How to Find the Right Welder Technical School near Dawsonville Georgia

Selecting the ideal welding technical school near Dawsonville GA is an essential first step to launching your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are numerous schools to select from, how do you know which ones to consider? And more importantly, once you have narrowed down your options, how do you select the best one? Many prospective students begin by looking at the schools that are closest to their residences. Once they have located those that are within driving distance, they are drawn toward the least costly one. Yes, location and tuition cost are crucial concerns when evaluating welding vocational schools, but they are not the only ones. Other factors 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 prudent to create a list of qualifications that your chosen school must have. But before we delve into our due diligence checklist, let’s talk a little bit about how to become a welder.

Welder Degree and Certificate Training

There are a number of alternatives available to get 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 Engineering or Welding Technology, but are more advanced programs than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also made available combined with an apprenticeship program. Below are short explanations of the most typical welding programs available in the Dawsonville GA.

• Certificate and Diploma Programs are usually offered by trade and technical schools and take about a year to finish. They are more hands-on training in scope, designed 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 two years to complete 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 furnishing the foundation that prepares students to enter the workforce.

A number of municipalities and states do have licensing prerequisites for welders, therefore be sure to check for your location of future employment. As required, the welder school you choose should prepare you for any licensing exams that you will have to take in addition to supplying the suitable training to become a qualified welder.

Welder Certification Choices

There are a number of institutions that provide welder certifications, which assess the knowledge and skill level of those applying. Numerous Dawsonville GA employers not only demand a certificate or degree from an accredited welding school, but also certification from a renowned organization like the American Welding Society (AWS). Different certifications are offered dependent on the type of work that the welder performs. A few of the skills that certification can acknowledge are the welder’s ability to

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

As previously mentioned, some states, cities or local municipalities have licensing requirements for welders. Of those mandating licensing, some also require certification for different kinds of work. Certification is also a means to prove to employers that you are an exceptionally skilled and knowledgeable welder. So similarly as with licensing, check the requirements for your local area and make certain that the welding trade school you decide on preps you for certification as needed.

How to Pick a Welder Tech Program

Once you have chosen the credential you would like to obtain, a diploma, certificate or degree, you can begin to evaluate schools. As you probably know, there are many welding trade and vocational schools in the Dawsonville GA area. That’s why it’s necessary to determine up front what qualifications your chosen school must have. We have already discussed two important ones that most people look at first, which are location and the cost of tuition. As mentioned, although they are very important qualifiers, they are not the only ones that should be looked at. After all, the program you choose is going to furnish the education that will be the foundation of your new profession as a welder. So following are more factors you may want to consider before choosing a welder trade school.

Accreditation. It’s extremely important that the welding trade school you pick is accredited by either a national or a regional agency. There are 2 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 has, such as Welding Technology. So make sure that the program you choose is accredited, not just the school itself. Additionally, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education recognized 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 may also assist in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are frequently not available in Dawsonville GA for non-accredited schools. Also, for those states or municipalities that require licensing, they may require that the welding training program be accredited also.

Apprenticeship and Job Placement Programs. A large number of welder certificate or degree programs are offered in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Some other schools will help place you in an apprenticeship or a job upon graduation. Ask if the schools you are looking at help in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job placement program. These schools should have partnerships 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 rely upon for placements. These programs can assist students in finding employment and develop relationships within the Dawsonville GA welding community.

Job Placement and Completion Rates. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students that enroll in an academic program and finish it. It’s crucial that the welder school you pick has a high completion rate. A lower rate could indicate that the students who were in the program were unhappy with the training, the teachers, 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 confirm that the program has a good reputation within the industry, but additionally that it has the network of Dawsonville GA contacts to assist students obtain employment or apprenticeships after graduation.

Modern Equipment and Facilities. After you have narrowed down your selection of welder programs to 2 or 3 options, you should consider visiting the campuses to evaluate their facilities. Verify that both the facilities and the equipment that you will be instructed on are modern. Specifically, the training equipment should be comparable to what you will be working with in the field. If you are uncertain what to look for, and are already in an apprenticeship program, ask the master welder you are working under for guidance. Otherwise, ask a local Dawsonville GA welding contractor if they can give you a few pointers.

School Location. Even though we previously briefly discussed the relevance of location, there are a couple of additional points that we need to deal with. You should bear in mind that unless you are able to move, the welding program you choose needs to be within commuting distance of your Dawsonville GA home. If you do decide to attend an out-of-state school, besides relocation costs there may be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is especially the case for welding certificate programs offered by community colleges. Furthermore, if the school provides a job placement or apprenticeship program, more than likely their placements are within the school’s local community. So the location of the school should be in a region or state where you ultimately will want to work.

Smaller Classes. Personalized instruction is important for a hands-on trade such as welding. It’s easy to get overlooked in larger classes and not receive much one-on-one training. Ask what the typical class size is for the welder schools you are reviewing. Inquire if you can attend some classes so that you can experience how much individual attention the students are receiving. While there, talk with some of the students and get their opinions. Also, speak with a few of the instructors and ask what their welding experience has been and what certifications and credentials they have earned.

Flexible Class Schedules. Some people learn a new trade while still employed at their current job. Check to see that the class schedules for the schools you are reviewing are flexible enough to meet your needs. If you can only go to classes in the evenings or on weekends near Dawsonville GA, make sure that the schools you are assessing offer those options. If you can only attend part-time, confirm that the school you decide on offers part-time enrollment. Also, find out what the protocol is to make up classes if you you miss any because of work, illness or family emergencies.

Will You Be Attending Welding School Near Dawsonville GA?

Perhaps you live in the Dawsonville 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.

Online Welder Schools

Welding is truly a manual kind of profession, and consequently not very compatible with training online. Even so, there are a few online welding programs offered by certain community colleges and technical schools in the greater Dawsonville GA area that may count toward a degree or certificate program. These courses primarily cover such subjects as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help give a beginner a basis to start their training and education. Nevertheless, the most important point is that you can’t learn how to weld or handle welding materials until you actually do it. Clearly that can’t be accomplished online. These skills have to be learned in an on-campus setting or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is more appropriate for experienced welders that want to advance their knowledge or perhaps obtain a more advanced degree. So if you should come across an online welding degree or certificate program, be very careful and make sure that the larger part of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of setting.

Pick the Best Welding Tech Program Dawsonville GA

Choosing the right welder school will undoubtedly be the most important decision you will make to launch your new trade. As we have covered in this article, there are several factors that you will need to examine and compare among the programs you are considering. It’s a must that any welding training program that you are reviewing includes a good deal of hands-on training. Classes should be smaller in size and every student should have their personal welding machine to train on. Classroom instruction needs to provide a real-world perspective, and the curriculum should be current and in-line with industry standards. Programs vary in duration and the type of credential provided, so you will have to ascertain what length of program and degree or certificate will best serve your needs. Every program provides different options for certification also. Probably the best way to research your final list of schools is to check out each campus and talk with the faculty and students. Invest some time to attend some classes. Inspect the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the program you select is the right one for you. With the right training, hard work and dedication, the final result will be a new career as a professional welder in Dawsonville GA.