How to Become an Early Childhood Educator in Alberta
Become a certified early childhood educator in Alberta: the Level 1, 2, and 3 certification levels, the free orientation course route, and the online application.
How to Become an Early Childhood Educator in New Brunswick
New Brunswick's route runs through the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development: the mandatory Introduction to Early Learning and Child Care course, then a one-year ECE certificate or two-year diploma, with the wage grid recognizing Entry Level and Level 1.
Applies in: New Brunswick
The short answer
In New Brunswick, you become an early childhood educator by training, not by applying for a certificate. The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (EECD) sets the training routes: start with the Introduction to Early Learning and Child Care course, then complete a one-year ECE certificate or a two-year ECE diploma. Your qualifications are then recognized through the Early Childhood Educator Wage Grid, which sets the minimum wage your employer must pay you. There is no separate provincial certification form published on EECD's educator page — the training itself is the qualification.
Step 1: Take the Introduction course
The Introduction to Early Learning and Child Care course is the entry point for anyone with no prior training in early childhood education. EECD provides it at no cost to educators working in licensed early learning and child care facilities with preschool children aged 0 to 5. It is mandatory for all educators who did not complete this curriculum training as part of their recognized training, and registration is completed with help from your employer. Registration is open only to educators working in New Brunswick.
If you trained outside New Brunswick, this course is mandatory for you as well. EECD provides the training at no charge, and your employer gives you the registration information when you start work.
Step 2: Complete a certificate or diploma
Many educators start their career after obtaining an ECE certificate, diploma, or bachelor's degree; others enter the field first and train while working. The options EECD lists are:
- ECE certificate (1 year) or ECE diploma (2 years), offered online and in person at NBCC, Oulton College, Eastern College, Atlantic Business College, and NBICC.
- Micro-credential program, which completes the one-year college certificate in 6 to 8 months while working in a licensed child care facility with children aged 0 to 5, at no cost to the educator. To qualify you must already work with children under five in a licensed facility, have worked at least three years with children under five in a licensed facility, and have completed the Introduction to Early Childhood Education course.
- Bachelor of Education in Early Childhood Education, completed online in 2 years if you have already completed an ECE diploma.
Step 3: How your training is recognized
EECD runs the Wage Support Program for Early Childhood Educators (WSP-ECE), and the ECE Wage Grid recognizes your training and qualifications along with your years of experience. The grid's funding levels, as published on EECD's page, are:
- Level 1: a certificate or diploma in early childhood education, a related degree in education or early childhood development, or an unrelated degree.
- Entry Level: the Introduction to Early Childhood Education, school-age educators who are untrained, and untrained relief staff with restrictions.
Educators at Level 1 and Entry Level who work in designated facilities with children aged 0 to 5 must also hold curriculum training: the New Brunswick Curriculum Framework for Early Learning and Childcare, or the French-language curriculum framework. School-age educators are exempt from the curriculum training.
Step 4: Keep learning
Educators working in designated early learning and child care facilities must complete 10 hours of professional learning each year. EECD also offers professional learning programs for educators already working in the field, with pathways to grow skills while on the job.
If you trained outside New Brunswick
To have a certificate, diploma, or degree completed outside New Brunswick validated, contact EECD at exemption.ecpe@gnb.ca. You will still need to take the Introduction to Early Learning and Child Care training, provided by EECD at no charge. For questions, EECD's educator contact is ECEQuestionEPE@gnb.ca or toll-free 1-833-221-9339.
Funding of up to $3,000 is available to ECE graduates who completed their ECE certificate or diploma after January 1, 2007 and now work in a licensed early learning and child care facility.
What the wage grid pays
The ECE Wage Grid sets the minimum hourly wage your operator must pay you, effective April 1, 2026. The rates rise in four steps with your relevant experience — Step 1 for under one year, Step 2 for one to under two years, Step 3 for two to under three years, and Step 4 for three years or more:
| Level | Step 1 | Step 2 | Step 3 | Step 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | $23.69 | $24.99 | $26.35 | $27.79 |
| Entry Level | $17.12 | $18.16 | $19.27 | $20.42 |
On a 36-hour week, that works out to a typical annual salary of $44,348 to $52,023 at Level 1 and $32,049 to $38,226 at Entry Level. A step increase needs at least 12 months since your last step increase, at least 750 hours of relevant work experience in the last 12 months, and 10 hours of training in the facility's curriculum. In a designated facility with children aged 0 to 5, EECD adds a minimum wage offset of $2.55 per hour as part of the wage support funding. If you work only in a non-designated facility with children aged 0 to 5, you instead receive a wage top-up of $7.25 per hour at Level 1 and $3.15 per hour at Entry Level.
