How to Enroll In a Welder Certification Course near Buckhead Georgia

Choosing the ideal welding school near Buckhead GA is an essential first step to beginning your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are a lot of schools to pick from, how do you know which ones to consider? And more notably, once you have narrowed down your alternatives, how do you pick the best one? A number of prospective students begin by looking at the schools that are nearest to their homes. Once they have found those that are within commuting distance, they are drawn toward the least costly one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are necessary issues when evaluating welding technical schools, but they are not the only ones. Other concerns include such things as accreditation, reputation and job placement rates. So before beginning your search for a trade school to become a welder, it’s wise to develop a list of qualifications that your chosen school must have. But before we explore our due diligence checklist, let’s cover a little bit about how to become a welder.

Welding Degree and Certificate Training Courses

There are several options available to receive training as a welder in a trade or technical school. You can receive a diploma, a certificate or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are available in Welding Engineering or Welding Technology, but are more advanced courses than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also made available along with an apprenticeship program. Following are brief descriptions of the most typical welding programs offered in the Buckhead GA.

• Certificate and Diploma Programs are usually offered by trade and technical schools and require about 1 year to complete. They are more hands-on training in nature, created largely to develop welding skills. They can furnish a good foundation for a new journeyman or apprentice welder, or specialized skills for working welders.
• Associate Degree Programs will take two years to finish and are most often offered by community colleges. An Associate Degree in Welding Technology offers a more extensive education than the diploma or certificate while still furnishing the foundation that readies students to enter the workforce.

Many municipalities and states do have licensing requirements for welders, so be sure to find out for your location of potential employment. As needed, the welding school you choose should prep you for any licensing examinations that you will need to pass in addition to supplying the proper training to become a qualified welder.

Welding Certification Options

There are several organizations that provide welder certifications, which test the knowledge and skill level of those applying. A large number of Buckhead GA employers not only demand a certificate or degree from an accredited welding program, but also certification from a highly regarded organization such as the American Welding Society (AWS). Different certifications are available dependent on the type of work that the welder does. A few of the things that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to

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

As previously mentioned, various cities, states 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 way to demonstrate to employers that you are an extremely skilled and knowledgeable welder. So similarly as with licensing, look into the requirements for your local area and verify that the welding tech school you choose readies you for certification as needed.

How to Pick a Welder Tech School

Once you have decided on the credential you would like to attain, a certificate, diploma or degree, you can start to assess schools. As you can imagine, there are many welder vocational and trade schools in the Buckhead GA area. That’s why it’s essential to decide up front what qualifications your chosen school must have. We have already covered two important 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 need to be looked at. After all, the school you select is going to furnish the training that will be the foundation of your new career as a welder. So following are more factors you may need to consider before picking a welding tech school.

Accreditation. It’s essential that the welding vocational school you select is accredited by either a national or a regional organization. There are two standard types of accreditation. The school may earn Institutional Accreditation based on all of their programs. Programmatic Accreditation is based on a specific program the school offers, for example Welding Technology. So confirm that the program you select is accredited, not just the school alone. Additionally, 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 make sure that you get a superior education, the accreditation may also assist in securing financial aid or student loans, which are in many cases not offered in Buckhead GA for schools that are not accredited. Also, for those states or local governments that require licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited also.

Apprenticeship and Job Assistance Programs. Numerous welding certificate or degree programs are offered in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Other schools will assist in placing you in an apprenticeship or a job upon graduation. Ask if the schools you are reviewing help in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job assistance program. The schools must 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 utilize for placements. These programs can assist students in finding employment and develop associations within the Buckhead 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 important that the welding program you choose has a high completion rate. A reduced rate could indicate that the students who enrolled in the program were dissatisfied with the instruction, the teachers, or the facilities, and quit. The job placement rate is also an indication of the quality of training. A higher job placement rate will not only verify that the school has a good reputation within the industry, but additionally that it has the network of Buckhead GA employer relationships to help students obtain employment or apprenticeships after graduation.

Up-to-date Facilities and Equipment. Once you have decreased your selection of welding schools to 2 or 3 options, you should consider visiting the campuses to evaluate their facilities. Verify that both the equipment and the facilities that you will be trained on are up-to-date. Specifically, the training equipment should be similar to what you will be working with on the job. If you are unsure 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 Buckhead GA welding contractor if they can give you a few pointers.

School Location. Even though we already briefly covered the significance of location, there are a couple of additional points that we need to deal with. You should keep in mind that unless you are able to move, the welding program you pick needs to be within driving distance of your Buckhead GA home. If you do opt to attend an out-of-state school, besides relocation costs there might be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is especially the case for welder diploma programs offered by community colleges. Additionally, if the school offers an apprenticeship or job placement program, often their placements are within the school’s local community. So the location of the school should be in an area or state where you subsequently will desire to work.

Smaller Classes. One-on-one training is important for a manual trade such as welding. It’s easy to get overlooked in larger classes and not obtain much personalized training. Ask what the average class size is for the welder programs you are looking at. Inquire if you can attend some classes so that you can see how much personal attention the students are getting. While there, talk with several 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 certifications and credentials they hold.

Flexible Class Scheduling. Many people learn a new profession while still employed at their present job. Confirm that the class schedules for the programs you are considering are flexible enough to satisfy your needs. If you can only attend classes at night or on weekends near Buckhead GA, verify that the schools you are looking at provide those options. If you can only enroll on a part-time basis, make sure 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 responsibilities.

Will You Be Attending Welding School Near Buckhead GA?

Perhaps you live in the Buckhead 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 Certificate and Degree Programs

Welding is truly a manual kind of trade, and for that reason not extremely suitable for online training. Even so, there are a few online welding courses offered by specific community colleges and vocational schools in the greater Buckhead GA area that may count toward a degree or certificate program. These classes primarily deal with such subjects as reading blueprints, safety,, and metallurgy. They can help give a beginner a foundation to initiate their training and education. 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 performed online. These skills have to be learned in an on-campus environment or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is better suited for experienced welders that want to advance their knowledge or perhaps earn a more advanced degree. So if you should come across an online welding degree or certificate program, be very careful and verify that the bulk of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of environment.

Pick the Best Welding Tech School Buckhead GA

Choosing the right welder training program will undoubtedly be the most important decision you will make to begin your new profession. As we have discussed in this article, there are many things that you will need to examine and compare among the schools you are looking at. It’s a must that any welding school that you are examining includes a good deal of hands-on instruction. Classes should be smaller 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 course of study should be current and in-line with industry standards. Programs vary in length and the type of credential provided, so you will need to ascertain what length of program and degree or certificate will best satisfy your needs. Each program provides different possibilities for certification also. Probably the best way to research your short list of schools is to go to each campus and speak with the students and instructors. Invest some time to sit in on a few classes. Inspect the campus and facilities. Make sure that you are confident that the school you decide on is the best one for you. With the proper training, effort and commitment, the end outcome will be a new trade as a professional welder in Buckhead GA.