Plumbing and Piping Trades Foundation Certificate is a foundation in Trades programme taught at Okanagan College in Kelowna, Canada. The programme runs for 25 weeks, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition is CAD 4,300 per total for local students.
At a glance
Degree:Foundation
Field:Trades
Duration: 25 weeks
Delivery: On Campus
Language: English
Local tuition: CAD 4,300 / total
Information for the 2027/28 academic year · Last reviewed September 2026 ·
Program details
Overview
This one-year certificate runs full-time over 25 weeks (750 hours) of day classes and prepares students with little or no piping trade experience for entry-level work as an apprentice plumber, steamfitter/pipefitter, or sprinkler system installer. Instruction is hands-on, covering residential, commercial, and industrial piping systems shared across these related trades, so graduates leave with a foundation applicable to more than one apprenticeship path. The program is offered across Okanagan College's Kelowna, Vernon, and Salmon Arm campuses, with multiple intakes through the year and enrolment capped at 18 seats per cohort. On completion, graduates receive an Okanagan College Certificate of Completion along with Level 1 technical training credit recognized toward an apprenticeship in plumbing, steamfitting/pipefitting, or sprinkler system installation, leaving the choice of specific trade open until after graduation. Admission requires secondary school completion along with basic math and English competency, and candidates are expected to be in good general health with sound respiratory function, able to lift over 30 pounds and work at heights. The certificate suits people new to the piping trades who want a broad foundation before choosing a specific plumbing-related apprenticeship.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Entry to the Plumbing and Piping Trades Foundation Certificate 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 as of the first day of classes. Academic prerequisites: English 10 with a minimum of 50 per cent (alternatives accepted per the College's equivalency list), and mathematics — a minimum of 50 per cent in Apprenticeship and Workplace Mathematics 10, Workplace Mathematics 10, Foundations of Mathematics and Pre-Calculus 10, Mathematics 10, Adult Basic Education MATH 071/072, or a minimum of 50 per cent on the College's Trades Entrance Assessment (TEA) mathematics test, valid for two years. Applicants whose qualifying math course is more than seven years old must rewrite the TEA and score at least 50 per cent. No IELTS, TOEFL or other standardized English-proficiency test is specified.
Application Details
Start Date:February and July
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.
