At the University of Fredericton (UFred), online programs are not just academically rigorous, they are also designed to be relevant and applicable to today’s working professionals. In occupational health and safety programs, this has meant aligning with leading Canadian and international organizations’ standards and frameworks to provide students with globally relevant skills and experience.

The International Network of Safety and Health Professional Organizations (INSHPO) was created in 2001 by organizations that understood that occupational health and safety (OHS) was an international topic rather than a national one. INSHPO has grown to be a 14 member association with representation across America, Canada, the United Kingdom, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Korea, and Mauritius.

UFred has chosen to utilize the INSHPO OHS Professional Capability Framework: A Global Framework for Practice, aligning its principles to the university’s OHS programs. This framework was designed to provide greater clarity around capabilities, knowledge, and skills that an OHS practitioner or professional requires by defining levels of practice, roles, and what are required to be effective in their role. The Framework sets benchmarks for skills and knowledge required by OHS professionals while clearly defining their roles at a global level.

By aligning OHS educational programs at UFred with the OHS Professional Capability Framework, UFred has ensured that students will meet the OHS educational expectations of employers globally after completing their programs.

To learn more about INSHPO’s OHS Professional Capability Framework: A Global Framework for Practice and how UFred implements it, click here.