How to Enroll In the Right Welder Certification Class near Douglasville Georgia

Finding the ideal welding vocational school near Douglasville GA is an important first step to beginning your new career as a professional welder. But since there are a lot of schools to select from, how do you determine which ones to consider? And more importantly, once you have narrowed down your choices, how do you pick the right one? A number of people start by reviewing the schools that are nearest to their homes. Once they have located those that are within commuting distance, they gravitate toward the least expensive one. Yes, location and tuition cost are crucial issues when reviewing welder technical schools, but they are not the only ones. Other concerns include such things as accreditation, reputation and job placement rates. So before initiating your search for a trade school to become a welder, it’s wise to establish a list of qualifications that your chosen school must have. But before we examine our due diligence checklist, let’s talk a little bit about how to become a welder.

Welder Certificate and Degree Training

There are multiple options available to get training as a welder in a trade or vocational school. You can earn a diploma, a certificate or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are offered in Welding Technology or Welding Engineering, but are more advanced courses than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also made available along with an apprenticeship program. Below are brief summaries of the most common welding programs available in the Douglasville GA.

• Certificate and Diploma Programs are generally made available by trade and technical schools and take about 1 year to complete. They are more hands-on training in nature, created primarily to teach welding skills. They can provide a good foundation for a new journeyman or apprentice welder, or additional skills for working welders.
• Associate Degree Programs will take two years to finish and are usually offered by community colleges. An Associate Degree in Welding Technology offers a more extensive education than the certificate or diploma while still supplying the foundation that prepares students to enter the workforce.

Many states and municipalities do have licensing prerequisites for welders, so make sure to check for your location of future employment. As needed, the welding school you select should prep you for any licensing examinations that you will have to pass in addition to providing the suitable training to become a professional welder.

Welder Certification Options

There are various institutions that offer welder certifications, which evaluate the knowledge and skill level of those applying. Many Douglasville GA employers not only expect a degree or certificate from an accredited welding program, but also certification from a renowned agency such as the American Welding Society (AWS). A wide range of certifications are offered based upon the type of work that the welder does. Just some of the things that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to

• Work in compliance with specific codes
• Work with certain metal thicknesses
• Work with various kinds of welds
• Perform in compliance with contract specifications

As formerly mentioned, many states, cities or local municipalities have licensing requirements for welders. Of those calling for licensing, some additionally require certification for various kinds of work. Certification is also a way to prove to employers that you are an exceptionally skilled and qualified welder. So just as with licensing, look into the requirements for your location and make certain that the welding technical school you decide on readies you for certification if needed.

What to Ask Welder Tech Schools

Once you have chosen the credential you want to earn, a certificate, diploma or degree, you can begin to assess schools. As you probably know, there are a large number of welding trade and vocational schools in the Douglasville GA area. That’s why it’s important to determine in advance what qualifications your chosen school must have. We have previously covered 2 significant ones that most people look at first, which are location and tuition cost. As mentioned, although they are essential qualifiers, they are not the only ones that must be considered. After all, the program you select is going to furnish the instruction that will be the foundation of your new career as a welder. So below are more factors you may need to evaluate before choosing a welder vocational school.

Accreditation. It’s very important that the welding trade school you decide on is accredited by either a regional or a national agency. There are two basic types of accreditation. The school may attain Institutional Accreditation based on all of their programs. Programmatic Accreditation is based on a specific program the school offers, for instance Welding Technology. So make sure that the program you select is accredited, not just the school alone. Also, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting agency, such as the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). In addition to helping make sure that you receive a quality education, the accreditation might also help in acquiring financial aid or student loans, which are often unavailable in Douglasville GA for non-accredited schools. Finally, for those states or local governments that mandate licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited as well.

Apprenticeship and Job Assistance Programs. Many welding certificate or degree programs are provided combined with an apprenticeship program. Other schools will assist in placing you in a job or an apprenticeship upon graduation. Ask if the schools you are considering assist in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job placement program. These schools should have relationships with local unions and various metal working businesses to which they can place their students. More established schools may have a larger network of graduates that they can utilize for placements. These programs can help students find employment and develop associations within the Douglasville GA welding community.

