or might offer a general apprenticeship programs which allows the student to specialize later in their career. Whatever the choice, working with children is more than just a job, but a lifelong career that makes a difference in the youth of today and the adult population of tomorrow.

Visit Mohawk College for more information on apprenticeships in Ontario.

Owning and operating a car comes with great responsibility. The convenience they afford us regarding commuting, transportation, and even recreation must always be taken with a strong consideration for safety and responsibility. But automotive safety goes well beyond the road. Proper maintenance of your car goes a long way to protecting the physical safety of your passengers and other commuters, with unexpected breakdowns causing many accidents. But just as important is the regular testing and controlling of your car’s emissions, for this can not only affect one’s physical health, but the environment as well.

Emissions are the fumes that are expelled from a car as it burns gasoline and other fuels. These by-products are necessary for the car to operate, just as it is necessary for the car to expel them from the exhaust system. Most range from mild pollutants to noxious fumes and are a major cause of urban air pollution.

Some of the main automobile emissions are:

·         Hydrocarbons

·         Carbon Monoxide

·         Nitrogen Oxides

·         Sulfur

·         Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

·         Formaldehyde

·         And various soot or particle smoke

When combined, some of the adverse effects of these emissions on the environment range from acid rain to the rise of greenhouse gases and smog. The deleterious effects on personal health range from asthma to other respiratory diseases, lung disease, cancer, and poisoning.

This is not to say that cars are completely harmful, but they do require us to regularly maintain and check the amounts of emissions we create both as a society, as well as individually with our own cars. This is especially true when the emission regulating system of an automobile is malfunctioning. For this, we have trained specialists who perform regular emission testing. This position makes up an important part of auto mechanic apprenticeship training.

Three major systems to control emissions that one learns are air injection, exhaust gas circulation, and catalytic converters.

Air Injection

This system utilizes fresh air along with exhaust gases. It is pumped into the exhaust system after being filtered. When it mixes with the exhaust stream, the engine uses a higher percentage of its gases and thus emits less by-product.

Exhaust Gas Circulation

This is a system whereby exhaust fumes are diluted. This is done by recycling some of the exhaust gases right back into the system instead of emitting them outright. It also has the effect of lowering the peak temperatures of combustion, which result in lower levels of nitrogen oxides.

Catalytic Converters

The catalytic converter is a type of conversion instrument made of solid, primordial transition metals and installed in the exhaust pipe. This device converts many of the noxious emissions into less harmful ones by oxidizing them, for example, converting carbon monoxide into carbon dioxide.

The more students entering general mechanic apprenticeships, the more we can rest assured that problems regarding auto emissions won’t get out of control. But while we can rely on specialists to maintain our emission systems, we should not neglect that we have the first responsibility to bring our cars to them for regular checkups.

Visit Mohawk College for more information on auto apprenticeships.

Libraries have been part of our academic imagination for a long time. While most of us are familiar with libraries as austere institutions in wonderfully large, old buildings that house endless rows of books, periodicals and other archival documents, today we also think of digital and online library resources. Some of us recall endless nights in universities spent in libraries, other may have had the first experience using a personal computer in what once was a state-of-the-art section of a community library.

But not all libraries are part of the academic industry or open community centres. Libraries serve a special purpose in many industries as an archival resource, with the main goal of storing and sharing information. They are what are known as special libraries.

One of the main differences about special libraries is that they are not used for general knowledge. This means they they do not have sections covering a wide range of topics, but instead focus on material pertinent to whatever industry these special libraries serve (discussed below).

Another important distinction is that these libraries are often not open to the general public. Because of the specific industry they serve, the material contained may be sensitive or classified and therefore one needs special access to use its resources.

A final note of difference regards the way one uses a special library. Most of the time one does not simply browse through the shelves as one would a regular library. Instead, highly trained librarian specialists process requests for documents and retrieve them for the interested party. This kind of specialized training can be gained through distance education at many universities.

Here is a brief list of some special libraries:

·         Corporate Libraries – This provides information services relating to the past and present activity of a corporation, regarding it’s finance history, personnel administration, and performance reports. This is used by employees within a company to help in their competitive performance. They are not open to the public.

