Getting a pre-apprenticeship trade degree isn’t compulsory to get your electrician license in Canada, however, it will help you learn all the necessary skills to get into an apprenticeship program, which is a requirement for your red seal or provincial electrician license.
A good pre-apprenticeship program will also introduce you to potential employers for your apprenticeship.
For that reason, we highly recommend it. If you’re choosing to skip college, this is also an opportunity to have some semblance of college life and gain some technical background before starting your apprenticeship.
With that in mind, and based on our students’ feedback, we’ve compiled the best places to study the electrician trade in Canada.
Skilled Trades College of Canada- Pre-Apprenticeship Program
Course Type: Pre-apprenticeship
Duration: 12 weeks
Price: 14 400$
Financial Aid: Available through The Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP)
Main selling point: Useful connections for finding apprenticeships.
Specialization: General course, no specialization
The STC is a well-known school with several campuses in Ontario and the rest of Canada.
We have a fair share of students who have previously taken this course and overall, we recommend it if you’re coming from a different industry and require some basic training and connections.
Many firms will hire apprentices through STC so, despite the hefty fee, its good option for those just starting out in the industry.
Here’s an interesting review from reddit:
Durham college Electrical Techniques Course
Course Type: Pre-apprenticeship
Duration: 1 year, 6 days per week
Price: 4 357.9$
Financial Aid:
- Canerector Scholarships – $5,000 each (10 available)
- Schulich Builders Scholarships – $40,000 each (10 available)
Durham College is one of the best trade schools in Canada. Its primary focus is longer trade courses, though it offers a reasonably priced 1-year course for pre-apprentices.
Overall, we’ve had great feedback from our students regarding this course.
George Brown- Electrical Techniques
Course Type: Pre-apprenticeship
Duration: 2 semesters (1 year)
Price: Domestic Tuition: $ 5,293.00, International Tuition: $ 19,000.00
Financial Aid: OSAP funding + scholarships available
Credential: Ontario College Certificate
George Brown is one of the best universities in this list. With intakes in May and September, the Electrical Techniques will look great in your CV and they have some of the best facilities of all campuses on this list:
The other advantage of George Brown is that unlike other courses in this list, your campus will be in Casa Loma, along with the other faculties of George Brown. This gives you a chance of normal college life, rather than being isolated in some electrical lab outside of Toronto.
The teacher quality is also quite good.
Fanshawe- Electrical Techniques
Course Type: Pre-apprenticeship
Duration: 30 weeks (2 levels), around 1 year
Price: 3 852$
Campus: London, Ontario
Credential: Ontario College Certificate
Just like Durham, Fanshawe offers programs for apprentices and pre-apprentices. The details above are for its pre-apprentice program, called electrical techniques.
Fanshawe is reputable trade and non-trade university that will strengthen your CV and help you find apprenticeship opportunities or sharpen you electrical skills during your apprenticeship.
We highly recommend it.
Electrical Exams Canada
Duration: Self-paced
Price: From 199CAD
Location: Online
Of course we have to out our hat in the ring. We offer online, self-paced courses at a fraction of the prices of physical colleges. Our team of expert electricians will be ready to support you via email and you’ll have over 1000 questions to prepare for the red seal exam.
Please note our courses are best suited for end-of-apprenticeship students who will be challenging the interprovincial red seal exam. However, our modules will help electricians of all levels better understand the Canadian code and electrical skills in general.
Other notable mentions:
Mohawk College
Course Type: Apprenticeship
Duration: 3 semesters (1 year and a half)
Price: Unknown, financial aid available.
Campus: Stoney Creek Campus, Hamilton, Ontario
Credential: Ontario College Certificate
Donestoga- Electrical Techniques
Duration: 1,050 hours over 1 year:
- Level 1: 270 hours
- Level 2: 270 hours
- Level 3: 270 hours
- Level 4: 240 hours
Campus: Cambridge – Reuter Drive
Price: $4040.14 (Domestic) $17037.24 (International)
Credential: Ontario College Certificate
Niagara College
Duration: 1 year
Price: $5,289.48 (Domestic), $18,744.50 (International)
Campus: Welland
Niagara College also offers fully funded Pre-Apprenticeship Training Programs through the Government of Ontario.
Conclusion
I hope this article has helped you decide which pre-apprenticeship training program to choose. From the list, our favorites are George Brown, STC, Fanshawe, and Niagara, although any college in this list will do a great job preparing you for your apprenticeship.
With the job market for electricians becoming more and more competitive, we highly recommend doing one of these as it will give you a slight edge over competitors when it comes to apprenticeships.
Best of luck!
