Machinist Foundation Certificate is a foundation in Trades programme taught at British Columbia Institute of Technology in Burnaby, Canada. The programme runs for 25 weeks, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition is CAD 3,700 per total for local students.
At a glance
Degree:Foundation
Field:Trades
Duration: 25 weeks
Delivery: On Campus
Language: English
Local tuition: CAD 3,700 / total
Last reviewed September 2026 ·
Program details
Overview
The Machinist Foundation program provides students with the theory and practical experience to enter the machinist trade. Graduates are eligible for credit towards the first level of machinist apprenticeship.
Basic theory and related information along with hands-on practice will enable students to become competent in the basic operations needed to make industrial parts and components according to engineering drawings.
Credentials – After completing the Machinist Foundation program, students can then complete an apprenticeship in the Machinist trade. Students will receive a credit of 500 work-based training hours and the ITA Machinist Apprenticeship Level 1 technical training. After successful completion of all apprenticeship requirements, you will receive the B.C. Certificate of Apprenticeship, the B.C. Certificate of Qualification, and the Interprovincial Standard Endorsement, also known as the Red Seal.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Applicants must meet Category 3 English proficiency, English Studies 12 at 50% or equivalent, or pass the BCIT English Trades Entry Assessment. Mathematics is met by Pre-Calculus 11 at 50%, Foundations of Math 11 at 60%, Workplace Math 11 at 67%, another acceptable BC or Yukon course, or the BCIT Math Trades Entry Assessment. The page recommends a good command of oral and written English, sufficient physical strength and stamina, good hearing, eyesight and colour vision, manual dexterity, and good theoretical and practical mathematical skills, but states no portfolio, interview or minimum-GPA condition. Applications are processed on a first-qualified basis and wait-listed once full; applicants with medical or physical difficulties are directed to BCIT Accessibility Services. International applicants are eligible and need a valid study permit, but cannot continue into apprenticeship training, and the program does not qualify for a Post-Graduation Work Permit.
Application Details
Start Date:September
Application Deadline:BCIT publishes common credential application dates for most cohort-based diplomas, degrees and Flexible Learning routes, though each program's own page governs: for the January 2027 intake domestic applications run 1 February 2026 to 2 January 2027 and international to 1 November 2026; for the April 2027 intake domestic runs 1 May 2026 to 1 April 2027 and international to 1 February 2027; for September 2027 domestic applications open 1 October 2026 and close 1 September 2027, international 2 July 2027. Openings are 9:00 am and deadlines 11:59 pm Pacific Time, moving to the next business day on a weekend. Admission is not institute-wide rolling, but many programs work first-qualified-first-accepted and can fill before the posted deadline, and several programs, mostly in Health Sciences, trades and graduate studies, run entirely separate application tables of their own. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
