01/28/2026
Looking to build skills or start something new?
Vancouver Island University (VIU) is offering the following on-campus courses in qathet—perfect for aspiring entrepreneurs and anyone wanting to level up their workplace skills.
Entrepreneurship – NEW!
Tuesdays and Wednesdays, February 3 to 18; 5:30–7:30 pm (2 sessions per week)
Instructor: Dr. Patrik Jones
6 sessions
Fee: $220 + GST
Location: on-campus
Ever thought about starting a business in qathet? Maybe you already have, but are wondering how to make it grow? This course will cover the basics of small business creation, from non-profits to investable startups.
Topics include business types, ideation, market research, raising funds and revenue, investment, and pitching. Practical elements include teamwork, peer-to-peer feedback, and a final Dragon's Den event where you get to pitch your idea.
With a blend of theoretical and practical exercises, this course aims to equip students with the basic concepts of business creation and provide the tools and resources to start a new business in the qathet region.
Dr. Patrik Jones is co-founder of five deeptech companies. He was Professor at Imperial College London (a global top 10 University) and received the European Research Council fellowship. He has published more than 60 peer-reviewed papers and taught entrepreneurship to undergraduates, postgraduates, and academics. In qathet, Patrik operates a consulting business helping clients (from individual startups to the European Commission) solve Research and Development (R&D) challenges and evaluate investment opportunities. He also mentors for the University of British Columbia (UBC) venture-founder program.
Get the Most Out of Excel: Beyond the Basics - Part 1 – NEW!
Wednesdays, February 11 to March 18; 6–8 pm
Instructor: Kirstie McLeod
6 sessions
$230 + GST
Location: on-campus
Take your Excel skills up a notch. Become the cool kid who can select a range with a single movement, create a custom chart in five clicks, and use formulas to analyze data and retrieve specific results that would take hours to find manually. Wow your professor or manager with polished charts that embed flawlessly in Word or PowerPoint and can be updated with a single click.
Please bring a notebook, binder, report holder, clipboard, or other method of keeping handouts together, and a thumb drive (minimum 4 GB) for handing in and receiving back assignments.
Get the Most Out of Excel: Beyond the Basics - Part 2 – NEW!
Wednesdays, April 1 to May 6; 6–8 pm
Instructor: Kirstie McLeod
6 sessions
$230 + GST
Location: on-campus
This course is for taking your Excel and data analysis skills to the Guru level. Excel is capable of doing some pretty incredible things, but most people are content to use it to do basic arithmetic, kind of like a race car that mostly gets used for commutes.
Learn all about pivot tables, arrays, forms, security, and embedding and manipulating objects for interactive presentations. If that’s the kind of Excel skills you want and you are interested in really pushing the envelope of what Excel can do, this course is for you.
Kirstie McLeod has been working with Microsoft Office since it was launched back in the ‘90s. She has earned two university degrees (English Literature followed by a more practical CMMB/Microbiology degree) and has decades of experience in administration, data analysis, and training facilitation. As a result, she has spent extensive time with all applications of MS Office, but Excel is her favourite.
To register, they can call us at 604-485-2878 or do it online
Expand your world. Explore new interests. Expand your mind, body and soul. Explore new interests and fulfill your personal goals while forging new relationships that will last a lifetime. We've been providing community education and training for the qathet region since 1974.Our course mix offers som...
