Red Deer Polytechnic enrolment holds steady
Published 9:13 am Monday, September 21, 2026
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Red Deer Polytechnic enrolment climbed by about 1,800 students in the last four years since its pandemic-related decline.
Credit and non-credit program enrolment has grown from 8,659 in 2022-23 to about 10,500 projected for 2026-27.
Enrolment has held steady since 2024-25, and may still increase this academic year as applications continue to be accepted for winter and spring 2027 terms, along with upcoming apprenticeship intakes.
Lindsay Engel, RDP’s vice president of Academic & Student Experience, said new program launches and the province’s Targeted Enrolment Expansion (TEE) have both pushed enrolment higher.
Recently it was announced that RDP will receive $4.5 million over three years in the third round of TEE funding to add more than 1,000 new seats. First-round funding for 2022-26 allowed RDP to add 991 seats, and the second round of funding for 2023-26 provided for 180 new seats.
Engel said many students seek to become health care professionals by joining the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, Licensed Practical Nurse to Bachelor of Science in Nursing Transition program, or getting a Practical Nursing Diploma or Diagnostic Medical Sonography Diploma.
Health programs have been included in past TEE grants, as well as future seats from third-round funding.
Engel said RDP’s plans to build a Healthtech Centre for Applied Learning & Innovation for interdisciplinary learning, applied research and industry collaboration will make RDP a leader in health care programming among Alberta polytechnics.
She added that as work on the major expansion of Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre progresses, it’s important to meet the demand for health care workers, and RDP will add more complimentary health care programs at the Healthtech Centre.
“We really want to make sure we are partnering with our communities so that they are supported.”
Another robust RDP program is Bachelor of Education, and people couldn’t wait for the new Bachelor of Education After Degree, she said.
“We were anticipating doing an intake for 2027, but we actually did an intake for 2026 based on demand.”
RDP will also be launching a Primary Care Paramedic Program, and an Aircraft Maintenance Engineers Technology Diploma, which will allow students to stay in central Alberta to train. Currently, there’s only one aircraft maintenance program in Alberta and local students are going to Manitoba to study.
She said RDP has seen a big increase in Indigenous students on campus, while demand from international students has plateaued as expected.
International students enrolment dropped to about 600 for 2026-27, from 900 in 2025-26, due to international student enrolment caps put in place by the federal government for post-secondary institutions across Canada.
“We think we’re at a stable number now. We haven’t heard of any major changes in policy coming forward,” said Engel about immigration policy.