At Okanagan College in Kelowna, Canada, Trades - Apprenticeship in Automotive Refinishing Technician: Apprenticeship is offered as a trades - apprenticeship in Aerospace & Automotive Engineering programme. The programme runs for 10 weeks, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition is CAD 505 per total for local students.
This apprenticeship trains registered apprentices to restore the painted and finished surfaces of motor vehicles after body repair work is complete, covering surface preparation, colour matching, and application of refinishing materials. Technical training is split into two levels at the Kelowna Trades Complex, delivered full-time on-campus during the day: a seven-week harmonized Level 1 and a shorter three-week harmonized Level 2. Since April 2021, apprentices who complete the shared Automotive Collision and Refinishing Level 1 core can move directly into this program's Level 2. Level 1 covers safety practices, tool use, welding, surface preparation, application of refinishing materials, panel repair and installation, and exterior detailing; Level 2 builds on this with tool and work organization, further surface preparation, repair materials, refinishing application methods, and finishing functions performed after paint is applied. Completing the technical levels qualifies an apprentice to sit provincial and national trade exams, for which government-issued photo identification is required. Entry requires registration as an apprentice with SkilledTradesBC and employment with a shop employing at least one qualified journeyperson refinisher. The program suits people already working in vehicle refinishing who need the in-class component of their apprenticeship rather than newcomers to the trade.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Automotive Refinishing Technician: Apprenticeship is an apprenticeship-level program at Okanagan College: admission requires the applicant to already be registered as an apprentice with SkilledTradesBC and employed by an employer with at least one qualified journeyperson in the trade. The program page notes that an applicant who is not yet registered can have their employer register them through SkilledTradesBC's online portal, described as free, simple and completable within a few minutes. No secondary-school course, grade minimum, or English-language proficiency test is stated as a requirement at this apprenticeship level; entry is administered through the SkilledTradesBC apprenticeship system and employer sponsorship rather than through the College's own academic admission requirements. Applicants should confirm current registration status directly with SkilledTradesBC before applying to the program intake.
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.
