Part of the Pathways initiatives, the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP) provides students with hands-on training and practical learning in over 140 skilled trades.
Through the Cooperative Education program, students in Grades 10, 11, and 12 can explore apprenticeship occupations, gain real-world experience and earn wages while working toward certification as journey persons. This allows them to develop valuable skills, become registered apprentices, and progress in their chosen trades—all while completing their secondary school diplomas.
Goals of OYAP
Goals of OYAP
- To provide students with the opportunity to start training in a skilled trade while completing the requirements for an Ontario Secondary School Diploma.
- To enable students to make the school to work transition by direct entry into apprenticeship training.
- To provide employers with the opportunity to train the skilled workers they require.
- To provide a viable solution to address the problem of skilled tradespeople shortages in general, and specifically the lack of young people joining the trades.
How Long is An Apprenticeship?
How long is an apprenticeship?
Becoming certified in a trade requires on-the-job and in-school training done at college, and lasting 2-5 years.
Is apprenticeship right for me? Consider pursuing an apprenticeship if:
- you enjoy hands-on learning and have good mechanical and spatial abilities.
- you enjoy fixing things, assembling and disassembling structures.
- you are able to solve problems, determine why something does not work and how it can be done better.
- you are prepared to complete an apprenticeship.
OYAP-FAST Program for Grade 10 & 11 Students
Beginning in the 2025-2026 school year, Grade 11 and 12 students can participate in the Focused Apprenticeship Skills Training (OYAP-FAST) program. This new accelerated stream within the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP) provides students with the opportunity to gain expanded apprenticeship experience by earning additional cooperative education credits while completing their Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD).
- Are you a hands-on learner who wants to get a head start on a rewarding career in the skilled trades?
- Would you like to work toward becoming an apprentice while earning your high school diploma?
- Sign up for OYAP-FAST when you complete your course selections in myBlueprint or see your Guidance Counsellor.
Focused Apprenticeship Skills Training (OYAP-FAST)
- Focused Apprenticeship Skills Training (FAST) is an accelerated stream within OYAP / OYAP-FAST that will allow students in Grades 11 and 12 to participate in apprenticeship learning through additional co-operative education credits while completing their Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD).
- Students will take eight to eleven credits of co-operative education in the skilled trades as an OYAP participant.
- Students who meet the completion requirements and all other OSSD requirements will be awarded the OYAP-FAST seal on their OSSD, and OYAP-FAST will be listed in their Ontario Student Transcript (OST).
To participate in OYAP-FAST, students must meet the OYAP eligibility requirements:
- Be at least 15 years of age or older
- Have completed 14 credits toward the OSSD
- Be enrolled as a part-time or full-time student in a secondary school or continuing education program
- Complete an OYAP Participation Form during a cooperative education in a skilled trade
- Have signed parent/guardian consent on the OYAP-FAST Consent Form
To complete OYAP-FAST, students must:
- Earn eight to eleven co-op credits with their placement component in the skilled trades
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Register as an apprentice by securing a Registered Training Agreement (RTA) before completing an eighth co-op education credit
Course Selection
Students wishing to pursue the OYAP-FAST pathway will be directed by their Guidance Department to select the ‘OYFAST’ code during course selection in myBlueprint. Parents/guardians must approve the student’s course requests. All students who select the ‘OYFAST’ code will have a follow-up conversation with their Guidance Counsellor and will receive an OYAP-FAST consent form that requires a parent/guardian signature for students under 18 years of age.
View OYAP-FAST Program Flyer
Additional Resources
Contact Information
Wade Richardson
Secondary Regional Lead OYAP
richardsonw@hdsb.ca