A plumber apprenticeship is a paid job with training, and you don't need experience to start one. Ohio has 35 registered plumber apprenticeship programs, with 4,948 apprentices in training at the latest federal count.
About $700 a week at 40 hours. The middle half of starting wages is $15.18 to $20.08 an hour.
Median pay at the end
$27.16 an hour
About $1,090 a week at 40 hours.
From 1,430 recent starting wages in 31 programs, and 781 people who finished recently in 23 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.
Local 392 takes applications all year, holds tests every other month, and selects apprentices once a year, around April. The Local 189 JATC in Columbus hands out applications in person on the first Tuesday of every month, from 10 am to 5 pm. Its posted pickup dates run through December.
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 8 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 Ohio Central School System, which is the school system of the Ohio corrections department, runs 1 of the 35 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.
ODRC Ohio Central School System - Incarcerated Individual OnlyColumbus1,493 apprentices
How one program works: Plumbers, Fitters & MES Local 392 JATC
Each program runs in its own way. This is how one of them takes apprentices and trains them, as its own pages describe it.
Plumbers, Fitters & MES Local 392 JATC
1
Apply to Local 392
Apply online or in person, for 1 trade only. Send your documents and the $35 fee, which you can pay by money order, certified check, or card with a 3% service fee.
2
Take the aptitude test
Local 392 holds tests every other month at its training center, and you need a score of 75 or better. You learn the same day whether you passed. The study guide covers measurement, reading and arithmetic, and the test has a visual part.
3
Interview with the committee
If you pass, the committee interviews you, usually about 1 week after the test. Your interview score puts you on the ranking list, and your name stays on the list for 2 years.
4
Complete the screening
If Local 392 selects you, you must pass a drug and chemical screening test and agree to a background check. Your 5-year apprenticeship then starts.
The Plumbers, Fitters & MES Local 392 JATC is the largest program open to outside applicants. The $35 application fee isn't refunded and covers 1 aptitude test, and a retest costs another $35. Every apprentice starts at 52% of the journeyman scale.
To apply at the Local 189 JATC in Columbus
$60
At the Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 189 JATC, you pick up an application in person with a photo ID and return it within 2 weeks. You pay the $60 fee by cashier's check or money order, and the committee waives the fee if you document financial hardship. You must live in one of the 11 central Ohio counties the committee serves.
At the Association of Plumbing and Hydronic Contractors of Central Ohio school, you work for a member contractor first. Its 4-year program is 8,000 hours on the job.
To apply to Local 392, you must be at least 17 years old. You must be 18 years old to start. You need these things to apply.
a high school diploma with a 2.0 GPA, 2 years of math and 1 year of science, or a GED with a score of at least 450
a valid driver's license
your birth certificate
transcripts, which your school sends directly to the committee
If you have a criminal record, you can still apply. Local 392 doesn't accept applicants with a felony conviction for a crime involving weapons or harm to individuals. If Local 392 turns you down for this reason, you can appeal in writing within 30 days.
The Local 392 apprenticeship takes 5 years. You need at least 8,500 hours on the job, and your first year is a probation of at least 1,700 hours. Your contractor pays for your medical insurance, pension and paid training, and you buy your class materials and keep a yearly drug card current.
When you finish the Local 392 apprenticeship, you receive the City of Cincinnati plumbing license. Local 392 says you also receive a combination of Kentucky and Indiana licenses and medical gas and backflow certifications.
Ohio has no statewide plumber license. Cities and counties issue their own licenses and set their own rules, so the rules change from one city to the next. Check the rules in the city or county where you plan to work.
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
Plumbers, Fitters & MES Local 392 JATC application pages, online application and selection-process document, apply.local392.com and form.jotform.com: the $35 fee, the requirements, the criminal record rule, the test schedule and the 5-year program
Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 189 JATC apprenticeship pages, ualocal189-jatc.com and ualocal189.com: the $60 fee, the in-person pickup, the residency rule and the pickup dates
The U.S. Department of Labor data has 8 Ohio filings whose registration numbers name a different state. No figure counts those filings. Every bar uses the same scale.
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