Professional photography students ‘disheartened’ by NSCC program change

Students in the Professional Photography program at the Nova Scotia Community College. They're in their second and final year. The course is not being offered for the 2027-2028 academic year. It's honestly devastating. Like, we've gotten so many amazing experiences out of this program. With a goal of going into professional sports photography, she says the program has been invaluable in preparing her for a career behind the lens. You can get photos on your phone, but, like, they don't tell much of a story as a camera does. You can take such like a good photo and you can see such like an amazing story behind that They will get to complete their studies, but say it's been a challenging year because of the changes We got told just before we entered the program that one of our two studios was being taken over by the incoming nursing students At a time of rapid growth in artificial intelligence that sometimes makes it hard to know which photos are real they feel their craft is more important than ever. Besides the functionality of it and how much we need it in the modern world with all the AI and all of the fake news we need some people out there on the ground reporting on it and being able to document it in a way that is not fake. It is real. The college says its annual program decision-making process is based on a number of factors such as community labor market and employment needs. It says the photography program has had a very low enrollment for the past five years and has also been affected by rules for international students and the conversion of a studio into a classroom for nursing students. It explains was a response to labor force needs. We as a society we still need the arts we still need people taking photos for longevity for artistic purposes. The NSCC describes its decision as a program reduction and not a suspension, noting it could return in the future if there's a demand within the labor market. Gareth Hampshire, CBC News, Halifax.