What the opened pages do not state
The opened EECD page does not publish a certificate application form, an application fee, or a processing time, and it does not publish a numbered certificate ladder beyond the Entry Level and Level 1 funding levels on the wage grid — so this guide states none of those. The wage grid dollar amounts above come from EECD's Wage Grid Guidelines, effective April 1, 2026. The page lists the recognized colleges but does not give their admission requirements, so check with the college directly before applying.
Related guides:
- How to Become an Early Childhood Educator in British Columbia — BC's ECE Registry certificates, a different system with its own certificate names.
- How to Become an Early Childhood Educator in Ontario (RECE) — Ontario's RECE registration through the College of Early Childhood Educators.
- How to Become an Early Childhood Educator in Saskatchewan — Saskatchewan's ECE certification levels.
- How to Become a Teacher in Canada — BEd, Provincial Certification, and Teaching in Public Schools — the teaching route, separate from early childhood education.
- How to Get a Vulnerable Sector Check in Canada — the police check most child care employers ask for.
- How to Apply for the New Brunswick Child Tax Benefit — New Brunswick's child benefit, administered with the Canada Child Benefit.
The path to becoming an early childhood educator in New Brunswick
- Take the Introduction courseThe Introduction to Early Learning and Child Care course is mandatory for educators with no prior training, and for educators trained outside New Brunswick.
- Complete a certificate or diplomaA one-year ECE certificate or a two-year ECE diploma from a recognized college, or a micro-credential in 6 to 8 months while working.
- Get hired in a licensed facilityMany educators start work after the certificate or diploma; others enter the field first and train while working.
- Keep learning every yearEducators in designated facilities must complete 10 hours of professional learning each year.
- Move up to a degreeA Bachelor of Education in Early Childhood Education takes 2 years online after an ECE diploma.
Questions people ask
Is there a certificate I apply for to become an early childhood educator in New Brunswick?
New Brunswick does not publish a separate certification application the way some provinces do. The route is training-based: complete the Introduction to Early Learning and Child Care course and an ECE certificate or diploma, and your training and qualifications are recognized through the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (EECD) and the ECE Wage Grid.
What is the Introduction to Early Learning and Child Care course?
It is the entry-level course provided by EECD at no cost to educators working in licensed early learning and child care facilities with preschool children aged 0 to 5. It is mandatory for all educators who did not complete this curriculum training as part of their recognized training, including educators who trained outside New Brunswick. Registration is done with help from your employer.
How long does the ECE certificate or diploma take in New Brunswick?
The ECE certificate takes one year and the ECE diploma takes two years, offered online and in person at colleges including NBCC, Oulton College, Eastern College, Atlantic Business College, and NBICC. A micro-credential program can complete the one-year college certificate in 6 to 8 months while working in a licensed facility with children aged 0 to 5.
What are Entry Level and Level 1 on the New Brunswick wage grid?
The ECE Wage Grid sets the minimum wage operators must pay eligible educators. Entry Level covers the Introduction to Early Childhood Education, school-age educators who are untrained, and untrained relief staff with restrictions. Level 1 covers a certificate or diploma in early childhood education, a related degree in education or early childhood development, or an unrelated degree.
I trained outside New Brunswick. What do I need to do?
Contact EECD at exemption.ecpe@gnb.ca to have your certificate, diploma, or degree validated. You will also need to take New Brunswick's Introduction to Early Learning and Child Care training, which EECD provides at no charge, with registration information provided by your employer when you start work.
Do early childhood educators in New Brunswick need ongoing training?
Yes. Early Childhood Educators working in designated early learning and child care facilities must complete 10 hours of professional learning each year. Educators in designated facilities with children aged 0 to 5 must also hold curriculum training in the New Brunswick Curriculum Framework for Early Learning and Childcare or the French-language curriculum framework.
Sources
- Government of New Brunswick, Educator recruitment, training and retention — the Introduction course and its mandatory status, the one-year certificate and two-year diploma, the 6-to-8-month micro-credential, the two-year Bachelor of Education route, the Entry Level and Level 1 wage grid levels, the 10 hours of annual professional learning, out-of-province validation, and the $3,000 graduate funding.
- Government of New Brunswick, ECE Wage Grid Guidelines — the wage grid effective April 1, 2026, the Level 1 and Entry Level hourly rates by step, the typical annual salaries, the step-assignment and step-increase rules, and the designated and non-designated top-ups.