The shape is the same everywhere

You work for an employer who sponsors you, get paid from the first day, and go to school in short blocks (usually eight to ten weeks a year) for three or four years. Then you write a certification exam and become a journeyperson. The Red Seal endorsement lets most trades move between provinces. The details, the names and the money differ by province, and that is where families get lost.

Ontario

• Register with Skilled Trades Ontario once an employer agrees to sponsor you. The employer, not you, is the hard part.
• OYAP (Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program) lets you start logging hours in Grade 11 or 12 through co-op. Ask your guidance office; most students have never heard of it.
• School is 8 to 12 weeks a year at a college. Ontario charges a $10 a day classroom fee and waives it entirely for Level 1 from January 2026, so the whole apprenticeship costs about $1,000 to $2,000 in fees plus books, safety gear and the exam, and EI is payable while you are in school.
• First-year pay around $39,000 for an electrician, $66,000 at the Certificate of Qualification.

British Columbia

• SkilledTradesBC runs the system: four levels, each with a school block at BCIT, VCC, Camosun and others, about $4,500 to $6,700 in tuition across all levels.
• Youth Train in Trades lets you do Level 1 in high school, tuition-free; Youth Work in Trades logs paid hours before graduation.
• First-year electrician about $41,600, journeyperson about $70,720.

Alberta

• Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training: three or four periods of 8 to 12 weeks at NAIT, SAIT or Red Deer Polytechnic, about $1,540 per period.
• RAP (Registered Apprenticeship Program) lets high-school students earn hours and credits at the same time.
• Apprentices start at 50 to 60 percent of the journeyman rate by regulation, so year one is about $41,000 for an electrician; journeyman rates are the highest here, around $82,000.

Quebec

• Two steps: a DEP (diplôme d'études professionnelles) at a vocational centre, 900 to 1,800 hours and nearly free for residents, then a CCQ apprenticeship for construction trades (3 or 4 periods of 2,000 hours) or a PAMT / direct employment for others.
• DEP hours count 1.5 times toward the apprenticeship, so graduates usually enter at period 2, around 60 percent of the compagnon rate: about $48,600 on 1,600 seasonal hours, $81,100 as a compagnon.
• Construction is seasonal and union-covered; institutional and commercial rates are above residential.

What actually stops people

Not the exam. In order: no driver's licence, no employer willing to sponsor, 7am starts in January, and parents who did not know their child was considering a trade. The readiness check on every trade page asks exactly those questions, and the answers are what employers ask us for when they are looking for a first-year.

Start here: Electrician, Plumber, HVAC / refrigeration mechanic, Industrial millwright, General carpenter, Welder.

Quick answers

How does apprenticeship work in Canada?

You work for a sponsoring employer, get paid from day one, and attend school in blocks of 8 to 12 weeks a year for three or four years, then write a certification exam. The Red Seal endorsement lets you work across provinces. Ontario uses Skilled Trades Ontario, BC uses SkilledTradesBC, Alberta uses Apprenticeship and Industry Training, and Quebec uses a DEP followed by a CCQ apprenticeship.

How much do apprentices get paid?

Roughly 50 to 60 percent of the journeyperson rate in year one, rising each year. For an electrician that is about $39,000 to $41,000 in Ontario, BC and Alberta and about $48,600 in Quebec on seasonal hours, reaching $66,000 to $82,000 as a journeyperson.

Can you start an apprenticeship in high school?

Yes, in every province covered here: OYAP in Ontario, Youth Train in Trades and Youth Work in Trades in BC, RAP in Alberta, and a DEP that can begin in Secondary 4 or 5 in Quebec.

How much does apprenticeship school cost?

Low: about $1,000 to $2,000 across the whole apprenticeship in Ontario now that Level 1 classroom fees are waived (from January 2026), $4,500 to $6,700 in BC, about $6,200 in Alberta, and a few hundred dollars for a Quebec DEP. EI is usually payable during school blocks.

What is the hardest part of getting an apprenticeship?

Finding an employer to sponsor you. A driver's licence, a tech or co-op course, and showing up to a paid trial day are what sponsoring employers look for.

Figures are medians and typical costs from Job Bank, Statistics Canada, provincial wage surveys and institution fee pages, verified in 2026; the data page lists every source. Your own numbers will differ by employer, region and overtime.