Careers in health care
Learn about building a rewarding career in health care and the support available for you to do so.
Overview
Working in health care provides an opportunity to:
- develop a broad skillset to meet the growing needs of Ontarians across the province
- work as part of a highly specialized team
- develop long-lasting relationships with both patients and their families
Professions in health care are in high demand all across Ontario. See what opportunities are available for a future career in health care and the supports available to help you along the way.
Nursing
Become a Registered Nurse (RN)
Registered nurses (RN) working in health care provide comprehensive care to patients with ever-increasing levels of complex needs.
They are clinical leaders in assessment, care planning, carrying out care and measuring what’s working or not for all patients. Registered nurses are also responsible for leading patient care teams, which can include a number of different designations and specialities.
To become a registered nurse, you must:
- complete a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree offered by a university, college or through a college-university partnership
- complete the national registration examination
- be registered and in good standing with the College of Nurses of Ontario
Education
In Ontario, Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs are provided by:
- university stand-alone programs
- collaborative university-college programs
- college stand-alone programs
Click here to find a nursing program.
Admission generally requires:
- an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent
- a minimum academic achievement average
- individual college or university program prerequisites
Programs are typically four years in length. However, some compressed and accelerated options are available for students with prior education and experience.
Financial aid may be available. Find more information about:
- Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP)
- Tuition Support Program for Nurses
- Canadian Nurses Foundation Scholarship program
- Registered Nurses Foundation of Ontario Annual Awards and Scholarships
- Ontario Learn and Stay Grant
Next steps
- Apply directly to an approved nursing program, the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC) or the Ontario Colleges Application Service (OCAS).
- Find information on the NCLEX-RN examination.
- Nursing Graduate Guarantee — If you are within 12 months of registering with the College of Nurses of Ontario, and approved to participate in this program, Ontario will guarantee you have the opportunity for full time employment.
- Community Commitment Program for Nurses — New nurses may be eligible to receive $25,000 in exchange for a two-year commitment to an employer.
Become a Registered Practical Nurse (RPN)
Registered practical nurses provide comprehensive care to patients across multiple health care settings. The level of autonomy they may exercise in practice can vary depending on such things as patient complexity, their own individual level of experience and competence and the nature of the environment in which they work (such as practice supports and consultation resources).
To become a registered practical nurse, you must:
- complete an approved program of practical nursing
- complete the national registration examination
- be registered and in good standing with the College of Nurses of Ontario
Education
Registered practical nurse programs approved by the College of Nurses of Ontario, are offered at publicly-assisted colleges, as well as some Indigenous institutes in partnership with publicly-assisted colleges.
Admission generally requires:
- Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent academic achievement
- individual college or program prerequisites
Programs are two-years long and lead to an Ontario college diploma.
Financial aid may be available. Find more information about:
- Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP)
- Tuition Support Program for Nurses
- Nursing Education Initiative
- WeRPN bursaries
- Canadian Nurses Foundation scholarship program
- Registered Nurses Foundation of Ontario Annual Awards
Next steps
- Apply directly to colleges or Indigenous institutes offering the practical nurse program or through the Ontario Colleges Application Service (OCAS).
- Find information about the Canadian Practical Nurse Registration Examination.
- Nursing Graduate Guarantee — If you are within 12 months of registering with the College of Nurses of Ontario, and approved to participate in this program, Ontario will guarantee you have the opportunity for full time employment.
- Community Commitment Program for Nurses — New nurses may be eligible to receive $25,000 in exchange for a two-year commitment to an employer.
Supports for a career in nursing
Supervised Practice Experience Partnership (CNO)
For Internationally Educated Nurses, this partnership program between the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO), Ministry of Health (MOH) and Ontario Health (OH) offers internationally trained nurses the opportunity to undertake a supervised practice experience to demonstrate current nursing knowledge while allowing them to meet their evidence of practice and/or language proficiency requirements to enter practice as a nurse.
Learn more about the Supervised Practice Experience Partnership
Enhanced Extern Program
This program supports hospitals in building capacity and health workforce by offering clinical learners an employment opportunity to work as externs in hospitals across Ontario. Hospitals recruit and onboard clinical learners to work as part of a team under the supervision of a regulated health care professional. Externs work in an unregulated care provider role and can build on their training and experience working in a hospital-setting.
To learn more about the Enhanced Extern Program, contact Ontario Health.
