How to Become a Carpenter Apprentice in Saskatchewan
Becoming a carpenter apprentice in Saskatchewan: SATCC entrance rules, the 7,200-hour four-year program, technical training weeks, and the Red Seal exam.
How to Become a Welder Apprentice in Saskatchewan
Becoming a welder apprentice in Saskatchewan: SATCC entrance rules, the 5,400-hour three-level program, the pre-employment route, and the Red Seal exam.
Applies in: Saskatchewan
Becoming a welder apprentice in Saskatchewan runs through the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission (SATCC), which oversees and administers the apprenticeship and trade certification system in the province. The trade is a Red Seal trade with a three-year, 5,400-hour program. Certification is voluntary in Saskatchewan: trade certification for welders is compulsory only in Alberta, and the Commission is the regulator for the welder title in Saskatchewan. That voluntary status still leaves the apprenticeship route as the structured path to the Red Seal endorsement, and pressure welding work sits under a separate regulator, so check that position before taking pressure work.
Step 1: Check the entrance requirements first
The Commission entrance requirements table lists Welder, and sub-trade, at Grade 10 mathematics and Grade 10 science. The accepted mathematics credits are Workplace and Apprenticeship, Foundations, or Pre-calculus, and modified and general mathematics credits are not acceptable. A Grade 12 transcript with no modified classes, a Canadian Adult Education Credential, or GED 12 is described as the guarantee that the educational entrance requirements are met. People who do not meet the requirements take entrance requirement training as prescribed by the Commission. English is the language of instruction in all apprenticeship programs and is the common language for business in Saskatchewan. Get the transcript position settled before approaching employers, so a shortfall does not surface after a hiring conversation has started. The entrance requirements are stated in the Commission entrance requirements document, revised April 2026.
Step 2: Find an employer and register as an apprentice
Apprenticeship is work-based training: you learn the trade on the job with an employer and attend technical training in blocks. Find an employer doing welding work who will take you on as an apprentice, then register as an apprentice with the Commission. The Commission is the body that trains apprentices, certifies tradespeople and apprentices, and regulates the system, so the registration and the training call-ups run through it. Keep a record of every hour you work from the start, because progression in this trade is counted in accumulated work experience and technical training hours. Confirm the current application filing route and any supporting documents with the Commission at registration, since no opened Saskatchewan page for this trade states the current form or filing steps.
Step 3: Work through the three levels and the technical training
The Commission technical training table lists Welder as a three-year trade at 5,400 hours, with in-school training of seven weeks in two years and eight weeks in one year. Work experience and technical training hours accumulate together toward the total. The Commission notice to pre-employment graduates puts Level 2 eligibility at 1,800 accumulated hours and the call to Level 3 technical training at 3,600 accumulated hours; confirm your own call-up hours with the Commission if you enter the trade direct, without the pre-employment certificate, since that notice is addressed to pre-employment graduates. Attend each level of technical training when called, and return to the employer between blocks. The trade covers joining metal using welding processes, including work on structural steel, vessels, and piping, as described in the Commission trade pages.
Step 4: Use the pre-employment route if you hold the certificate
Graduates of the Saskatchewan Polytechnic 34-week pre-employment certificate welding program face a choice the Commission notice spells out. Option 1 is automatic: do nothing, and on registration as a new apprentice you are called to Level 3 technical training once 3,600 hours are accumulated. Level 3 is the last level of technical training, and you write the interprovincial examination and complete the practical examination on its last two days. Option 2 must be requested: if you are concerned that your duties and past experience have not maintained the skills learned in the pre-employment program, request entry at Level 2, attend that additional training once 1,800 hours are accumulated, covering theory and welding and cutting processes for an additional seven weeks, then go back to work until 3,600 hours and attend Level 3, with successful completion of Level 2 required before progressing to Level 3. Make the request through a field consultant at a Commission office or a training coordinator, using the Commission toll-free number 1-877-363-0536 stated in the notice to pre-employment graduates.
Step 5: Pass the certification examinations
Finish all required levels of training and the 5,400 hours, then write the interprovincial welder journeyperson examination and complete the welder journeyperson practical examination. For pre-employment graduates these fall on the last two days of Level 3 technical training. Passing the interprovincial examination carries the Red Seal endorsement, which is recognized across Canada. Job Bank, for welders under NOC 72106, states that completion of secondary school is usually required and that the Red Seal endorsement is available on successful completion of the interprovincial Red Seal examination. Keep the certificate once issued, and confirm with the Commission whether any separate pressure welder credential is needed for the work you plan to take, since Job Bank lists pressure welder under the Technical Safety Authority of Saskatchewan.
Figures and details not verified
No opened Saskatchewan page states a contract registration fee, a tuition amount for any level of technical training, an apprentice wage rate or percentage, a pass mark for the interprovincial or practical examination, or the direct-entry call-up hours apart from the pre-employment notice figures used above. Those figures are cut from this guide rather than borrowed from Alberta, Manitoba, or Ontario welder pages. Confirm each one with the Commission before signing a contract or paying a fee.
