Plumber (Steamfitter/Pipefitter) Foundation Certificate is a foundation in Trades programme taught at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, Canada. The programme runs for 21 weeks, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition is CAD 2,400 per total for local students.
At a glance
Degree:Foundation
Field:Trades
Duration: 21 weeks
Delivery: On Campus
Language: English
Local tuition: CAD 2,400 / total
Information for the 2027/28 academic year · Last reviewed September 2026 ·
Program details
Overview
This foundation program at Thompson Rivers University introduces the plumbing, steamfitting, and pipefitting trades through a single 21-week, full-time term delivered at the Kamloops campus. Instruction covers blueprint reading, pipe preparation, measuring, cutting, and joining materials, corresponding to the in-school technical training for apprenticeship Level 1. Graduates receive a Certificate in Level 1 – Plumber, Steamfitter and Pipefitter, and are credited with 375 work-based training hours toward their subsequent apprenticeship. Admission requires high school graduation or mature student status, with English 11 and Math 10 at 60% or higher. The program suits individuals seeking foundational piping skills and hands-on training who do not yet have an employer sponsor, providing the technical grounding needed before entering apprenticeship. On completion, students can move into TRU's four-level Plumbing apprenticeship, working through harmonized levels toward the Interprovincial Plumbing Trades Qualification.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: The program's own page states three entry conditions for the Foundation certificate: high-school graduation (or equivalent) or mature-student status; English 11 at 60% or higher; and Math 10 at 60% or higher (any Math 10 or equivalent). No further conditions are published on the page. Thompson Rivers University's general undergraduate admission basis also applies at the institutional level: graduation from a recognised high-school curriculum, 12 or more transferable post-secondary credits, or mature-student status; international applicants must additionally have completed secondary school and be at least 17 years old.International applicants must also meet Thompson Rivers University's own language bar for direct entry into an undergraduate certificate or diploma program: IELTS Academic 6.5 with no band below 6.0, or TOEFL iBT 88 with no section below 20, per TRU's English requirements page.
Application Details
Application Deadline:Domestic applicants (Canadian citizens and permanent residents) apply directly to TRU: for the September (Fall) intake the deadline is 1 May, for January (Winter) it is 1 September, and for the May (Summer) intake it is 1 January; applications for most programs open 1 October, and a deadline falling on a weekend or statutory holiday moves to the next working day. International applicants follow the same intake structure with deadlines of 1 May (September), 1 October (January) and 1 February (May); TRU still reviews later applications where space remains, though high-volume programs can close early, so admission runs on a rolling basis around these published cut-offs for the 2027 entry cycle. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
