Ontario's Best Colleges

Skilled Trades College of Canada (STC) is a private trades-training college with six campuses across Toronto and the GTA. It offers condensed 12-week pre-apprenticeship programs in electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and home renovation, delivered as 80% hands-on learning in lab-based simulated work environments with small class sizes. STC bundles a full professional tool kit, PPE, and industry safety certifications into every program to graduate job-ready apprentices, and has trained over 1,000 students.

Conestoga College is a publicly funded Ontario college whose Reuter Drive Skilled Trades Campus in Cambridge — at 322,000 square feet on 40 acres beside Highway 401 — is among the largest dedicated trades training facilities in Canada. It delivers Red Seal apprenticeships in carpentry, electrician, plumbing, millwright, welder, and CNC machinist, plus the fully funded Women in Skilled Trades (WIST) pre-apprenticeship. Over 150,000 sq ft of purpose-built shops and labs include AR/VR-ready training spaces.

Humber Polytechnic is a publicly funded Ontario college (established 1967, rebranded from Humber College in 2024) offering apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship training in the skilled trades. Its Centre for Skilled Trades and Technology at Carrier Drive features a 2024 expansion with new HVAC, gas/oil, AR/VR/XR and woodworking labs designed like an actual worksite. Programs span construction and maintenance electrician, plumber, carpenter, millwright, welder, and arborist trades.

Mohawk College is a publicly funded Ontario college serving Hamilton and surrounding communities, whose Marshall School of Skilled Trades & Apprenticeship at the Stoney Creek campus trains roughly 2,400 apprenticeship students per year. It offers Red Seal apprenticeship training in electrician, plumber, carpenter, millwright, steamfitter/pipefitter, welder, and motive power trades. The college is recognized as one of Ontario's leading trades training institutions, with a dedicated initiative supporting women and equity-deserving students.

George Brown Polytechnic is a publicly funded Ontario college (rebranded from George Brown College in 2024) offering Red Seal apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship training across its downtown Toronto and Casa Loma campuses. Skilled trades training includes carpentry, construction and maintenance electrician, industrial mechanic millwright, and plumber, with hands-on lab time and employer placement support. The college acts as a Training Delivery Agent for several Red Seal trades through Skilled Trades Ontario.

Durham College is a publicly funded Ontario college (established 1967) with campuses in Oshawa and Whitby, offering nine skilled trades apprenticeship programs at the OPG Centre for Skilled Trades and Technology. The 60,000-square-foot Whitby facility, opened in 2022, features advanced labs, shops, and a purpose-built boiler lab unique among Durham Region colleges. The college shares its Oshawa campus with Ontario Tech University and offers over 60 academic pathway opportunities into degree programs.

Centennial College is a publicly funded Ontario college (established 1966) recognized for its automotive and motive power trades, including manufacturer-specific Modified Apprenticeship Programs (MAPs) with Ford, Honda, GM, and Toyota. Skilled trades training spans automotive service technician, truck and coach technician, heavy equipment technician, construction and maintenance electrician, and HRAC to Red Seal standards. Programs are delivered with access to simulation labs at the Progress Campus.

Seneca Polytechnic is a publicly funded Ontario college (established 1967, rebranded from Seneca College in 2023) offering trades-adjacent technology programs that complement apprenticeship and industrial maintenance careers. Credentials include Electromechanical, Mechanical, and Civil Engineering Technology plus HVAC Technology, delivered with strong employer co-op networks across the GTA. Its Newnham campus in North York anchors most technology programming.

Hi-Mark Occupational Skills Training Centre is a Canadian-owned private career college (operating since 1995) specializing in HVAC and gas technician certification. Registered under Ontario's Private Career Colleges Act 2005 and accredited by the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA), it offers G3, G2, and G1 gas technician training plus HVAC fundamentals. A distinctive co-op model alternates one week of in-class training with one week of paid field placement.

Herzing College is a registered private career college whose Toronto Skilled Trades campus is an approved training facility of Merit Ontario and the CLAC Union. It offers pre-apprenticeship programs in carpentry, electrician, and plumbing, plus Gas Technician 3 and 2 certification, network cabling, and construction management. Programs are hands-on with in-house workshops and union employer connections that help graduates line up work.

Niagara College is a publicly funded Ontario college (established 1967) operating from campuses in Welland and Niagara-on-the-Lake. Its School of Trades, based at the Welland Campus Rankin Technology Centre, offers welding, electrical, machining, automotive service, and hairstyling programs across advanced labs on 100 acres of green space. The college is also home to Canada's first Teaching Winery, Teaching Brewery, and Teaching Distillery.