How to Pick the Right Welder Trade School near Meridian Idaho
Locating the right welder technical school near Meridian ID is an essential first step to starting 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 fine tuned your choices, how do you pick the right one? Many people start by checking out the schools that are closest to their homes. When they have identified those that are within commuting distance, they are drawn toward the least costly one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are crucial considerations when examining welder vocational schools, but they are not the only ones. Other concerns include such things as reputation, accreditation and job placement rates. So before beginning your search for a trade school to become a welder, it’s prudent to create a list of qualifications that your selected school must have. But before we delve into our due diligence checklist, let’s cover a little bit about how to become a welder.
Welding Certificate and Degree Training Courses
There are a number of options available to obtain training as a welder in a trade or technical school. You can receive a a certificate, a diploma or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are available in Welding Engineering or Welding Technology, but are more advanced degrees than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also made available along with an apprenticeship program. Following are short descriptions of the most common welding programs available in the Meridian ID.
- Diploma and Certificate Programs are generally made available by trade and technical schools and require about one year to complete. They are more hands-on training in nature, fashioned primarily to teach welding skills. They can furnish a good foundation for a new journeyman or apprentice welder, or supplemental skills for working welders.
- Associate Degree Programs will take 2 years to finish and are most often offered by community colleges. An Associate Degree in Welding Technology furnishes a more extensive education than the diploma or certificate while still supplying the foundation that readies students to enter the workforce.
Many states and municipalities do have licensing requirements for welders, so make sure to check for your location of potential employment. As needed, the welding school you pick should prep you for any licensing examinations that you will need to take in addition to providing the appropriate training to become a professional welder.
Welder Certification Choices
There are a number of organizations that provide welding certifications, which evaluate the skill level and knowledge of those applying. Many Meridian ID employers not only require a certificate or degree from an accredited welding school, but also certification from a highly regarded organization like the American Welding Society (AWS). Different certifications are offered based upon the kind of work that the welder performs. Some of the things that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to
- Work in compliance with specific codes
- Work with specified metal thicknesses
- Work with various kinds of welds
- Work in compliance with contract specifications
As earlier mentioned, various states, cities or local municipalities have licensing mandates for welders. Of those calling for licensing, many additionally require certification for various kinds of work. Certification is also a way to prove to employers that you are a highly skilled and knowledgeable welder. So just as with licensing, look into the requirements for your local area and make sure that the welding tech school you select prepares you for certification if needed.
Questions to Ask Welding Vocational Programs
When you have decided on the credential you would like to obtain, a degree, certificate or diploma, you can begin to assess schools. As you can imagine, there are a large number of welding vocational and trade schools in the Meridian ID area. That’s why it’s necessary to establish in advance what qualifications your school of choice must have. We have already discussed 2 important ones that most people consider first, which are location and tuition cost. As stated, although they are very important qualifications, they are not the only ones that need to be looked at. After all, the program you decide on is going to furnish the instruction that will be the foundation of your new vocation as a welder. So following are more factors you may want to evaluate before choosing a welder vocational school.
Accreditation. It’s very important that the welder tech school you decide on is accredited by either a regional or a national agency. There are two standard kinds 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 example Welding Technology. So verify that the program you choose is accredited, not just the school alone. Also, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting organization, like 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 obtaining financial assistance or student loans, which are in many cases not available in Meridian ID for non-accredited schools. Also, for those states or municipalities that mandate licensing, they may require that the welding training program be accredited also.
Apprenticeship and Job Assistance Programs. Numerous welding degree or diploma programs are offered in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Various other schools will assist in placing you in a job or an apprenticeship upon graduation. Find out if the schools you are looking at help in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job assistance program. These schools must have associations with local unions and other metal working businesses to which they can refer their students. Older 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 Meridian ID welding community.
Job Placement and Completion Rates. The completion rate is the percentage of students that begin an instructional program and finish it. It’s essential that the welder school you pick has a high completion rate. A low rate might indicate that the students who joined the program were unhappy with the instruction, the teachers, or the facilities, and dropped out. The job placement rate is also a good indicator of the quality of training. A higher job placement rate will not only confirm that the program has a good reputation within the industry, but also that it has the network of Meridian ID employer relationships to assist students secure employment or apprenticeships upon graduation.
