Skilled Trades Blog

For the last few weeks the Skilled Trades Academy has been hosting our Gas Technician classes online and we're pleased to report that it has been a great success. Both students and instructors have embraced online learning but many of you are wondering how it all works so here's some information on what to expect. 

As a high school student nearing graduation, it's time to start thinking about the next step you should be taking. Most resources for post-secondary choices only list public universities or colleges, and often encourage students to get their diploma or degree. While this is a path many students take and enjoy, it's not for everyone.

If you followed our tips on how to create a successful skilled trades resume, you'll be in great shape to land an interview. It's important to go into that interview for skilled trades employment prepared and ready to impress. Here are some tips we've come up with to help you be ready for success when interview for skilled trades jobs.

Photo courtesy of CKWS Newswatch

This is the kind of program we love seeing! 

For the past 25 years, Limestone School Board in Kingston, Ontario has offered a building construction internship program to their students, and last semester, these students worked alongside skilled trades people to build homes in an area subdivision. 

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If you are considering a skilled trades career in Ontario, you want to be confident that you'll succeed in the skilled trades after you complete your training. We understand that you investing time and money to become a fully-licensed gas technician, so we compiled some tips to help you navigate how to ensure success in the Ontario skilled trades industry.

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As students graduate and prepare to enter the workforce, many new graduates find themselves in the situation that the career they were interested in at the beginning of their education doesn't align with where their interest lie now. Or, in other cases, they may find that the degree or diploma that they completed isn't enough to get them an ideal career.

With the increased trades shortage in Canada, it isn't surprising that when faced with these challenges, graduates' interests are shifting toward the skilled trades, a specialized industry that holds the promise of a rewarding career upon the completion of necessary training and certification.

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Last week, the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum (CAF-FCA) published a new report exploring the benefits of a career in the skilled trades. The report shows that although many parents and youth have stated that they believe that skilled trades job opportunities in Canada are limited, the opposite is true: career opportunities in the trades are progressing.

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We are well into fall here in Ontario, and with the end of the summer comes the end of swimming pool season. And while for many, that simply means finding new ways to spend your time (no more floating on hot summer days!), for others it means work grinds to a halt. We're talking about those who spend the spring and summer months working in the swimming pool industry, opening, maintaining, repairing and closing pools.

While this is a very enjoyable career, once the cold weather hits, your options are to find temporary employment, work very limited hours or 6 months of unemployment. What better way to spend those 6 months than getting trained for a new career in the skilled trades?

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Ontario post-secondary institutions are seeing a number students drop out before achieving their degree or diploma. While it is true that a number of jobs require some form of higher education, that doesn't always mean a two to four year diploma or degree. There are many rewarding and good-paying jobs that require other forms of certification or training — many of those careers are in the skilled trades.

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When people are considering a career path, there are always reasons not to do something. Figuring out what you want to do and what you like to do isn't the hard part. If working in the skilled trades is something that you would enjoy, you probably already have an idea that that's the career for you. The problem is overcoming the obstacles to get there. What is holding you back from pursuing a career in the skilled trades?