Okanagan College offers Carpenter Foundation Certificate, a foundation in Trades programme in Kelowna, Canada. The programme runs for 30 weeks, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition is CAD 4,800 per total for local students.
At a glance
Degree:Foundation
Field:Trades
Duration: 30 weeks
Delivery: On Campus
Language: English
Local tuition: CAD 4,800 / total
Information for the 2027/28 academic year · Last reviewed September 2026 ·
Program details
Overview
This one-year foundation certificate runs full-time over 30 weeks (900 hours) of day classes and introduces students with little or no construction background to the theoretical and practical knowledge needed for entry-level employment as an apprentice carpenter. Instruction covers the use of hand and power tools and the fundamentals of residential wood-frame construction, building the base skills a first-year apprentice carpenter is expected to have. The program is normally offered at Okanagan College's Kelowna, Penticton, or Salmon Arm campuses, though the current intake runs at Salmon Arm only, capped at 16 seats. On completion, graduates are credited with Level 1 technical training and 450 work-based hours toward the Carpenter Level 1 apprenticeship, giving them a head start once they register as apprentices and find employment with a qualified journeyperson. Admission requires B.C. secondary school graduation or its equivalent, along with specified English and math levels. The certificate suits people new to the construction trades who want a structured, campus-based introduction to carpentry before entering the workforce, rather than experienced tradespeople already registered as apprentices.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Entry requires B.C. secondary school graduation or the equivalent, or admission as a mature applicant at least 19 years of age and out of secondary school for at least one year. The English requirement is English 10 with a minimum of 50% or an approved alternative; the program page does not publish IELTS, TOEFL or other standardized test scores. The mathematics requirement is a minimum of 50% in an accepted Grade 11 mathematics course (Pre-calculus, Foundations of Mathematics, Apprenticeship and Workplace Mathematics, Workplace Mathematics, Principles of Mathematics, Applications of Mathematics, or Essentials of Mathematics 11) or Adult Basic Education MATH 011, MATH 084 and MATH 085, or IALG 011; alternatively, a minimum of 63% on the Trades Entrance Assessment (TEA) mathematics test, valid for two years, applies if the school-level requirement was completed more than seven years before enrolment. The full program must be completed through Okanagan College.
Application Details
Application Deadline:Domestic applicants apply through EducationPlannerBC (a $30 CAD fee): Okanagan College sets no fixed closing date for most programmes in the 2026-27/2027-28 cycle. Applications for a Fall intake open at 8:30 a.m. on October's first business day of the preceding year, and for a Winter intake at 8:30 a.m. on February's first business day of the preceding year (exceptions apply); Practical Nursing's January intake opens at 9:00 a.m. on April's first business day of the preceding year. Most programmes accept applications until seats fill, though Nursing and Dental programmes set their own fixed or ranked deadlines on their own pages. International applicants also apply through EducationPlannerBC, paying a $100 CAD per-programme fee; the College publishes no institution-wide international closing date and directs applicants to each programme's own page. Admission is otherwise rolling. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