·         Law Libraries – These can be open to the public for anyone who wants to know about the specifics of the law and their rights, or who want to consult past legal cases for use of comparison. They are mostly used, however, by lawyers, judges, and law students.

·         Museum Libraries – This may hold all of the documentation relating to each artifact housed in a museum, specifically, testifying to authenticity, but also to curating and acquisition history.

·         Medical Libraries – Similar to law libraries, this is a resource for doctors, nurses, and medical students, and any other healthcare worker. It contains scientific research studies, experiment results, but also patient records. It can be open to the public.

These are a few examples, but almost any specialized industry with its own history can benefit from library services. Because of the value of maintaining organized information, continuing education programs everywhere are attracting students into library studies. If you love libraries, don’t just consider studying in one, consider working in one as a full time career.


Visit Mohawk College for information on library studies and other online learning courses.

Working with very young children can be one of the most rewarding careers an educator can expect. This is the case because one is not merely educating or instructing them, but one has the potential to help shape their attitudes and personalities for the rest of their lives. While this is cleanly gratifying, it can be somewhat intimidating as well. It is possible a mistake, a simple oversight, or an instance of neglect of a budding problem could have greater negative repercussions later on. Unlike adolescents or young adults who have the larger capacity to deal with singular events of their lives and integrate them into their larger experiences, very young children might run the risk of elevating individual experiences into life-changing events.

Educators aim to serve and help the parents raise their children, not to replace them. But parents have the advantage of being able to deal with their own individual child in a closed one-on-one relationship. Early childhood educators cannot give individual children special attention and must be prepared to deal with situations where the possibility of one child in their class does not necessarily get along with the rest. Here are three example of personality types typically seen in children:

The Bully

Typically, bullies are depicted as being big and mean, but size really has nothing to do with it. Regardless of weight class, a bully is someone who picks on another kid with the intent of taunting or hurting the kid’s feelings. One method for dealing with this situation is to discover a subject or skill the bully does not excel in, and to encourage the other children to help the bully.

The Shy One

Sometimes a child has a shyness that far exceeds normal levels and could possibly inhibit the child from talking, participating and interacting with other children. This could possibly be for a lack of confidence, in which case, one could take the opposite approach from that of the bully. Locate a specific strength or special interest of this child and encourage them to demonstrate this for the other children.

The Protester

Similarly to the shy child, this child also does not want to participate, but they are different because they have no problem vocalizing their resistance, or even physically revolting. Where one might be tempted to try reverse psychology, this can only further alienate this child. One method for dealing with this is to encourage this child to lead an activity, or even to choose the activity on their own. This can have the positive effect of instilling leadership skills.

Aspiring child educators can best prepare themselves through community courses for a variety of these special circumstances.

The wonderful thing about working with children is that they are all different. Early childhood education allows one to experience the varieties of personality types at their formative stages. But not only is it about experience, but about influencing the children who will inherit our future.

Visit Mohawk College for information on community programs such as early childhood education or personal support worker programs.

When one thinks of an architect, one may have the idea of a creative genus pouring over blueprints on a fancy drafting table in a slick high-rise loft. This romantic stereotype is concerned with nothing less than the conceptualization and design of contemporary society's megalithic urban monuments. While this career and lifestyle is certainly very appealing, it undermines the vast majority of real career possibilities that a student of architecture can explore. Modern society does not need to turn out droves of genius building designers as much as it requires professionally trained individuals to perform many different specialized tasks in the conception, design, building and maintenance of architectural projects. In fact, if there were no other jobs to be had in the architecture industry, than many graduates would find themselves without the possibility for real work. Fortunately, this is not the case. 

Aside from the aforementioned artistic creative type that could be found in the architecture industry, the variety of careers awaiting students of architecture can demand other important qualities, such as mathematical minds, practical thinkers, organizational-orientated people, and detail-orientated types. Careers in this industry are therefore not limited to design firms that we imagine occupy modern loft-style offices. One can find work in engineering firms, construction companies, and even in the public sector. Here is a list of other careers one can pursue after architectural technician college:

- CAD technician: CAD means 'computer aided design.' The CAD tech specializes in computer software for creating 2D and 3D graphic images of building and other engineering projects.

