Pre-Trades Carpentry - North West Regional CollegeCarpentry Education in CanadaCarpentry and Woodworking Programs -- Community College Programs
PROGRAM WEBSITE
Pre-Trades Carpentry - North West Regional College North West Regional College, in partnership with the Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology (SIAST), offers the Pre-Trades Carpentry program 'for individuals not currently employed in the carpentry trade.' The Program provide learners with the fundamental knowledge and practical skills the first level of apprenticeship training in accordance with the standards established by the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission (SATCC). Among the major topics that will be covered by the Program are building materials, codes and regulations, concrete, floor and wall framing, reading blueprints, roof trusses, scaffolds, site layout, tools and equipment, trade-related mathematics, and work safety. The Program will also include 'hands-on experience' through which students 'will acquire skills in the use of common tools of the trade.' To be eligible for admission to the Pre-Trades Carpentry program, applicants must have completed Grade 10 and their original academic transcripts will be required. Applicants are admitted on a first qualified, first admitted basis. Graduates have traditionally been successful in attaining employment. A '2004 graduate employment survey,' for example, stated that 100 percent of the Program's graduates had found positions in carpentry or related fields, 'with an average monthly salary of $1,800,' after 6 months of graduation. Graduates usually pursue employment as carpenters in the construction industry working on various commercial/industrial, maintenance, or residential projects. Some carpenters may specialize in one or a select number of tasks such as form and/or frame construction, installing drywall, or interior and/or exterior finishing. Carpenters also have the opportunity to advance to such positions as 'construction superintendents, foremen, general contractors or trade subcontractors.' Common employers include construction companies, furniture and cabinet manufacturers, general contractors, and residential and ICI sectors. Some carpenters may prefer to become self-employed and/or establish their own companies. The precise work a carpenter performs on any given project is determined by the specific requirements of that project. Some carpenters, though, specialize in one or a limited number of tasks demanded of their craft. For example, some carpenters may focus on basements, exterior and/or interior finishing, flooring, form and/or frame construction, or stair construction, among others. Individuals who aspire to advance their careers in carpentry may be interested in pursuing further educational opportunities to refine and enhance their abilities, particularly via an apprenticeship. The latter is a method of learning a trade through a combination of periods of in-class, technical/theoretical education and periods of paid, on-the-job training. During the latter portions of an apprenticeship, the student (apprentice) will work, in an indentured capacity, under the direction of a certified, journeyperson member of the trade one is learning. A journeyperson is an individual who has earned the standards of practice of his/her trade, typically via the completion of an apprenticeship. Graduates of the Pre-Trades Carpentry program may qualify for advanced credits towards an apprenticeship. The advantage of completing an apprenticeship is not only that one acquires in-depth knowledge and skills in a trade but also that, within the latter, one's career opportunities and salary potential are normally increased. Furthermore, once an individual has obtained journeyperson status, he/she may be eligible to have his/her certification as such endorsed by the Interprovincial Standards Red Seal Program (Red Seal). The latter enables the journeyperson to practice his/her trade throughout Canada, provided the trade is designated in that locale, without undergoing further examinations. Carpenters who earn journeyperson status may, after obtaining several years of experience beyond an apprenticeship, become educators, supervisors, and/or trainers of the trade.
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