Modern Equipment and Facilities. After you have limited your selection of welding programs to two or three options, you should consider visiting the campuses to look over their facilities. Confirm that both the equipment and the facilities that you will be taught on are up-to-date. Specifically, the training equipment should be comparable to what you will be using in the field. If you are uncertain 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 Meridian ID welding professional if they can give you some suggestions.
School Location. Although we already briefly discussed the relevance of location, there are a couple of additional issues that we need to cover. You should bear in mind that unless you can move, the welding program you choose must be within commuting distance of your Meridian ID home. If you do opt to attend an out-of-state school, apart from relocation costs there may be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is especially true for welding degree programs offered by community colleges. Furthermore, if the school offers a job placement or apprenticeship program, more than likely their placements are within the school’s regional community. So the location of the school should be in a region or state where you subsequently will wish to work.
Smaller Classes. Individualized training is essential for a hands-on trade such as welding. It’s easy to get lost in larger classes and not get much one-on-one instruction. Find out what the usual class size is for the welder programs you are looking at. Ask if you can sit in on some classes so that you can observe just how much personal attention the students are receiving. While there, speak with several of the students and get their evaluations. Similarly, speak with a few of the instructors and ask what their welding experience has been and what credentials and certifications they have earned.
Convenient Class Schedules. Some people learn a new trade while still employed at their present job. Make sure that the class schedules for the schools you are reviewing are flexible enough to satisfy your needs. If you can only go to classes at night or on weekends near Meridian ID, confirm that the schools you are looking at provide those options. If you can only enroll part-time, verify that the school you select offers part-time enrollment. Also, ask what the policy is to make up classes if you you miss any due to illness, work or family emergencies.
Online Welder Certificate and Degree Programs
Welding is truly a hands-on type of profession, and therefore not extremely compatible with online training. Even so, there are a few online welding classes offered by specific community colleges and trade schools in the greater Meridian ID area that can be credited toward a certificate or degree program. These courses primarily cover such subjects as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help provide a beginner a basis to start their education and training. However, the most important point is that you can’t learn how to weld or work with welding materials until 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 more appropriate for seasoned welders that desire to advance their knowledge or possibly attain a more advanced degree. So if you should come across an online welding certificate or degree program, be very cautious and confirm that the bulk of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of setting.
Attending a Welding School in Meridian ID?
If you have decided to enroll in a welder training program in the Meridian Idaho area, you may find the following information both informative and helpful about the location of your new school campus.
Meridian, Idaho
Meridian is a city located in Ada County in the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2010 census, the population of Meridian was 75,092 making it the third largest city in Idaho after Boise and Nampa.[5] Meridian is considered the state's fastest-growing city and among the fastest-growing cities in the United States.[6] A 2015 census estimate placed the population at approximately 90,739.[7] With a 2018 non-census population estimate of 106,410 and a 1,000 percent increase in population since 1990, the city is currently estimated as the second largest in the state.[8]
The town was established in 1891 on the Onweiler farm north of the present site and was called Hunter. Two years later an I.O.O.F. lodge was organized and called itself Meridian because it was located on the Boise Meridian and the town was renamed. The Settlers' Irrigation Ditch, 1892, changed the arid region into a productive farming community which was incorporated in 1902.[9]
Early settlers arriving in the area came with no knowledge of gravity flow irrigation. Their previous homes were in areas where rain provided the needed moisture to raise crops. Irrigation soon became a necessity, since having a water source was a requirement for receiving the patent for the land from the U.S. Land Office. Irrigation districts, such as the Nampa-Meridian and Settlers irrigation districts, continue to serve the immediate Meridian area.
Pick the Right Welding Tech Program Meridian ID
Selecting the ideal welder school will probably be the most important decision you will make to launch your new profession. You originally stopped by our website because you had an interest in Pipe Welding Courses. However, as we have addressed in this article, there are a number of factors that you will need to evaluate and compare among the schools you are reviewing. It’s a prerequisite that any welder school that you are examining includes a considerable amount of hands-on training. Classes need to be smaller in size and each student must have their own welding machine to train on. Classroom instruction needs to provide a real-world perspective, and the training program should be up-to-date and in-line with industry standards. Programs vary in duration and the type of credential offered, so you will need to determine what length of program and certificate or degree will best satisfy your needs. Every training program provides unique possibilities for certification as well. 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 monitor a few classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make sure that you are confident that the school you pick is the right one for you. With the right training, hard work and dedication, the end result will be a new career as a professional welder in Meridian ID.
Business Results 1 - 10 of 3
2 Reviews 
4 Reviews 
6 Reviews 