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Welding Schools Near Me | How to Become a Welder – Calhoun GA

How to Select a Welding Certification Course near Calhoun Georgia

Calhoun GA welding school studentEnrolling in the ideal welding school near Calhoun GA is an essential first step to beginning your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are a lot of schools to select from, how do you know which ones to consider? And more notably, once you have narrowed down your alternatives, how do you select the best one? Most prospective students begin by looking at the schools that are closest to their residences. Once they have identified those that are within commuting distance, they gravitate toward the least costly one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are crucial concerns when reviewing welding vocational schools, but they are not the only ones. Other factors include such things as reputation, accreditation and job placement rates. So before initiating your search for a trade school to become a welder, it’s sensible to develop a list of qualifications that your chosen school must have. But before we examine our due diligence checklist, let’s cover a little bit about how to become a welder.

Welder Degree and Certificate Training Courses

Calhoun GA welder working on pipingThere are multiple options to obtain training as a welder in a technical or trade school. You can earn a a certificate, a diploma or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are available in Welding Technology or Welding Engineering, but are more advanced degrees than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also offered combined with an apprenticeship program. Following are short summaries of the most common welding programs available in the Calhoun GA.

  • Diploma and Certificate Programs are usually made available by trade and technical schools and require about 1 year to complete. They are more hands-on training in nature, designed primarily to develop welding skills. They can furnish 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 well-rounded education than the diploma or certificate while still furnishing the foundation that prepares students to enter the workforce.

Many states and municipalities do have licensing prerequisites for welders, so don’t forget to find out for your location of future employment. If needed, the welding school you pick should prepare you for any licensing exams that you will need to pass in addition to supplying the proper training to become a qualified welder.

Welding Certification Options

Calhoun GA welder working on poleThere are a number of organizations that provide welding certifications, which test the skill level and knowledge of those applying. Many Calhoun GA employers not only expect a certificate or degree from an accredited welding program, but also certification from a highly regarded agency such as the American Welding Society (AWS). A variety of certifications are offered dependent on the kind of work that the welder does. Just some of the things that certification can acknowledge are the welder’s ability to

  • Operate in compliance with specific codes
  • Work with specified metal thicknesses
  • Work with certain types of welds
  • Work in compliance with contract specifications

As formerly mentioned, some cities, states or local municipalities have licensing mandates for welders. Of those calling for licensing, a number additionally require certification for various kinds of work. Certification is also a means to demonstrate to employers that you are an extremely skilled and experienced welder. So similarly as with licensing, check the requirements for your location and confirm that the welder tech school you choose readies you for certification as needed.

How to Decide on a Welder Tech School

Calhoun GA welder working on carAs soon as you have chosen the credential you would like to attain, a degree, certificate or diploma, you can start to evaluate schools. As you are no doubt aware, there are many welder trade and vocational schools in the Calhoun GA area. That’s why it’s essential to decide in advance what qualifications your chosen school must have. We have already discussed a couple of significant ones that most people consider first, which are location and tuition cost. As mentioned, although they are essential qualifiers, they are not the only ones that should be considered. After all, the school you choose is going to provide the education that will be the foundation of your new vocation as a welder. So below are more factors you might need to consider before selecting a welding technical school.

Accreditation. It’s essential that the welding trade school you pick is accredited by either a national or a regional agency. There are two standard kinds of accreditation. The school may receive Institutional Accreditation based on all of their programs. Programmatic Accreditation is based on a specific program the school has, for instance Welding Technology. So make certain that the program you select is accredited, not just the school itself. 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). Besides helping ensure that you obtain an excellent education, the accreditation can also assist in acquiring financial aid or student loans, which are often unavailable in Calhoun GA for schools that are not accredited. Finally, for those states or local governments that mandate licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited as well.

Job Placement and Apprenticeship Programs. A large number of welder degree or certificate programs are offered combined with an apprenticeship program. Other schools will help place you in a job or an apprenticeship after graduation. Ask if the schools you are looking at assist in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job placement program. The schools should have partnerships with local unions and various metal working businesses to which they can place 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 establish associations within the Calhoun GA welding community.

Completion and Job Placement Rates. The completion rate is the percentage of students that enroll in an academic program and finish it. It’s essential that the welding school you pick has a high completion rate. A reduced rate might signify that the students who enrolled in the program were unhappy with the training, the teachers, or the facilities, and quit. The job placement rate is also a good indicator of the caliber of training. A higher job placement rate will not only verify that the school has an excellent reputation within the field, but additionally that it has the network of Calhoun GA contacts to help students secure employment or apprenticeships upon graduation.

