School may be out for summer, but it's never too early to start thinking about picking up the books again in September.

If you're shopping around for post-secondary programs or want to upgrade your skills, consider a degree in a CED-focused field. The community development sector offers diverse and meaningful employment opportunities (for proof, visit our National Jobs page), and Manitoba is home to some of the country's best programs in community development/community economic development.

Follow the links below to learn more about the many CED educational opportunities in Manitoba:

Community Development / Community Economic Development Diploma
(Red River College)
The CD/CED two-year diploma program prepares graduates to become facilitators of positive change in communities that may be experiencing multiple barriers to development. As a hands-on program; students learn methods to work in a more empowering manner; how to strengthen and build more sustainable communities; and all the structural organizational skills a community needs to make change happen including new CED start-ups.

International Development Studies
(Menno Simons College)
Through IDS, you learn about the local, national and global connections between hunger, poverty, war, politics, religion, economics and trade, and globalization. You also have the option to apply theory and skills to real-world situations through the practicum program. Graduates find careers with international relief and development organization, local non-profit and social development groups, and in government and business.

Department of Rural Development
(University of Brandon)
The Department of Rural Development offfers undergraduate degrees and a minor in Rural and Community Studies and a master's degree and graduate diploma in Rural Development. These interdisciplinary programs allow students to balance theoretical foundations and applied learning in order to resolve issues facing rural areas and small towns.

Urban and Inner-City Studies
(University of Winnipeg)
Urban and Inner-City Studies is an interdisciplinary Major concerned with the examination of the city as a dynamic environment. The program combines a traditional urban studies focus with courses that examine various aspects of the inner city, such as the urban Aboriginal experience, the immigrant and refugee experience, and the role of women.

Department of Business Administration
(University of Winnipeg)
The three or four-year Bachelor of Business Administration program offers several courses designed to introduce students to alternative, community-oriented business structures:

• Management of Co-ops: This course is an introduction to the unique challenges involved in the management of co-operatives. It aims to build students’ appreciation of co-operatives as a viable model of economic development. 
• Non-Profit Management: This course explores the distinctive management challenges inherent in a not-for-profit organization. Topics to be addressed include mission, governance, social marketing, volunteerism, fundraising, stakeholder services, and the impact of technology. 
• Social Enterprise Management: This course is designed to examine the role of social enterprises, to identify and assess their different types, to explore management issues unique to social enterprises, and to measure their impacts.