Thor Benson / Cannabis News Box Contributor

Interested in getting a college degree in cannabis production? You might want to consider moving to Canada, because Niagara College in Ontario is about to start offering one.

Up to 25 students will soon be enrolling in a postsecondary certificate in cannabis growing at the school. Students who want to enroll will need to have a degree in horticulture, agricultural sciences or similar areas, The Toronto Star reports, and the first students that become part of this program will graduate in 2019.

“The college has built a reputation as being very pre-emptive when it comes to addressing clear labour market demands like that which we have identified in the field of commercial cannabis production with this innovative program,” Al Unwin, associate dean of Niagara College’s School of Environment and Horticulture, told Cannabis News Box. “The demand for highly skilled – well trained graduates of this program has been made clear to us as an innovative and pre-emptive college. We are responding to a real need for this in the industry and are confident that there are career opportunities that will be available once students have completed this program.”

Unwin said he thinks this will become a popular program, and it could draw in students from around the country and beyond. He said responses to the announcement this program is starting have been largely positive, and he feels it will be successful. “This program will indeed create interest locally and across the country,” he said.

The program will include 10 courses, and students will learn everything from growing techniques to how to operate within Canada’s cannabis regulations. Medical cannabis will be one of the main focuses. Canada is set to fully legalize cannabis, including for social use, by July of 2018.

“We will continue to demonstrate leadership when it comes to responding to future trends in our economy and meeting the human capital needs as we have in the past with programs like Commercial Beekeeping, Culinary Innovation and Food Technology, Renewable Energies Technician, Game Development and others,” Unwin said.

If you’d rather be in the United States, you can always try taking some classes at Oaksterdam University in Oakland, Calif.