Understanding the Examination Process
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Why can’t Apprentices write certification exams on the last day of technical training anymore?
2. Who confirms that the apprentice has passed the level in order to write the exam?
3. Does an apprentice have to wait until their marks are entered before the exam can be written?
4. Won’t the gap between technical training and the exam date make it more difficult for apprentices to pass?
5. Who will invigilate the exams?
6. What is Campus Manitoba?
7. When scheduling exams, how will the “first come first served” process work?
8. Will out of town apprentices be compensated if they have to stay an extra day in The Pas (or Winnipeg, etc.) to write their exam on Saturday following completion of their level?
9. Will the new exam schedule keep apprentices from receiving an improvement in income?

1. Why can’t Apprentices write certification exams on the last day of technical training anymore?

• Apprenticeship Manitoba has undergone a significant service transformation to ensure that our services are organized and delivered in the most effective way possible.  The apprenticeship program has experienced significant growth, almost doubling over the last several years.  Certification exam coordination and delivery have become increasingly complex, taking away from Apprenticeship Training Coordinators’ core responsibilities and compromising overall quality of our services.
• In order to keep up with industry standards, required technical training content has increased. As a result, it has become necessary to find ways to include this content without increasing the number of weeks apprentices are required to attend in-school training.  The decision to move the certification exam from the final day of technical training has freed up seven hours of instructional time, which has proved valuable in including additional theoretical content. 
• The universal exam schedule is an opportunity for apprentices to schedule an exam time and location that is mutually beneficial to both the apprentice and the employer.  The exams may be written in the same town/city where the apprentice attended technical training, or may be their home community.
• As long as they have passed all of their unit tests, it is possible that apprentices can write their certification exams as early as the next day upon completion of their course, provided that they have successfully scheduled their exam in advance to coincide with this date.

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2. Who confirms that the apprentice has passed the level in order to write the exam?

• Apprenticeship Manitoba will assume the apprentice has passed the level unless we hear from an instructor prior to the last day of technical training that there has been a failure.

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3. Does an apprentice have to wait until their marks are entered before the exam can be written?

• No.

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4. Won’t the gap between technical training and the exam date make it more difficult for apprentices to pass?

• The new open exam schedule does remove the sequential technical training certification exam process but Apprenticeship Manitoba is confident in the quality of training apprentices receive both on the job and in the classroom setting.  As such, we believe that the impact on the pass rates will be minimal, if any.  Apprenticeship Manitoba will be monitoring pass rates in the early implementation of the new exam schedule system.

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5. Who will invigilate the exams?

• Exams will be invigilated by Apprenticeship Manitoba staff for the scheduled sittings in Winnipeg, Thompson, The Pas and Brandon.  Sittings scheduled in the many rural communities on the schedule will be invigilated by Campus Manitoba staff. 

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6. What is Campus Manitoba?

• Campus Manitoba is a consortium of Manitoba’s public post-secondary institutions.  It serves as a conduit to provide access to post-secondary courses, programs, and assessments for Manitobans through distributed learning mechanisms.  Campus Manitoba is wholly funded by the Consortium of Public Institutions and the Council on Post-Secondary Education, and is a public entity.  Campus Manitoba is not a private for profit contractor. It is bound by the policies, practices, ethics and obligations of Manitoba’s post-secondary institutions, including Apprenticeship Manitoba.  Campus Manitoba has strict invigilation practices entrusted to them by each of Manitoba’s post-secondary institutions and exam security is strictly adhered to for all exams they invigilate, whether apprenticeship, college or university exams.

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7. When scheduling exams, how will the “first come first served” process work?

• This will be monitored on a real time basis and adjustments will be considered if demand for a specific sitting exceeds the number of spaces arranged. Clients are providing two choices of exam dates and Apprenticeship Manitoba will make accommodations for this to occur.  If additional space is required in Winnipeg, the Norquay Auditorium will be used for Saturdays and additional space can be requested from high schools as the exam sittings are after hours.  If additional invigilators are required, Apprenticeship Manitoba staff will be utilized.  In rural areas, Campus Manitoba locations can be used from Monday to Friday during regular business hours.

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8. Will out of town apprentices be compensated if they have to stay an extra day in The Pas (or Winnipeg, etc.) to write their exam on Saturday following completion of their level?

• No.  Other than living away from home supports that apprentices may be entitled to while attending technical training, the costs associated with writing the certification exam will have to be covered by the apprentice as the certification exam is separate and distinct from the technical training requirements of their program.

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9. Will the new exam schedule keep apprentices from receiving an improvement in income?

• The apprentices’ remuneration is not based on the date the certification exam is completed.  The date of the Certification Exam is written; particularly when it was written on the last day of technical training, does not necessarily correspond with the certification date.  The majority of the time, an apprentice still must complete several hundred hours of on-the-job practical training experience before meeting all of the progression criteria as most apprentices attend their final level of technical training with less than the required hours in the trade.  The certification date is determined at the point when all program requirements are met including the completion of all prescribed technical and practical training hours, successfully passing the final level of technical training, serving the requisite number of calendar years and successfully passing the certification exam(s).

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