Is this apprenticeship right for me?

The DSW (Developmental Services Worker) apprenticeship is Skilled Trades Ontario trade 620D. It is for people who already do this work and do not yet hold the credential. You keep your job and your pay. Most of your training happens on the shifts you are already working.

What you get

Paid workplace experience while you complete formal training.
Practical skills in professionalism, person-directed support, and more, applied straight away in the lives of the people you support.
A recognised pathway to grow in developmental services, ending in a Certificate of Apprenticeship issued by Skilled Trades Ontario.
Access to financial supports while you train. See Time, cost and financial supports.

What it asks of you

Before you start, check two things: your time and your sponsor.

Time. The published benchmark is 4,500 hours in total: 3,720 on the job and 780 in class. Most apprentices take about three years to complete it. Classes are usually one day a week or in the evening, and some colleges deliver them online. Expect two to three hours of class time a week for each course, plus reading and assignments on your own time.

An employer who will sponsor you. This is not optional. The apprenticeship runs through a Training Agreement between you, your employer and Skilled Trades Ontario. Without an agency willing to sign, there is no apprenticeship. Talk to your agency first. You need a sponsor before you register with a college.

Do you qualify?

You need to be at least 16, be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, have a sponsor in Ontario, and hold an Ontario Secondary School Diploma, GED or equivalent. People on work visas are not eligible for this program. Your sponsor is, in practice, an agency that supports people with developmental disabilities, where you work or will work, full-time or part-time.

Apprenticeship or diploma?

Both lead to a recognised credential in the field. They work in different ways.

The apprenticeship

Needs a sponsoring employer to register a Training Agreement with Skilled Trades Ontario.
Most of the training, about 83 per cent, happens on the job while you keep earning.
Most classroom costs are subsidised.
Covers 12 reportable subjects over about 780 hours of coursework.
Ends with a Certificate of Apprenticeship.

The college diploma, direct entry

You apply straight to a college. No employer sponsor is needed.
You pay full tuition.
A full-time, two-year classroom program plus 400 to 600 hours of unpaid field placement.
Includes extra courses, including general education requirements.
Ends with a College Diploma.

Completing the apprenticeship first and then bridging to the diploma usually costs less than starting the diploma from scratch. It also takes less extra time, because much of the coursework already counts. See Bridging to the DSW diploma.

How to tell whether the timing works

You are in a strong position if you already work in the sector, do not hold a credential, and your employer is open to sponsoring you. That can make the apprenticeship a strong fit.

It is workable but slower if you work part-time. On-the-job hours build at the pace you actually work.

It may not be the right route if you already hold a DSW diploma. Talk to your employer about professional development instead.

To finish, you need both the required hours and signed skill sets. You log the 3,720 on-the-job hours and complete the 780 in-class hours, and your trainer signs off each skill set when they have seen you do it competently. Some people reach both faster than the benchmark and some take longer, and neither is a problem.