Becoming Certified
More actions
Official standard. This page transcribes or closely follows an official Skilled Trades Ontario, Electrical Safety Authority, or IATSE document. It is provided for reference and convenience only — it is not the authoritative record. Always confirm current requirements against the original source or Skilled Trades Ontario.
There are two paths to a 269E Certificate of Qualification: registered apprenticeship, or the exam-challenge route for experienced workers who never formally apprenticed.
Entrance requirements
Minimum academic standard: completion of Grade 12, or a Ministry-approved equivalent.
- Source: Apprenticeship Training Standard, Program Requirements, p.4
The apprenticeship path
An apprenticeship is a training agreement between an apprentice and a sponsor/employer, registered with Employment Ontario / Skilled Trades Ontario. It combines:
- 4,520 hours of on-the-job training (the duration the Industry Committee identified as generally necessary to become competent), tracked against the 9 skill sets in the Training Standard; and
- 480 hours of in-school training, delivered per the Curriculum (4 levels of 120 hours each, typically block-release or part-time/night school).
The Industry Committee identified a 1:1 journeyperson-to-apprentice ratio as generally necessary for proper on-the-job training. In practice this means an apprentice normally works alongside (or under the supervision of) a journeyperson or equivalent.
To complete the apprenticeship program (and receive a Certificate of Apprenticeship), an apprentice must:
- achieve competency in all mandatory (unshaded) skills identified in the Training Standard, signed off by the sponsor/employer; and
- complete the in-school Curriculum.
- Source: Apprenticeship Training Standard, Apprenticeship Program Summary/Guidelines, pp.2–4
Registering as an apprentice
When a person who wants to be an apprentice has found a sponsor/employer willing to train them, either party contacts apprenticeship staff at the local Employment Ontario office. A training consultant arranges a meeting at the workplace to assess the sponsor/employer's ability to train, prepares the training agreement, and initiates training. At that point the apprentice receives their copy of the Training Standard, which becomes their personal record of on-the-job progress.
- Source: IATSE Local 873 Apprenticeship Flyer
The exam-challenge path (non-apprentices)
A worker who has never registered as an apprentice can still challenge the C of Q exam directly. To be eligible, the challenger must:
- provide proof of competency in all mandatory (unshaded) skills identified in the Training Standard; and
- demonstrate that they have acquired 5,000 hours of on-the-job experience in the trade.
- Source: Apprenticeship Training Standard, Program Requirements, p.4
After certification
Passing the exam (70% pass mark — see Exam Prep) earns a Certificate of Qualification. Completing the full apprenticeship (hours + curriculum, whether or not the exam has been passed yet) earns a Certificate of Apprenticeship. See About 269E for how these two credentials differ.