A plumber apprenticeship is a paid job with training, and you don't need experience to start one. To start in Iowa, you need a registered apprenticeship program that accepts you and the $50 apprentice license from the Iowa Plumbing and Mechanical Systems Board. Iowa has 254 registered plumber apprenticeship programs, with 2,505 apprentices in training at the latest federal count.
About $760 a week at 40 hours. The middle half of starting wages is $16.00 to $22.60 an hour.
Median pay at the end
$30.00 an hour
About $1,200 a week at 40 hours.
From 1,415 recent starting wages in 210 programs, and 1,024 people who finished recently in 144 programs. The 2 figures come from different groups of apprentices, not the same people followed from start to finish.
How to get in
Pick 2 or 3 programs near you
Use the list below. Search each program's name with its city to find it.
Each program takes applications in its own way. Ask each program how and when it takes applications.
Get your apprentice license once you're enrolled in a program
To work as a plumbing apprentice in Iowa, you must be at least 18 years old, have a high school diploma or GED and be enrolled in a registered apprenticeship program. You also need the apprentice license, and you work under the supervision of a licensed journeyperson or master. The $50 fee covers the 3-year licensing period, and a license issued later in the period costs less.
Each of these programs carries the name of a contractor association: Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) or Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors (PHCC).
No program matches. Pick another area or check the spelling.
Also trains other trades: these 35 sponsors train more than one trade, so their count includes apprentices in their other trades.A count of 0 means the federal data recorded no apprentices in training, and it doesn't always mean the program has closed.
Programs inside prisons
The Iowa Department of Corrections runs 1 of the 254 programs. This program trains people who are incarcerated. You can't apply to this program from outside, and the wage figures don't include it.
Iowa Department of CorrectionsDes Moines272 apprentices
How one program works: Iowa Pipe Trades and HVAC Training Institute
Each program runs in its own way. This is how one of them takes apprentices and trains them, as its own pages describe it.
Iowa Pipe Trades and HVAC Training Institute
Des Moines · Des Moines area · 470 apprentices
1
Apply online
Choose the apprenticeship application on the Local 33 application forms page and fill it out online. Before you send it, check that you answered every question, because Local 33 returns an incomplete application to you and the delay may affect your standing.
2
Pass the aptitude tests
To be accepted, you must pass the institute's aptitude tests.
3
Interview with the institute
You must go to an interview when the institute notifies you. If the institute selects you to go to work, you must take a drug test.
4
Work for a contractor and attend school
You work 40 or more hours each week for a contractor that has an agreement with Local 33, and you attend school at the institute in Des Moines for 6 weeks a year. Each school week runs Tuesday through Friday, and each group of apprentices has its own 6 weeks.
Tuition for Level 1 of the Hawkeye Community College plumbing apprenticeship
$595
Hawkeye Community College is the second-largest sponsor on the list, and its count includes the other trades it trains. Its plumbing apprenticeship takes about 4 years, and classes meet in the evening. Level 1 tuition is $595, Levels 3 and 4 cost $1,125 each, and your employer may pay some or all of the costs.
At Hawkeye Community College, an employer must sponsor you before you can enroll in apprenticeship classes. If you don't have an employer, Hawkeye's program coordinator has a list of business partners.
The Iowa Office of Apprenticeship (IOA) at Iowa Workforce Development registers apprenticeship programs in Iowa. The IOA is also the main contact for program sponsors, school districts and apprentices.
To apply to the Iowa Pipe Trades and HVAC Training Institute, you need a high school diploma or GED and a valid driver's license. The institute is the largest program on the list. It runs the 5-year apprenticeship of Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 33, which trains you in plumbing, heating, air conditioning, steamfitting and controls.
To apply to Local 33, you must live in Iowa or be willing to move there. If you have more than 2 years of experience in the trade, Local 33 has a separate application and evaluates your experience with you.
In your first year at the institute, you complete the 30-hour OSHA safety course. You can also earn a 2-year associate degree during the program.
To work as a plumber in Iowa, you need your own license from the Iowa Plumbing and Mechanical Systems Board, and cities and counties don't issue plumbing licenses. You start with the $50 apprentice license. To get the journeyperson plumbing license, you need at least 4 years as an apprentice in a registered apprenticeship program, and you must pass the Iowa journeyperson exam and complete your apprenticeship.
U.S. Department of Labor national apprenticeship data, extract of August 17, 2026: the programs, the apprentice counts, the 2 median wages and the range of starting wages
The U.S. Department of Labor data has 3 Iowa filings whose registration numbers name a different state. No figure counts those filings. Every bar uses the same scale.
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