- Building inspector: This is often a certified position that checks that a building's structure and various systems are up to certain standards. Aside from architecture, they must also be familiar with basic plumbing, electrical, and mechanical systems.

- Estimators: This person works under the supervision of the project architect to estimate the cost of a building project. They must know about building materials, labor, and other factors and figure out ways to be the most cost efficient.

- Project Scheduler: Like the estimator, the scheduler is concerned with the proposed length of time for a project to be completed. They then break up the project into various stages (concept, design, material acquisition, construction, wiring, etc.) and create the schedule for the entire project. Sometimes, one person can be both the estimator and project scheduler.

- Plans Examiners: This position must review all the planning involved in a building project for various reasons, including ensuring the plans meet local codes and regulations, and determining based on that the cost of permit fees and other plan expenses.

 - Construction Manager: This is an overall position that is involved in overseeing the entire project from beginning to completion. This person often acts as a coordinator between all of the above specialists.

Erecting a building is a team effort. The many responsibilities and skills required of an architectural technician go way beyond the idealistic creative aspirations of a single designer.

Visit Mohawk College for more information on architectural technology.

A community can never have too many nurses. Nurses provide an invaluable service to people both in terms of direct care as well as working as assistants in hospitals, doctors' offices and other medical facilities.

Naturally, there are certain limitations as to the number of aspiring nurses a community can educate at one time, and because of this, admission to some nursing programs must be limited and selective. For one thing, since nurses work in such an important industry—that of our health and well-being—it is imperative they get a great and thorough education. This means that class sizes must not be too big in order that every student gets the attention they require, and has equal access to their instructors. The same is true of equipment: nurses must train on some of the latest technology, and for this they must have decent amounts of access during their training. Finally, nursing programs incorporate practicums and internships as part of the education, and there are only a limited number of these positions a hospital or medical facility can accommodate at any given time among their regular staff.

So if you are interested in getting into a nursing program, here is a small check list of suggested and required steps to complete before applying:

- Basic general education: having a high level of English, especially if applying to an English school. A high level of mathematics is also important. Finally, getting ahead in the sciences will not only help you get in, but will give you a good background in nursing.

- Computers: not only are computers essential today in any industry, but they are also a necessary learning tool in any advanced educational program. They help you stay organized, extend the breadth of your research, and give you a familiarity with computerized equipment which will be used in nursing.

- Health Occupation Aptitude Examination (HOAE): passing this standardized test is a requirement for entry into a school of nursing. There are many online resources one can research to prepare for this test.

- Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certification: like the HOAE, having successfully completed a CPR course is necessary before applying.

- Immunization: Make sure you have been recently immunized and have all the up-to-date appropriate paperwork. As nurses in training will come into contact with patients, this is a requirement.

The above points range from suggested background knowledge to necessary certifications and paperwork. Perhaps the most important thing one should do before applying to any nursing programs, however, is to take the time to research programs and schools, as well as to seriously think if this career is right for you. Admissions may require some work, but only to ensure the most serious and hard-working applicants take up this very important profession.

Visit Mohawk College for more information on nursing college.

Sociology and nursing: one wouldn’t normally associate the two subjects with each other. Sociology is academic and theoretical, while nursing is practical. Someone studying sociology at the university level is not very likely to take a career in nursing. But you may be surprised to know that there are an increasing amount of nurses and nursing programs that incorporate the theories of sociology as part of their practice and programs.

There are many reasons why one would need the services of a nurse, from chronic illness to physical injury. The job of the nurse goes beyond administering medicine, helping doctors and bandaging wounds, but caring for individuals. sociology examines the relationship between individuals and the community they live and work in, it is very useful in the nursing industry to help people adapt to their environment when faced with new physical and mental health issues. If one is sick or injured, their relationship to their environment can change varying degrees. It could limit their ability to work, alter their relationships with family and friends, or heighten the levels of pre-occupation and anxiety about the state of their health in ways they may not have been prepared for.