WeRPN Bridging Program
The Bridging Educational Grant In Nursing (BEGIN) initiative is jointly offered by the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Long-Term Care and the WeRPN (Registered Practical Nurses Association of Ontario) to provide tuition support to personal support workers and registered practical nurses so they can pursue further education to become registered practical nurses and registered nurses respectively.
Eligible personal support workers will receive up to $6,000 a year and eligible registered practical nurses will receive up to $10,000 a year in financial support. Candidates with additional needs may also be eligible for further supports that include a maximum of $5,000 per year to cover subsidies for course materials, tutoring, childcare, and travel costs.
Applicants to the BEGIN Program are required to sign a Return of Service Agreement committing to working in the long-term care or home and community care sectors following graduation.
Learn more about the WeRPN Bridging Program
Critical Care Nursing Upskilling (RN Certification Program)
This program allows nurses to learn to provide care in critical areas of hospital service delivery. Ontario will fund specialized nursing education in critical care for 500 more nurses across the province. We are working with 7 colleges and universities on programming to upskill nurses at priority hospitals to work in critical care.
Learn more about Critical Care Nursing Upskilling
Nursing Enrollment Expansion
This program will add 1,500 registered practical nurses (RPNs) and 1,000 registered nurses (RN) to the health care system by 2026.
Beginning fall 2022 and winter 2023, 500 RPNs and 1,000 RN education seats will be added to college and university nursing programs across the province.
Learn more about Nursing Enrollment Expansion
Clinical Scholar Program
This program pairs an experienced front-line nurse as a dedicated mentor with either newly graduated nurses, internationally educated nurses or nurses wanting to upskill. The mentorship ensures that nurses have the support they need to confidently transition into the nursing profession. Nurses interested in the program should contact their hospital organization's management and Professional Practice team.
Learn more about Clinical Scholar Program
Emergency Department Nursing Education, Retention, and Workforce Program
This program, in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Ontario Health, provides access to education for nurses interested in upskilling to work in emergency care, or for emergency department nurses to build on their experience in advancing their critical care skills. Nurses can gain the tools and knowledge to provide highly specialized care in complex care settings.
Learn more about the Emergency Department, Retention, and Workforce Program
Personal support workers (PSW)
Personal support workers are the backbone of the health care sector. On a day-to-day basis, they make the biggest difference to the patients’ quality of life and are involved in every aspect of care planning, including:
- personal care
- social and emotional well-being
- housekeeping
- culturally-specific supports
Given the support they provide across a wide range of needs, becoming a personal support worker in health care is a great opportunity to develop a wide range of valued skills like inter-personal communications, teamwork, adaptability and collaboration.
To become a PSW you must have:
- a high school diploma or equivalent (such as mature student status)
- a personal support worker program certificate
Education
Personal support worker education programs are offered by:
Programs take from five months to a year to complete.
Find more information about:
- Financial support for PSW courses offered by District School Boards
- Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP)
- Second Career program
- PSW Return of Service Program
Supports for a career as a PSW
PSW Education Financial Incentive and Enrollment Expansion
In 2021-22, the government invested more than $200 million in financial assistance for students at publicly-assisted colleges, career colleges and district school boards to train up to 16,200 new PSWs in the health and long-term care sectors.
The government’s 2021 Fall Economic Statement announced additional funding to support training another 8,000 PSWs in 2022-2023.
Supportive Care Worker Program
This tuition-free, employer-driven model of training is delivered at Conestoga College and is designed to prepare students to provide basic supportive care services and increase the pool of trained supportive care workers for the home and community care and long-term care sectors.
Graduates of the Supportive Care Worker program are eligible for advanced standing in Conestoga College’s PSW program.
Learn more about the Supportive Care Worker program
Physicians
As a physician in Ontario, you’ll join a diverse profession of regulated health care providers that offer safe, professional and ethical care to patients across the province.
To become a physician, you must:
- complete an undergraduate degree offered by a university or college
- complete a postgraduate medical degree from an approved medical school
- pass all necessary qualifying exams of the Medical Council of Canada
- be licensed to practise medicine in the province of your practice
Licensing
All physicians practising in Ontario must be registered with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO).
Education
Medical education in Ontario includes undergraduate, postgraduate and continuing professional development.
Undergraduate medical education is a three-year or four-year program of classroom learning and clinical training (clerkship). Graduates receive a Medical Doctor, or MD, degree.
Postgraduate residency programs provide clinical training in an area of specialization (for example, family medicine, surgery or psychiatry). Residents work and are paid during their training. Those who successfully complete their residency become eligible to take the national certification exams, which are necessary to enter practice.