Related guides:
The Saskatchewan welder apprenticeship, step by step
- Check the entrance requirementsGrade 10 mathematics and Grade 10 science, with modified and general mathematics credits not accepted
- Find an employer and register with the SATCCRegistration as an apprentice with the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission, with an employer who provides the on-the-job training
- Work through the three levelsA three-year program totalling 5,400 hours, with technical training of seven weeks in two years and eight weeks in one year
- Use the pre-employment route if you hold itSaskatchewan Polytechnic 34-week pre-employment graduates are called to Level 3 technical training at 3,600 hours
- Pass the certification examinationsThe interprovincial journeyperson examination plus the welder journeyperson practical examination on the last two days of Level 3 training
Questions people ask
How long does a welder apprenticeship take in Saskatchewan?
Three years, totalling 5,400 hours. The Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission technical training table lists Welder as a three-year trade at 5,400 hours, with in-school training of seven weeks in two years and eight weeks in one year. Job Bank, for welders under NOC 72106, states that completion of a three-year apprenticeship program, or a combination of over three years of work experience and some college or industry courses, is usually required to be eligible for trade certification.
Is welder a compulsory trade in Saskatchewan?
No, for trade certification. Job Bank, for welders under NOC 72106, states that trade certification is compulsory in Alberta and available, but voluntary, in all other provinces and the territories, which includes Saskatchewan. The regulatory body listed for the welder job title in Saskatchewan is the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission. Do not carry the Alberta compulsory rule into Saskatchewan. Separately, Job Bank lists brazer and pressure welder in Saskatchewan as regulated under the Technical Safety Authority of Saskatchewan, so pressure work has its own check outside this apprenticeship route.
What education do I need to start?
Grade 10 mathematics and Grade 10 science. The Commission entrance requirements table lists Welder, and sub-trade, at Grade 10 for both subjects, accepting Workplace and Apprenticeship, Foundations, or Pre-calculus mathematics, and states that modified and general mathematics credits are not acceptable. A Grade 12 transcript with no modified classes, a Canadian Adult Education Credential, or GED 12 is described as the guarantee that the educational entrance requirements are met, and people who do not meet the requirements take entrance requirement training as prescribed by the Commission. English is the language of instruction.
How does the Saskatchewan Polytechnic pre-employment route work?
Graduates of the 34-week pre-employment certificate welding program have two options, stated in a Commission notice to those graduates. Under Option 1, which is automatic, the new apprentice is called to Level 3 technical training once 3,600 work experience and technical training hours are accumulated, and Level 3 is the last level of technical training, ending with the interprovincial examination and the practical examination on the last two days. Under Option 2, which must be requested, the graduate enters at Level 2 once 1,800 hours are accumulated, for seven additional weeks, then returns to work until 3,600 hours and attends Level 3, with successful completion of Level 2 required before progressing to Level 3.
What examinations do I write at the end?
The interprovincial welder journeyperson examination and the welder journeyperson practical examination. The Commission notice to pre-employment graduates states that both are taken on the last two days of Level 3 technical training. Passing the interprovincial examination carries the Red Seal endorsement, which Job Bank states is available to qualified welders on successful completion of the interprovincial Red Seal examination. No pass mark for these examinations is stated on any opened Saskatchewan page, so confirm the current pass mark with the Commission rather than assuming one.
What fees and wages apply during the apprenticeship?
No registration fee, tuition figure, or apprentice wage percentage is stated on any opened Saskatchewan page for this trade, so none is given here. The Commission notice and the technical training table state hours, levels, and training weeks only. Confirm the current contract registration fee, the tuition for each level of technical training, and the wage arrangement with your employer and the Commission before signing anything, and do not use another province's fee or wage figures for Saskatchewan.
Sources
- Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission, High School to Apprenticeship Guide 2026-27 — the Commission role, the Welder technical training row of three years and 5,400 hours with seven weeks in two years and eight weeks in one year, and the Red Seal designation.
- Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission, Entrance Requirements for Apprenticeship Training — Grade 10 mathematics and science for Welder, accepted mathematics credits, modified and general credits not accepted, the Grade 12 transcript guarantee, entrance requirement training, and English as the language of instruction.
- Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission, Important Notice to Saskatchewan Polytechnic Pre-Employment Certificate Welding Graduates — the 34-week program, Option 1 automatic Level 3 call at 3,600 hours, Option 2 requested Level 2 entry at 1,800 hours with seven additional weeks, Level 3 as the last level, and the interprovincial and practical examinations on the last two days of Level 3 training.
- Statistics Canada, National Occupational Classification 2021 Version 1.0 — 72106 Welders and related machine operators — the NOC employment requirements, the three-year apprenticeship, certification compulsory in Alberta and voluntary in all other provinces and the territories, and the Red Seal endorsement on the interprovincial examination.