Carpentry classes in Louisiana

4 carpentry programs with costs, results and funding that can make them free

4 schools offer these carpentry programs, and Louisiana has approved every one for workforce funding. Each shows its price if you pay yourself and how past students did.

Carpenters build, repair and install building frameworks and structures made from wood and other materials. Most have a high school diploma and learn on the job or through an apprenticeship.¹ In Louisiana, 3 of the 4 programs take students without a high school diploma.

See the 4 programs

How much do carpentry classes cost in Louisiana?

$4,103 to $9,287

is what the 4 programs with a price cost if you pay yourself

In the typical program

Finished the program: Not reported
Working 6 months later: Not reported
Earned a year, estimated: Not reported
Length: Too few programs to say

Source: US Department of Labor, program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Only programs approved for workforce funding are listed; other schools in Louisiana may also offer carpentry classes. How these figures are made

Are there free carpentry classes in Louisiana?

Yes, if you qualify. WIOA (public workforce funding) can pay for any program on this page, in full or in part, depending on local limits.²³⁴
Ask an American Job Center whether you qualify, or call 1-877-872-5627.⁵ Before funding training, the center goes through an assessment and a career plan with you.⁴
Or pay yourself. These programs cost $4,103 to $9,287.

Who qualifies, and other ways to pay: paid apprenticeships, financial aid and the GI Bill

Carpentry classes in New Orleans, Lake Charles and other Louisiana cities

Choosing an area filters the list below.

All 4 carpentry programs in Louisiana approved for WIOA funding

4 programs

Construction and building tradesIn personNo diploma needed
Construction Technology CTS
Nunez Community College
Chalmette
No diploma needed
Nunez Community College, Chalmette · Construction and building trades · In person · No diploma needed
Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
Price if you pay yourself$4,103
Program website, Construction Technology CTS at Nunez Community College
More details about Construction Technology CTS at Nunez Community College
Finished
Not reported
Working at 6 months
Not reported
Earned in a quarter
Not reported
Length
32 weeks, 40 hours a week
Cost of supplies
$665
Students counted
Not reported
a year, estimated
Not reported
price
$4,103
Carpentry certificate or diplomaIn personHigh school diploma or equivalent
Industrial/Form Carpentry
New Orleans/Bayou Chapter Associated Builders & Contractors
St. Rose
High school diploma or equivalent
New Orleans/Bayou Chapter Associated Builders & Contractors, St. Rose · Carpentry certificate or diploma · In person · High school diploma or equivalent
Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
Price if you pay yourself$4,400
Program website, Industrial/Form Carpentry at New Orleans/Bayou Chapter Associated Builders & Contractors
More details about Industrial/Form Carpentry at New Orleans/Bayou Chapter Associated Builders & Contractors
Finished
Not reported
Working at 6 months
Not reported
Earned in a quarter
Not reported
Length
16 weeks, 6 hours a week
Cost of supplies
$2,000
Students counted
Not reported
a year, estimated
Not reported
price
$4,400
Pre-apprenticeshipIn personNo diploma needed
CITF Pre-Apprenticeship
Carpenters Training Fund of Louisiana
Metairie
No diploma needed
Carpenters Training Fund of Louisiana, Metairie · Pre-apprenticeship · In person · No diploma needed
Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
Price if you pay yourself$6,000
Program website, CITF Pre-Apprenticeship at Carpenters Training Fund of Louisiana
More details about CITF Pre-Apprenticeship at Carpenters Training Fund of Louisiana
Finished
Not reported
Working at 6 months
Not reported
Earned in a quarter
Not reported
Length
12 weeks, 40 hours a week
Cost of supplies
$915
Students counted
Not reported
a year, estimated
Not reported
price
$6,000
Carpentry certificate or diplomaIn personNo diploma needed
Carpentry
SOWELA Technical Community College
Lake Charles
No diploma needed
SOWELA Technical Community College, Lake Charles · Carpentry certificate or diploma · In person · No diploma needed
Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
Price if you pay yourself$9,287
Program website, Carpentry at SOWELA Technical Community College
More details about Carpentry at SOWELA Technical Community College
Finished
Not reported
Working at 6 months
Not reported
Earned in a quarter
Not reported
Length
60 weeks, 40 hours a week
Cost of supplies
$3,600
Students counted
Not reported
a year, estimated
Not reported
price
$9,287

How to pay for carpentry classes in Louisiana

WIOA funding can pay for carpentry classes in Louisiana

Every program on this page is approved for WIOA funding: public workforce funding under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. It can pay for training for eligible adults, people who lost their job and young people.²People on public assistance, with a low income or lacking basic skills come first, and veterans have priority.³Your state or local area may limit how much WIOA pays and for how long. If a program costs more, a Pell Grant, a scholarship or severance pay can cover the rest.⁴

Ask at an American Job Center

Eligibility rules apply, and services vary from state to state. Your local American Job Center can tell you whether you qualify. The Department of Labor's page links to the center finder, or call 1-877-US-2JOBS (1-877-872-5627).⁵

Paid carpentry apprenticeships

An apprenticeship is a job: you're paid to learn, with a raise as your skills grow, and most include classroom teaching. You apply to the employer or the program sponsor. Ask what you'll pay for the classroom part and what you'll earn on the job.⁶

Financial aid and grants for carpentry classes

Most students can get federal student aid for college, career school or trade school. A Federal Pell Grant, unlike a loan, usually doesn't have to be repaid. Ask the school whether its program qualifies.⁷⁸

GI Bill for carpentry classes

Veterans, service members and qualified dependents can use GI Bill benefits for non-college training programs.⁹

The program list does not show which programs accept these. Ask the school.

Does WIOA pay for job training? Who qualifies and how to apply

Carpentry apprenticeships in Louisiana

A carpentry apprenticeship sets a number of hours of classes and paid work on the job for each year. Unions and contractor associations run most programs, and apprentices learn carpentry basics, blueprint reading, math, building codes, and safety and first aid.¹

You apply to the employer or the program sponsor, not through a school.⁶ The Department of Labor's Apprenticeship Finder lists openings by place and job. None of the carpentry programs on this page is an apprenticeship. There is also 1 pre-apprenticeship here, a course that prepares you to apply.

What is an apprenticeship, and can WIOA pay for one?

Where the Louisiana carpentry program numbers come from

Which Louisiana carpentry programs are on this list?

These are the carpentry programs Louisiana approved for WIOA funding (public workforce funding under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act), as reported to the US Department of Labor for program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Each state keeps its approved programs on an eligible training provider list (ETPL).¹⁰ The list here covers programs approved as of June 30, 2025. Schools that never applied for approval are missing, so this is a part of what Louisiana offers.

How the prices and results of Louisiana carpentry programs are measured

The price is tuition and required fees for someone paying without workforce funding, as the school reported it. "Trained with WIOA funding" on a program counts the people whose training there WIOA paid toward through a training account in program year 2024; the file never gives counts under 3, so a program without the line may still take WIOA students. It does not say how much of the price WIOA covered. Results describe students who left the program in recent years, and the yearly earnings figure is the reported quarter times four, an estimate. They describe past students, so they are no guarantee. Where a field was left empty or withheld, the page says "Not reported". Where the numbers come from explains each figure in full.

How reliable are the Louisiana figures?

The US Department of Labor's own results site lists Louisiana among the states with "known data quality concerns".¹¹ We leave out the share working 6 months later for Louisiana: most of its programs report exactly 100%, which no other state comes close to. We leave out the share who finished for Louisiana: half of its programs report exactly 100%.

Other training in Louisiana

Sources for the facts about carpentry classes in Louisiana

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