This article is about the biotechnology technician training provided at Centennial College, which prepares students for work in quality control.

1. Biotechnology College Program Benefits
Future Bench Technicians
Summary: This article is about the biotechnology technician training
provided at Centennial College, which prepares students for work in
quality control.
In areas of manufacturing - whether food, pharmaceuticals or
cosmetics - a biotechnology technician (also known as a bench
technician) plays a critical role. This person is in charge of assuring
quality control, which is vital before the products go out for human
use or consumption. Among the knowledge that a biotechnology
technician must have are the know-how to isolate, enumerate and
identify microorganisms from many types of samples (water, soil, air,
your body, and food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic products); prepare
specimens for staining and using a light-microscope; prepare
microbiological media and reagents; culture pathogenic microbes;
handle materials and instruments such as pH and BOD meters, Gas
Chromatographs, spectrophotometers (regular/IR/UV), HPLC’s etc;
and design and perform their own microbiology experiments.
Meanwhile, companies that hire biotechnology technicians include:
Kisko Products, Hermann Laue Spice Company, Apotex Inc., Agropur -
Divisional Natrel, Mill Street Brewery, MAXXAM Analytics, Campbell
Soup Company, bioMerieux Analytics, Griffith Laboratories and
Cosmetica Laboratories Inc.
To ensure they are ready for this range of duties, bench technicians
attend post-secondary programs such as Centennial College’s
Biotechnology Technician – Industrial Microbiology. This offering
takes two years to complete and applicants must present at minimum
an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent or be 19
years of age or older; have completed English Grade 12 C or U, or
equivalent (minimum grade required) or take the Centennial College
English Skills Assessment for Admission; and Mathematics Grade 11 M
or U, or 12 C or U, or equivalent (minimum grade required) or take a
Centennial College Engineering Math Skills Assessment for Admission.
Centennial College’s four campuses are split by Schools of Study and
this biotechnology college program is based at Morningside, which
gives students the advantage of learning industrial microbiology as
well as chemistry (analytical), organic and biochemistry in fully
equipped laboratories. This also allows the biotechnology college

2. program to employ a project approach that enhances problem-solving
and research skills, laboratory techniques, including appropriate
safety procedures.
Split into four semesters, each semester offers increasingly advanced
levels of study. During the first semester, biotechnology college
programs students attend foundation courses such as Intro to
Biological Systems, Chemistry, College Communications, Occupational
Health and Safety, Microcomputer Applications of Technology and
Mathematics. In semester two, students complete another level of
College Communications and are also introduced to Microbiology,
Microbial Techniques, Lab Instrumentation, Inorganic Chemistry for
Microbiology. Half way through their studies, students partake in their
first Microbiology Project and also complete courses such as Food
Microbiology, Organic Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry and more. And
the final semester of this biotechnology college offering sees another
Microbiology Project and advanced courses such as Pharmaceutical
Microbiology, Recombinant DNA Technology, Biogeochemistry and
more.
It’s worth noting that Canadian Council of Technicians and
Technologists accredit the biotechnology college program, having
deemed it as meeting the national technology accreditation
requirements. In addition, the Ontario Association of Certified
Engineering Technicians and Technologists recognizes the
Biotechnology Technician - Industrial Microbiology program as
meeting all the academic requirements for certification in the
Technician Category. These national accreditations support program
quality and provide mobility for graduates.
Author Details: Emma wrote this piece. She offers insight into the
biotechnology college program at Centennial College and
includes a semester-by-semester breakdown.