There are two kinds of sociological areas of thought that are related to the healthcare industry and are taught in nursing school: the sociology of health and the sociology of medicine.

Sociology of Health

This branch of sociology deals with the bigger picture of how society understands and deals with notions like life, health, illness and death. Our individual ways of making sense of these situations is often greatly influenced by how we, as a society, interpret and react in these cases. One of the main topics of sociology of health is the search and understanding of the causes of diseases. This pathological approach explores natural phenomena as well as the environmental impacts on our bodies, for example: over-crowded urban centres causing respiratory illness due to air pollution, or causing psychological alienation from mass anonymity. Another important theme explores the motivation for getting or avoiding treatment, and why certain kinds of medical aid are preferable over others. As a society, for example, we need to be aware of the limitations for resources for certain medicines, or the side-effects of treatments on large groups of people.

Sociology of Medicine

This branch of sociology may be more pertinent in a nursing program. Here, the specifics of medical institutions are examined and how they function within a community. It focuses on the relationships between medical professionals, like nurses and doctors, with patients and other professionals in the healthcare industry, like hospital administrators and pharmaceutical developers. Unlike the abstract study of life and death, medicinal sociology takes a micro look at the people and institutions of the healthcare industry in a practical way. For example, instead of studying how a society deals with disease, it will look at how a patient is experiencing his or her treatment.

Incorporating sociological studies into greater healthcare education means more rounded healthcare professionals. And this means better service and care for our communities.

Visit Mohawk College for more information on programs and courses at a school of nursing.

In an ideal, over-simplified world, there is a clear cut relationship between what is considered the three major players of the healthcare industry: doctors, medicine, and patients. As the pharmaceutical industry developed into a cluster of competing corporations, they have maintained their status by courting doctors and physicians in an attempt to inform them about their products, and perhaps influence them to prescribe them to patients. The methods of reaching out to doctors can range from information seminars to sponsored dinner galas and golf games.

In more recent times, the number of doctors and physicians who have good relationships with pharmaceutical companies has somewhat diminished. In order for these companies to keep the ability to inform about their products and influence the prescription rates, they have turned to another important group of healthcare professionals: nurses. There are two good reasons for this.

Prescription power

The first, and most important reason for this is that nurses, like doctors, are able to prescribe medication. This is not to imply that pharmaceutical companies are trying to take this responsibility out of the hands of doctors. But by allowing nurses the authority to prescribe medication in situations that do not warrant the time of a medical doctor, patients can get better information and quicker access to much needed prescription drugs.

The second major reason why this relationship is broadening is that nurses are more likely seek out information on pharmaceuticals on their own by using resources such as researching on the internet. Education does not stop with nursing courses, but sometimes continues independently with new developments and products. As pharmaceutical companies have woken up to the phenomenon of self-educating nurses, it is only reasonable that they should make their own effort to reach out to these professionals in offering their own educative messages.

Why this is good

The more information available to us as patients, no matter where that information comes from, is always beneficial. While we are able to go online and look up any symptom, illness or medication on websites like webmd.com or mayoclinic.com, it might be difficult for us as non-medical professionals to understand the information and make the best decisions. By working closer with nurses who have more of a background education in this field, and have more time to talk with patients about their options, pharmaceutical companies have a better chance of getting their product used by the appropriate people for the best results.

Why this is bad

Nursing degrees don`t usually cover topics such as marketing. There is sometimes the risk that the interests of marketing and selling pharmaceuticals can override the interests of the patients. In some cases where pharmaceutical companies have more of an emphasis on influencing, rather than informing, they may take advantage of nurses to promote their products. This is in no way always the case, but it is a negative symptom that should be checked.

In the end, it is all about having the best information in the best hands. If the pharmaceutical and nursing industries can get together in a responsible exchange of information and product referral, the benefits will reach the patients, doctors and the rest of the healthcare industry.

Visit Mohawk College for information on pharmacy technician programs.