The two-year Therapeutic Recreation Diploma will prepare students to assess, plan, implement and evaluate a wide range of leisure services for people with barriers to participating in leisure activities. Such services might include arts and crafts, dance, music, sports, games, aquatics and group outings. Students will have the opportunity to apply classroom theory in real-life situations through two semesters of practicum work in health-care or social-service settings.

Recreational therapy is used in the fields of gerontology, paedology, psychology, rehabilitation and more. As a diploma graduate, you can find work as a recreation assistant, program planner, recreation leader and activity worker in a variety of settings, including hospitals, mental-health centres, long-term care homes, rehabilitation centres, correctional facilities, youth assessment centres and group homes. From 2015 to 2025, there will be almost 4,000 new job openings for recreation program leaders (and related positions) in B.C., with an average salary of $41,000 per year.

The diploma program fulfills the requirements of years one and two of the Bachelor of Therapeutic Recreation program at Douglas College. Alternatively, the diploma transfers toward the Bachelor of Arts in Child and Youth Care at the University of the Fraser Valley and the Bachelor of Community Rehabilitation at the University of Calgary.