VerifiedCarpentry in South Africa splits into two kinds of work that are trained together and paid very differently. Structural carpentry is roof trusses, shuttering and formwork on building sites. Joinery and shopfitting is doors, cabinetry, fitted furniture and interiors, done in a workshop.
The trade certificate is the same. The employer you train with largely decides which of the two you end up doing, so choose the placement with that in mind.
Where the trade sits
Carpentry falls under CETA, the construction SETA, which funds learnerships and skills programmes and runs the Thapelo Madibeng bursary. You can register on its learner portal directly rather than waiting for an employer to do it.
The trade test route is on our artisan bursaries page.
The shopfitting route
If the workshop side interests you more than site work, look at furniture and shopfitting employers rather than building contractors. The training is more likely to be a learnership than a four-year apprenticeship, the work is indoors and year-round, and the design side connects to our design bursaries and the interiors funders on our architecture bursaries page.
Bursaries that fund carpentry
- CETA Thapelo Madibeng bursary
- Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality
- Thebe Foundation Dr EJ Mabuza Scholarship
- Bridgestone
- Bitou Municipality
- Eastern Cape Department of Education
Municipal schemes fund trades for residents: City of Cape Town, Cape Winelands District Municipality, Ndwedwe Local Municipality.
See also our bricklaying bursaries, plumbing bursaries and construction bursaries pages.