Modern Equipment and Facilities. Once you have narrowed down your selection of welder schools to two or three possibilities, you should think out visiting the campuses to evaluate their facilities. Make sure that both the equipment and the facilities that you will be trained on are up-to-date. In particular, the training equipment should be comparable to what you will be working with in the field. If you are not sure what to look for, and are already in an apprenticeship program, ask the master welder you are working under for guidance. If not, ask a local Calhoun GA welding contractor if they can give you some tips.

School Location. Even though we already briefly talked about the significance of location, there are a couple of additional issues that we need to deal with. You should bear in mind that unless you can relocate, the welding program you select must be within driving distance of your Calhoun GA home. If you do decide to attend an out-of-state school, besides moving expenses there may be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is particularly the case for welder certificate programs offered by community colleges. Also, if the school provides a job placement or apprenticeship program, most likely their placements are within the school’s local community. So the location of the school needs to be in an area or state where you subsequently will desire to work.

Small Classes. Personalized training is important for a manual trade such as welding. It’s possible to get lost in larger classes and not receive much one-on-one training. Find out what the usual class size is for the welder programs you are looking at. Inquire if you can sit in on a couple of classes so that you can see just how much personal attention the students are getting. While there, talk with a few of the students and get their evaluations. Similarly, talk with a few of the teachers and ask what their welding experience has been and what credentials and certifications they have earned.

Convenient Class Scheduling. Many people learn a new profession while still employed at their present job. Check to see that the class schedules for the programs you are considering are flexible enough to fulfill your needs. If you can only go to classes in the evenings or on weekends near Calhoun GA, make sure that the schools you are looking at provide those options. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, verify that the school you choose offers part-time enrollment. Also, check to see what the policy is to make up classes should you miss any due to work, illness or family circumstances.

Will You Be Attending Welding School Near Calhoun GA?

Perhaps you live in the Calhoun Georgia area, or have decided to enroll in a Welding Program that has a campus near there.  In either case, you may find this bit of history both interesting and informative.

Calhoun, Georgia

Calhoun was a part of the Cherokee Nation (including New Echota, capital of the Cherokee Nation) until December 29, 1835. Cherokee leaders such as The Ridge and William Hicks had developed numerous productive farms in the fertile Oothcaloga Valley. When the Cherokee refused to give up the remainder of their lands under the Indian Removal Act, after years of land cessions to the United States for white settlers in Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee, President Andrew Jackson sent US troops to the northern region of Georgia to force most of the tribe to move to Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River, most notably present-day Oklahoma. (See more information on Trail of Tears.)

In December 1827, Georgia had already claimed the Cherokee lands that became Gordon County and other counties. A small town called "Dawsonville" was created and founded in the Gordon County, named for the owner of an early general store.[9] Dawsonville was later renamed "Calhoun" to honor U.S. Senator John C. Calhoun,[10] following his death in 1850.

Gordon County's inferior court called an election for the selection of the county seat, offering voters a choice between a site on the Western & Atlantic Railroad (near Adairsville) or a site more centrally located within the county. Voters chose a site along the railroad, so the inferior court designated Calhoun as county seat in 1851. The legislature incorporated Calhoun in an act approved on January 12, 1852.[11]

Online Welding Classes

pipe welder at work in Calhoun GAWelding is truly a manual kind of trade, and for that reason not extremely compatible with training online. Even so, there are a small number of online welding classes offered by specific community colleges and technical schools in the greater Calhoun GA area that may count toward a certificate or degree program. These classes primarily cover such topics as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help give a novice a foundation to initiate their training and education. However, the most critical point is that you can’t learn how to weld or use welding materials until you actually do it. Obviously that can’t be done online. These skills must be learned in an on-campus environment or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is better suited for experienced welders that desire to advance their knowledge or possibly earn a more advanced degree. So if you should find an online welding degree or certificate program, be extremely cautious and confirm that the bulk of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of environment.

Select the Best Welding Trade School Calhoun GA

Picking the right welder school will probably be the most important decision you will make to launch your new career. As we have discussed in this article, there are many factors that you will need to assess and compare between the programs you are considering. It’s a necessity that any welder training that you are evaluating includes a good deal of hands-on training. Classes should be small in size and each student should have their own welding machine to train on. Classroom teaching needs to offer a real-world frame of reference, and the training program should be current and in-line with industry standards. Programs vary in duration and the type of credential provided, so you will need to ascertain what length of program and degree or certificate will best fulfill your needs. Each program offers different possibilities for certification also. Perhaps the best means to research your final list of schools is to check out each campus and speak with the faculty and students. Take the time to attend a few classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the school you pick is the right one for you. With the right training, effort and dedication, the final outcome will be a new career as a professional welder in Calhoun GA.

 

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