Computerized Accounting and Office

Brighton College has partnered with The National Payroll Institute to deliver the Payroll Compliance Professional (PCP) designation courses. The process consists of three courses from the Association and Introduction to Accounting from the college. Once the student passes the three CPA exams and pays the transfer fee for the Introduction to Accounting mark, they will be considered a PCP Candidate. Effective January 1, 2015, individuals who wish to obtain the Payroll Compliance Professional (PCP) designation must have at least one year of weighted payroll experience obtained within five years prior or five years after the start of the Payroll Compliance Legislation course. The student must pay the membership fee when the student applies for designation. For more information regarding fees please visit www.payroll.ca. Students who do not wish to obtain the Payroll Compliance Professional designation may enroll in the Brighton College payroll courses. Students will be evaluated with Brighton College payroll assignments and exam.

The Accounting Program is accredited by:

The Payroll Compliance Professional designation requires three core courses, one transfer of credit and one year of weighted, related work experience. Please see the requirements for completion order listed below.

• Payroll Compliance Legislation
• Payroll Fundamentals 1
• Payroll Fundamentals 2
• Introduction to Accounting (required transfer of credit; offered at Brighton College)
• PCP Work Experience Requirement Application (WERA) (a minimum of one-year weighted Canadian payroll work experience)

All courses, including the Introduction to Accounting transfer of credit, require a passing grade of 65% in order to be accepted towards the Payroll Compliance Professional designation.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this program the successful student will have the ability to:

• Demonstrate strong communication skills both in written and oral presentation.
• Use Word to create a professional document.
• Use Excel to create spreadsheets and use the calculation functions.
• Understand financial reports and be able to record financial and use it to create basic financial statements.
• Understand the use of financial information and preform basic interpretation of financial statements.
• Understand and interpret rule and regulations required to function within a payroll office.
• Perform day to day duties required by an employee in a payroll department.
• Prepare payroll remittances and monthly reports to various stakeholders.
• Prepare year end payroll reports.
• Enter financial data and prepare financial statements and reports using two of the currently most popular computerized accounting systems.
• Use the skills learned in a practical setting.
• Establish clear and actionable career objectives.

Admission Requirements

• High school diploma or mature student status*
• Legal eligibility to study in Canada
• English proficiency requirement from one of following options:
  1. Completion of 3 years of full-time secondary education (Grades 8-12), or 2 years of if Grade are 10, 11, or 12, have been successfully completed in the program’s language of instruction in a country where the language of instruction is one of the principal languages, or
  2. Completion of 2 years of full-time post-secondary education in the program’s language of instruction in a country where the language of instruction is one of the principal languages (includes international education credentials recognized through WES, ICES, and IQAS), or
  3. Evidence of achievement in a recognized standardized language assessment at an overall level equivalent to IELTS 5.5 (academic) or higher: IELTS academic 5.5; TOEFL IBT 46; CAEL 40; CELPIP (Listening 6, Speaking 6, Reading 5, Writing 5); DET 95, PTE 43; FCE 160 or “C”; Cambridge Linguaskill B2; LANGUAGECERT Academic B2; MET B2; iTEP Academic 3.5; EIKEN Grade Pre-1. Test results must be dated no more than two years before the start date of the program, or
  4. Evidence of graduation from language program with a minimum grade/level from a Languages Canada accredited institution with an established pathway/articulation agreement allowing direct entry (no further testing required) to a diploma or degree program at a public institution in Canada. The pathway/articulation agreement must be current at the date of enrolment, or
  5. Accuplacer - This option may only apply when:
     • English is the program’s language of instruction, and
     • the applicant is a mature domestic student facing barriers, and
     • the applicant cannot access their educational records or cannot provide sufficient evidence of secondary or post-secondary education as outlined in this policy
     • Applicant is 19 years or older at the start of the program and is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, and
     • Applicant provides attestation that they have completed at least three years of full-time instruction in English* in a country where the English is one of the principal languages, and
     • Applicant completes an Accuplacer English Assessment (Next Generation: Reading, Writing and WritePlacer) and achieves the following minimum scores:
       • Reading: 230, and Writing: 230, and WritePlacer: 4

Refer to Language Proficiency Policy for details.

*Mature Student is defined as an individual who is 19 years of age or older at the start of the program.

*Under no circumstances can these Admission Requirements be waived.

Start Your Career As

• Bookkeeper
• Accounting Clerk/Payroll Clerk
• Administrative Assistant
• Junior Accountant
• Accounts Payable Clerk
• Accounts Receivable Clerk

Grow Your Career Into

• Intermediate/Senior Accountant
• Credit Supervisor
• Payroll Administrator

Labour Market Snapshot

• NOC: 12200
• Annual Earnings *Average: $40,967
• Job Openings (2025–2035): 10,850
• Wages (BC): High $47.45/hr
  Median $28.00/hr
  Low $19.44/hr

Data sourced from WorkBC. Occupation information aligned with the National Occupational Classification (NOC)