The following universities offer both undergraduate and postgraduate medical education in Ontario:
- McMaster University
- Northern Ontario School of Medicine
- Queen’s University
- University of Ottawa
- University of Toronto
- Western University
Supports for a career as a physician or physician assistant
International Medical Graduates (IMG)
IMGs are a valuable part of Ontario’s health care system and play an important role in providing care to Ontarians. There are a range of supports for IMGs seeking to practise medicine in Ontario.
Learn more about International Medical Graduates (IMG)
Physician Return of Service (ROS) Programs
These programs are part of Ontario’s strategy to help ensure a stable physician supply, improve retention and enhance distribution to provide better care for Ontarians.
Learn more about Physician Return of Service (ROS) programs
Northern and Rural Recruitment and Retention Initiative
The Northern and Rural Recruitment and Retention (NRRR) Initiative offers taxable financial incentives to each eligible physician who establishes a full-time practice in an eligible community of the province. The grants range between $80,000 and $117,600 paid over a four-year period. The grants will be awarded based on eligibility criteria and considerations related to total NRRR Initiative budget allocations.
Learn more about the Northern and Rural Recruitment and Retention Initiative
Practice Ready Ontario Program
This program breaks down barriers for internationally educated physicians by removing the requirement to complete lengthy re-education programs, allowing them to practice in Ontario immediately. This program will add more than 50 new physicians to the province’s workforce by 2024.
Learn more about the Practice Ready Ontario program
Ontario Health-HealthForceOntario
Ontario Health-HealthForceOntario helps health care professionals find employment opportunities in Ontario communities.
Learn more about Ontario Health-HealthForceOntario.
Practice Ontario
Practice Ontario is a free career-planning service for postgraduate medical residents created by the Ontario Health-HealthForceOntario Marketing and Recruitment Agency.
Learn more about Practice Ontario
Supplemental Emergency Medicine Experience
The Supplemental Emergency Medicine Experience is funded through the Ministry of Health and the University of Toronto to provide family physicians practising in smaller and rural communities with a three-month, full-time, remunerated fellowship in emergency medicine.
Learn more about the Supplemental Emergency Medicine Experience
Physician Assistant Career Start Program
Helps recent graduates from Ontario’s Physician Assistant programs find positions in the province’s health care system.
Learn more about the Physician Assistant Career Start program
Internationally Educated Physicians Advisory Committee (IEPAC)
Building on the province’s ongoing work to grow the health workforce, the Internationally Educated Physicians Advisory Committee (IEPAC) works with the province to break down barriers to make it faster and easier to recruit, license and register internationally educated physicians and medical graduates so they can begin working in Ontario and caring for patients sooner.
The committee provides advice on:
- how to increase access to postgraduate residency spots in Ontario for international medical graduates, including Canadians who trained abroad
- making it easier and faster for internationally educated physicians to begin practicing in Ontario
This work builds on the innovative programs the government has already launched to grow Ontario’s health care workforce by speeding up the registration process for internationally and interprovincially educated physicians, including:
- “As of Right” rules allow physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists and medical laboratory technologists registered in other Canadian provinces and territories to immediately start working in Ontario.
- Practice Ready Ontario Program removes the requirement for international students to complete lengthy re-education programs, allowing them to practice in Ontario immediately.
- Expansion of international medical graduate residency positions
Members of the Internationally Educated Physicians Advisory Committee
- Dr. Adam Kassam, Co-Chair
- Dr. Nancy Whitmore, Registrar, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario
- Shamira Madhany, Managing Director and deputy Executive Director, World Education Services
- Dr. Sarah Newbery, Associate Dean of Physician Workforce Strategy, Northern Ontario School of Medicine University
- Dr. Makini McGuire-Brown, Board Chair – Internationally Trained Physicians of Ontario
- Dr. Jane Philpott, Dean, Queen’s University School of Medicine
For further information on IEPAC, please email HHRSupports@ontario.ca.
Other professional development opportunities
Other organizations offering professional development opportunities include:
- Ontario Medical Association
- Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
- College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario
- Ontario College of Family Physicians
- College of Family Physicians of Canada
As of Right rules
As of Right rules allow physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists and medical laboratory technologists registered in other Canadian provinces and territories who meet specific conditions to immediately start working in Ontario, without having to first register with one of the province’s health regulatory colleges. These changes will help health care workers overcome bureaucratic delays and begin caring for Ontarians sooner.