Ontario Is Letting High School Students Skip Grade 12 To Pursue Skilled Trades & Here's How

Ontario announced that students wishing to pursue a career in skilled trades could graduate a year earlier and ditch grade 12.

The government of Ontario shared on Wednesday that soon grade 11 students can apprentice full-time and still earn their high school diploma.

"These changes provide students with exciting pathways to good-paying jobs and rewarding careers and support our government's ongoing work to attract more young people into the skilled trades," Premier Doug Ford said in a press release.

The government has decided to prepare students for "in-demand and well-paying careers" sooner by letting students in grade 11 "transition to a full-time, skilled trades apprenticeship program."

In other words, they hope to "face historic labour shortages" by allowing students to "enter the trades faster."

Once the students receive their Certificate of Apprenticeship, the young workers can apply for their Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) as mature students.

According to the press release, 72,000 new workers will be needed by 2027. This is because of the open positions appearing due to retirements and job growth.

"For far too long, parents and students have been told the only path to succeed in life is by going to university, which is simply not true," Monte McNaughton, the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, said.

They encourage students to pursue a career in skilled trades because it's a "career for life."

The government is working to ensure students who choose to take this path and gain a Certificate of Apprenticeship will have up to 30 credits recognized by the Ministry of Education, as required to earn a diploma.

It's worth noting that the apprenticeship takes 2 to 5 years to complete.

However, the government shares that there are currently over 200,000 unfilled jobs, and so much more will appear.