94 students stripped of degrees after finding out school wasn't accredited
Ontario is in dire need of health-care workers, but more than 90 students who graduated from a private college program to be ultrasound technologists have been told they won’t be allowed to get jobs in their chosen field.
"It's very painful for all the students. We tried our best to be sonographers, but all of a sudden everything changed," said Najmah Hashmine, an Etobicoke student who took the program.
Another student, Roya Shahrullah, who also took the Diagnostic Medical Sonography Program at Canadian All Care College said it was her dream to work in the health-care field.
“I wanted to become a health-care worker. I wanted to serve society," said Shahrullah.
Ninety-four students took the program at Canadian All Care College, a private college, which has two campuses, one in Scarborough and one in North York.
After the students graduated last year in March they were shocked to find out the program had not been accredited, meaning they can't take the Canada Sonography Exam, which also means they can't be hired as ultrasound technologists.
A spokesperson for the Ontario Ministry of Colleges and Universities told CTV News Toronto, “Accreditation Canada determined in November 2022 that Canadian All Care College’s Diagnostic Medical Sonographer Program did not meet the professional standards set by the College of Medical Radiation and Imaging Technologists of Ontario (CMRITO) and revoked CACC’s status.”
“The Superintendent of Private Career Colleges then followed Accreditation Canada’s lead to revoke the Diagnostic Medical Sonographer Program at Canadian All Care College as the program no longer met the conditions of program approval.”
“Since then, the Ministry has been engaged with CACC to make sure that all students were notified on recommended next steps including seeking refunds the students are entitled to, finding new institutions to continue their training, and providing documentation. A majority of students have requested and received their refunds and the ministry is engaged with CACC as that work continues.”
The college did provide refunds to all students for their tuition and some other expenses, but some students say they had other costs and also feel like they have wasted two years of time.
"Everything we did it's not worth it. We have to start all over again. They say we have to go to another college and pay money again and start our studies again," said Shahrullah.
"Two years of study in college. Two years of transportation, just wasted,” said Hashmine.
CTV News Toronto contacted Canadian All Care College and the president of the school, Miajan Aryan, said it was an unfortunate situation as the college had been trying to do whatever was necessary to become accredited.
“My heart goes out to all the students. All our staff are also frustrated and we are not happy about this incident," said Aryan.
A classroom at Canadian All Care College in Toronto. Aryan said the school had been following all ministry directives to get accredited and were working with officials to make sure the program was up to the standards required.
“We hired qualified instructors, we have all the equipment needed, we invested millions into the program, we have fourteen ultrasound machines and they're not cheap," said Aryan.
Aryan said that Canadian All Care College has been in business 20 years and has 15 other programs and nothing like this has ever happened before.
Aryan said the process of being accredited was affected by delays caused by the pandemic and he is hopeful that students who took the program will still find a way to work in the ultrasound field.
Aryan said he is also hopeful the sonography program can be accredited in the future.
But for now students who took the program worry they will have to start their schooling all over again.
“How hard it is to finish a two year sonography course and now it’s like it’s worth nothing," said Hashmine.
Shahrullah added, “This thing that happened to us shouldn’t have happened."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

BREAKING PM Trudeau apologizes for Parliament's recognition of Nazi veteran during Zelenskyy visit
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is offering 'unreserved apologies' for Parliament's recognition of a man who fought for a Nazi unit during the Second World War.
'ET Canada' cancelled by Corus Entertainment, blames 'challenging' advertising market
The studio lights are going dark at 'ET Canada.' Corus Entertainment says it has decided to cease production on the long-running Canadian arts and entertainment news magazine after 18 seasons.
Password sharing will no longer be an option for Disney+ users. Here's when
Streaming platform Disney+ is updating its subscriber agreement and is adding a no-sharing-passwords policy.
IED explodes in Barrie, Ont. parking lot, sparking road closures and evacuations
Police have locked down and evacuated a section of Barrie, Ont., Wednesday morning in the city's west end amid unconfirmed reports of an explosion.
Ontario widower stuck with US$100K+ medical bill after late wife hospitalized on vacation
An Ontario widower, still grieving his wife's death, is unsure how to pay for a medical bill from their last vacation to Florida, which costs more than US$124,000.
Immigrants to thank for Canada's record population growth this year: StatCan report
Thanks to immigrants, Canada was likely one of the fastest growing countries in the world between July 1, 2022 and July 1, 2023, according to a new Statistics Canada report.
OPINION New to Canada? Here's your guide to purchasing or renting your first home
Navigating Canada's real estate market can be daunting for new immigrants, especially amid an affordable housing crisis. Personal finance columnist Christopher Liew outlines the documentation newcomers will need to rent or purchase a home in Canada, and some key expenses to budget for.
Her family inherited a 900-year-old Italian castle. Here's what it's like living there
Ludovica Sannazzaro Natta moved into the 45-roomed, turreted, fairytale Castle Sannazzaro when she was four years old.
Details leading up to Hardeep Singh Nijjar's death revealed
A long-time, close friend of Hardeep Singh Nijjar says the Sikh activist found a tracking device underneath his car before he was killed outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in June.