My Experience Doing EFP12 Online Through NIDES: What BC Parents Need To Know
The mug of cold coffee had been sitting on our kitchen table for 45 minutes last September when Jax pushed his in-person high school timetable across the counter and said, “I can’t go back. I can’t sit through seven hours of hall noise and pop quizzes I didn’t remember were happening.” Jax was 17, three credits short of graduation, and after two years of shifting hybrid learning and a bad panic attack at school the previous spring, in-person just wasn’t working anymore. His guidance counselor tossed out two options: retake the required Employment Foundations credit at an alternate night school, or do EFP12 online through NIDES. I’d never heard of NIDES, and that night I spent three hours scrolling parent groups, seeing the same question over and over: Who has actually done EFP12 online through NIDES, and what’s it actually like?
It took less than a week to enroll, since NIDES is a public distance education school, so tuition was covered by the province, which was a big relief. We got an email within two days with Jax’s assigned teacher, Ms. Henderson, and a link to the online dashboard. The first week, Jax didn’t touch it. I bit my tongue, which was harder than it sounds, and on Sunday night I just asked if he wanted to go through it with me. That’s the first thing that stuck: there’s no daily bell, no one reminding you to log on, so you have to build your own structure. We started doing 30-minute Sunday check-ins where we pull up the assignment list, Jax writes down what he wants to get done that week, and I put a reminder in my phone only for the big due dates. That’s worked way better than me nagging him every day about logging on.
People online say EFP12 through NIDES is just an easy credit to skate through. That wasn’t our experience. The coursework is split between online modules about resume writing, interview skills, workplace safety, and a 60-hour work placement tied to what the student is interested in. Jax had to revise his cover letter three times before Ms. Henderson signed off on it. She left detailed notes, not just a grade – things like “add a line about the time you fixed your neighbor’s bike for free, that shows initiative” instead of just “needs work.” When it came to the work placement, I was worried we’d have to find a spot on our own and sort all the paperwork ourselves. NIDES has a list of pre-approved placements across Vancouver Island, and when Jax said he wanted to work at the local bike shop downtown, Ms. Henderson reached out to the owner directly, sorted out all the insurance and paperwork, and we just had to sign one form. That was way less work than I expected.
Mid-way through the semester, Jax had a three-week stretch where his anxiety was really bad. He didn’t log on for two weeks, didn’t answer Ms. Henderson’s check-in calls or emails. I was panicking, thinking we’d wasted the spot and he’d have to start over. All I got from Ms. Henderson was a 2-line email that said “I know some weeks are harder than others. I’ll check back in a week, no penalty for the late work.” That’s not something I ever would have gotten at in-person school, where you get cut from the class after three unexcused absences. NIDES teachers seem used to working with kids who have different rhythms – a lot of the students I saw in the parent group were doing the program because of anxiety, chronic illness, or needing to work full time while finishing graduation requirements. Flexibility isn’t just a marketing line here, it’s built into how they run the program.
If you’re considering this for your kid, here’s what I wish someone had told me before we started. First, don’t hover. I sat next to Jax while he did his first module, and he got so frustrated he shut the laptop and didn’t open it for two days. We agreed I’d only ask once a day if he needs help finding anything, and that’s it. They’re grade 12 students, and this program lets them take ownership of their work, which is actually part of the point of EFP12 anyway. Second, it’s okay to adjust the pace. Jax took five months to finish instead of the standard four, because he picked up a few extra shifts at the bike shop once his placement ended. NIDES didn’t charge extra or push him to finish faster, they just adjusted his due dates. Third, the credit is fully accredited for graduation and post-secondary. I was worried that an online credit from a distance school would be looked at differently when Jax applied to college, but his admission counselor at Camosun said it counts exactly the same as an in-person credit from any other public high school in BC.
Jax finished EFP12 three weeks ago. He’s got all the credits he needs to graduate this spring, and he’s still working 20 hours a week at the bike shop. He’s deciding between an apprenticeship at the shop and a two-year mechanic program at Camosun next fall. It’s not a perfect fit for every kid. If your kid thrives on daily in-person interaction with peers and teachers, or needs constant in-person structure to stay on track, this probably isn’t going to work. Some weeks the NIDES dashboard glitches, and sometimes you wait 24 hours longer for a reply from your teacher than you’d like. But a year ago, I was convinced Jax would drop out before graduation, and now he’s on track, and he’s actually happier than I’ve seen him in years. I spent so many nights scrolling trying to find a real parent’s experience when I was looking into this, so I hope this answers some questions for the next person in that spot. Things are still up in the air for Jax, but this program gave him the space he needed to figure out his next step on his own time.
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