Pre-Employment Welding
This program is designed to help you become more marketable when seeking employment in the welding trade. You will gain the entry-level skills needed to give you a better chance of getting hired and becoming indentured as an apprentice. If you are looking for a career as a welder but have not been able to secure employment and begin the apprenticeship process, this program is an ideal choice.
MHC has partnered with Portage College to offer Pre-Apprenticeship Welding starting August 24, 2023. This program starts you off with online academic upgrading, then pre-employment welding at MHC, and concludes with on-the-job technical training. You could qualify to have your tuition paid in full by the Alberta Government if you are unemployed or under-employed. More information can be found here.
The Pre-Employment Welding program covers the same material as our traditional apprenticeship program, but students do not have to be employed/indentured to be accepted to this training. Students who successfully complete and pass the program will have skills equivalent to a first year trades apprentice and will be eligible to write the Alberta Apprenticeship & Industry Training First Period Theory Exam for the welding trade.
In addition to the course content offered in the first year welding apprenticeship program, our pre-employment program includes many additional hours of hands-on practice and safety training. Although you may start the program with very little or no experience in the welding trade, you are given multiple opportunities to gain experience and a competitive edge in the workforce.
Upon successful completion of the pre-employment program, you will receive a Medicine Hat College Certificate of Completion, improving your job prospects significantly. You will be eligible to challenge the Alberta Apprenticeship & Industry Training First Year Period Apprenticeship Exams (Practical and Theory). You will also have the skills and knowledge that employers are looking for and have a greater chance of being indentured as an apprentice. Our staff and instructors have many contacts in the trades and during the program, industry representatives and potential employers will be encouraged to meet with and get to know our students.
For more information about Apprenticeship or the First Period Theory Exam, please contact Alberta Enterprise and Advanced Education, Apprenticeship and Industry Training directly at 403.525.3100, or visit www.tradesecrets.gov.ab.ca.
For more information on this program, contact Erin Ferris 403.502.8975
The recommended prerequisites are:
- English 10-2
- Math 10-3
- GED - passing grade on all 5 GED tests
(or equivalents)
Tuition fees for the program total $5,200. There is a $250 non-refundable application fee (which is applied toward tuition fees if you attend).
Additional Fees: Approximately $500 for books and materials. First Year Period Challenge exam fee is $300 (Practical and Theory) payable to Apprenticeship Industry and Training.
Required Supplies
Books and materials - $500 (price subject to change)
Duration:
Varies
Intake:
Fall/Winter/Spring
Campus:
Medicine Hat
Apply Today Apply to the pre-employment program
Contact:
Erin Ferris
Program Administrator, Trades
Tel: 403.502.8975
Email: eferris@mhc.ab.ca