Completion and Job Placement Rates. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students that begin an academic program and finish it. It’s crucial that the welder program you pick has a higher completion rate. A low rate might signify that the students who were in the program were unhappy with the training, the instructors, or the facilities, and dropped out. The job placement rate is also an indication of the quality of training. A high job placement rate will not only verify that the program has an excellent reputation within the industry, but also that it has the network of Douglasville GA employer relationships to help students obtain apprenticeships or employment after graduation.

Up-to-date Facilities and Equipment. After you have limited your choice of welding schools to two or three options, you should consider visiting the campuses to evaluate their facilities. Confirm that both the equipment and the facilities that you will be taught on are up-to-date. In particular, the training equipment should be comparable to what you will be using on the job. If you are not sure what to look for, and are currently in an apprenticeship program, ask the master welder you are working under for guidance. Otherwise, ask a local Douglasville GA welding professional if they can give you a few pointers.

School Location. Even though we previously briefly discussed the importance of location, there are a few additional points that we should deal with. You should keep in mind that unless you can relocate, the welding program you pick must be within driving distance of your Douglasville GA home. If you do decide to attend an out-of-state school, besides relocation costs there might be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is especially true for welding degree programs offered by community colleges. Also, if the school provides an apprenticeship or job placement program, more than likely their placements are within the school’s regional community. So the location of the school should be in an area or state where you subsequently will desire to work.

Small Classes. One-on-one instruction is important for a hands-on trade such as welding. It’s easy to get lost in bigger classes and not receive much one-on-one training. Ask what the typical class size is for the welding schools you are considering. Inquire if you can attend a couple of classes so that you can observe how much individual attention the students are getting. While there, speak with several of the students and get their evaluations. Also, chat with a couple of the trainers and ask what their welding experience has been and what certifications and credentials they have earned.

Flexible Class Scheduling. Lots of folks learn a new profession while still working at their present job. Confirm that the class schedules for the programs you are looking at are convenient enough to fulfill your needs. If you can only attend classes at night or on weekends near Douglasville GA, make sure that the schools you are considering provide those options. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, make certain that the school you select offers part-time enrollment. Also, ask what the protocol is to make up classes if you you miss any due to illness, work or family emergencies.

Online Welder Training Programs

Welding is very much a hands-on kind of vocation, and for that reason not extremely suitable for training online. However, there are a few online welding courses offered by certain community colleges and technical schools in the greater Douglasville GA area that can be credited toward a degree or certificate program. These classes primarily deal with such subjects as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help provide a novice a basis to initiate their training and education. Nevertheless, the most important point is that you can’t learn how to weld or work with welding materials unless you actually do it. Obviously that can’t be done online. These skills have to be learned in an on-campus setting or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is better suited for experienced welders that want to advance their expertise or perhaps obtain a more advanced degree. So if you should discover an online welding certificate or degree program, be extremely careful and make sure that the greater part of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of setting.

Attending a Welding School in Douglasville GA?

If you have decided to enroll in a welder training program in the Douglasville Georgia area, you may find the following information both informative and helpful about the location of your new school campus.

Select the Best Welding Trade Program Douglasville GA

Selecting the ideal welder training program will probably be the most important decision you will make to start your new trade. You originally stopped by our website because you had an interest in Best Welding Schools. However, as we have addressed in this article, there are several factors that you will need to evaluate and compare among the programs you are looking at. It’s a necessity that any welder school that you are considering includes a lot of hands-on training. Classes need to be small in size and every student must have their personal welding machine to train with. Classroom instruction needs to offer a real-world frame of reference, and the curriculum should be up-to-date and in-line with industry standards. Training programs differ in length and the kind of credential provided, so you will have to decide what length of program and certificate or degree will best serve your needs. Every program provides unique possibilities for certification also. Perhaps the best means to research your final list of schools is to go to each campus and speak with the students and instructors. Invest some time to attend a few classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the program you select is the ideal one for you. With the proper training, hard work and commitment, the final outcome will be a new occupation as a professional welder in Douglasville GA.