March 19, 2007 - 5:00pm
There’s an electrifying new program coming to Malaspina University-College this September.
For the first time, Malaspina will offer an Electrician program that will include one Entry Level Trades Training (ELTT) option, and Level 1 and Level 2 Apprenticeship.
"We’ve had a lot of requests for this program," said Dan Lines, Associate Dean of Trades and Applied Technology at Malaspina. "As the economy has boomed, local businesses have been overwhelmed with the need for electricians. They’re very supportive of this training program."
Malaspina has been involved in training for the construction trades for 70 years, but has never offered electrical training that leads to certification. Local industry professionals support Malaspina providing an entry-level training program because they hope local graduates will be more likely to stay in the region. With such strong regional demand for construction, Lines says this was an ideal time to introduce the new program.
“We felt it was a very welcome and timely addition to our other construction trades,” said Lines. “There have been a lot of requests to deliver the program and the number of apprentices in our area has gone up dramatically. We felt we needed to address those issues.”
While this new program gives local students the opportunity to train in their own region, it also helps them avoid the long waitlists at other Vancouver Island facilities. Sara Sinclair, a student who has applied to the Malaspina program, didn’t want to wait to start her training.
“I applied to Camosun College’s Electrician program, but the waitlist is three years long. I don’t know who can wait three years for something like this, but I can’t,” she said. “When I heard Malaspina was offering this new program, I jumped on it right away.”
The 24-week entry-level program will give students like Sinclair the opportunity to train in Nanaimo, which is important because a Program Advisory Committee concluded that apprentices were hesitant to take training if it meant they would have to travel to Victoria, Campbell River or Vancouver.
“If Malaspina wasn’t offering this program, I’d start knocking on doors to see who would take me on as an apprentice,” said Sinclair. “People want to get out in the workforce and learn new skills without waiting so long. It’s important for educational institutions like Malaspina to open up options like this for people.”
The ELTT option will start this September, followed by the apprentice levels in early 2008. The ELTT is 24 weeks long and can accommodate 18 students. The apprentice levels are 10 weeks long.
Application deadline is June 29. For more information contact Tanya Reiber at (250)740-6112 or email her at reibert@viu.ca.
Tags: In the Community
