A Metro Vancouver university is offering students a chance to learn about the budding medical marijuana industry.

Kwantlen Polytechnic University is offering two online courses starting in September focusing on the management of medical marijuana facilities as well as marketing and drug development.

"There was a pretty big gap in knowledge between the people who were growing marijuana and the people who were investing in it," instructor Tegan Adams told CTV Vancouver.

Adams, who says she's spent years working as a consultant for eight different medical marijuana companies in the provinces, maintains the course is for serious students.

"This course in particular though is for people who actually want to work through the MMPR [Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations] and do it legally and be part of the evolving pharmaceutical and medical world that marijuana's going to be entering," she said.

She says the course was partly borne out of a need for formal training for medical marijuana employees as well as a need for middle management.

Some local officials are less than enamoured by the new classes.

The university’s main campus is located in the city of Surrey, which has battled an influx of illegal grow-ops over the past few years.

The city’s fire chief is a strong critic of grow-ops and has contributed to several reports on the hazards they pose to the community.

“My concern would be that the information and what they learn there will be transferred to an illicit market,” says Len Garis.

But Adams dismisses any concerns about students using their newfound knowledge to start dealing drugs.

She says only a quarter of the course will focus on plant production, and she believes the cost of the course will weed out any students looking to abuse their newfound knowledge.

“I think most of the negative implications we've had is ‘Hey you're teaching kids to grow pot’ - but that's not the case. This is all to do with regulations and doing it legally,” Adams said.

Each six-and-a-half week course costs $1,311.45.

With a report from CTV Vancouver