Admission requirements vary with each program. To apply to be an apprentice, applicants must be at least sixteen years old and typically should be secondary school graduates and have proof of pre-requisites as described in each trade. In some trades all applicants must write an entrance examination. If you do not pass this exam, you must take the necessary upgrading courses. Often industry practitioners will participate in candidate selections and practicum placement.

Perhaps the most difficult admission requirement is finding a job with an employer who is a journeyman or who employs a journeyman in the trade of the applicant's choice. To apply for an apprenticeship position, applicants should go in person to firms in their chosen trade. Applicants may have to apply to several firms before they find an employer who has a position for an apprentice. At this point in time, in order to take part in apprenticeship training an applicant must be a registered apprentice. Apprenticeship application forms are available for each province either on-site or online. Applicants with related work experience or training, or both, may receive credit towards their apprenticeship if they request credit on the application form.