Who is refrigeration fitter?
A refrigeration fitter is an artisan or a worker skilled in refrigeration and air conditioning or closely related field. Refrigeration is a process of keeping items below room temperature usually by storing them in systems designed for that purpose, e.g. a refrigerator/ fridge.

Air conditioning on the other hand is a ventilation process that removes heat and moisture from interior rooms or spaces in order to keep such environments comfortable for users. Refrigeration fitters, fits, adjusts and repairs electronic components of refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment among other tasks.

Other closely related title(s)

1. Refrigeration & air conditioning installer
2. Fitter, air-conditioning equipment
3. Fitter, refrigeration equipment

What is the work environment?
Refrigeration fitters works both indoor and outdoor environments within homes, schools, office buildings, hospitals or factories among others.

Some important skills to have
To work effectively, refrigeration fitters need to have some important skills and qualities such as;

1. Communication skills to communicate effectively with others
2. Interpersonal skills to relate well with others at the workplace
3. Customer service skills to deal appropriately with clients
4. Math’s skills to calculate correct cooling and heating loads
5. Mechanical skills to properly understand equipment components
6. Physical stamina as they may spend more time walking or standing
7. Troubleshooting skills to be able to identify equipment problems
8. Among others

What are some career opportunities?
Refrigeration fitters can find work in various places such as; refrigeration & air conditioning contractors, factories, hospitals, commercial buildings, refrigeration retail & wholesale merchants, educational institutions, other businesses and government departments among other areas.

Refrigeration fitters can also use their creativity and start their own profit making ventures (self-employment).

Becoming a refrigeration fitter

Admission requirements
To pursue a career as a refrigeration fitter right from high school, a Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE), mean grade E is required.

Training & Study options
With a KCSE mean grade E, you can proceed to a Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) college and enroll for an appropriate artisan course. Artisan courses are also offered within Vocational Training Centers (VTCs) within your region.

So whatcourse(s) can you pursue in TVET colleges?

1. NVCET refrigeration and air conditioning
2. Or other similar/ related courses

Education Progression
After a successful completion of an artisan course, you can advance your education upward (in a relevant field) up to university level if that’s your goal. How is this possible?

1. Get an artisan certificate
2. Advance to craft certificate, (in a relevant field)
3. Advance to diploma certificate, (in a relevant field)
4. Advance to degree certificate, (in a relevant field)

How to Join TVET College.
There are two ways you can follow to join training institution(s) in pursuit of your career of choice. The majority way is applying through the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (Kuccps). This is a state owned agency that admits/ places government sponsored students to TVET colleges and universities. One of the advantages of applying through Kuccps is that, upon successful placement, you will pay subsidized fee as a government sponsored student.

To be placed through Kuccps you must have attained a certain pass mark required for various education levels such as degrees, diplomas, certificates and artisan courses. For an artisan course, you need a KCSE mean grade E. For more details on placement criteria, visit Kuccps website. The second approach is applying directly to training institution of your choice. Students who opt to apply this way do not get government fee subsidy and are therefore self-sponsored.

How to fund your post-secondary education.
If you are a needy student, upon application, you can get education loan from Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), a state owned institution that gives education loans to students joining technical colleges and universities. You can also access education bursaries from your local Member of Parliament (MP) or the County Government among other sources.

Always remember this!
Information provided on this website is for career awareness only, and not for any other purpose.

We know career life will take a significant part of your life journey, and your career choice will greatly influence how that journey unfolds. Therefore, before you make any career choice, before you commit yourself to any career or study option, be sure of what you are doing. It is advisable to seek professional advice from career advisors to navigate this very important process.

Need more information? We can provide you with additional career and education related information to meet your individual needs.