How to Select a Welding Certification Class near Westbrook Maine

Choosing the ideal welder vocational school near Westbrook ME is an essential first step to beginning your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are so many schools to choose from, how do you determine which ones to consider? And more importantly, once you have narrowed down your alternatives, how do you pick the right one? Most prospective students begin by reviewing the schools that are nearest to their homes. Once they have located those that are within driving distance, they gravitate toward the least costly one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are necessary concerns when examining welder trade schools, but they are not the only ones. Other factors 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 sensible to establish 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 Programs

There are several options to obtain training as a welder in a technical or trade school. You can obtain a diploma, a certificate or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are offered in Welding Engineering or Welding Technology, but are more advanced degrees than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also offered in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Below are short explanations of the most prevalent welding programs offered in the Westbrook ME.

• Certificate and Diploma Programs are usually offered by technical and trade schools and take about 1 year to finish. They are more hands-on training in nature, created largely 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 complete and are most often offered by community colleges. An Associate Degree in Welding Technology provides a more extensive education than the diploma or certificate while still furnishing the foundation that readies students to enter the workforce.

Some states and municipalities do have licensing requirements for welders, so don’t forget to find out for your location of potential employment. If needed, the welder school you choose should ready you for any licensing exams that you will have to take in addition to supplying the proper training to become a qualified welder.

Welder Certification Choices

There are a number of institutions that offer welding certifications, which evaluate the knowledge and skill level of those applying. Numerous Westbrook ME employers not only expect a certificate or degree from an accredited welding school, but also certification from a highly regarded agency like the American Welding Society (AWS). A wide range of certifications are available based on the kind of work that the welder performs. Just some of the skills that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to

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

As previously stated, some states, cities or local municipalities have licensing mandates for welders. Of those requiring licensing, a number additionally require certification for various kinds of work. Certification is also a way to prove to employers that you are an exceptionally skilled and knowledgeable welder. So just as with licensing, look into the requirements for your local area and make certain that the welder trade school you choose preps you for certification as needed.

How to Select a Welding Technical Program

Once you have decided on the credential you would like to obtain, a certificate, diploma or degree, you can start to assess schools. As you probably know, there are many welder vocational and trade schools in the Westbrook ME area. That’s why it’s essential to establish in advance what qualifications your chosen school must have. We have previously covered 2 important ones that many people consider first, which are location and the cost of tuition. As mentioned, although they are very important qualifiers, they are not the only ones that must be looked at. After all, the program you pick is going to furnish the education that will be the foundation of your new vocation as a welder. So following are more factors you might want to evaluate before selecting a welder tech school.

Accreditation. It’s extremely important that the welding vocational school you decide on is accredited by either a regional or a national organization. There are 2 basic types of accreditation. The school may attain Institutional Accreditation based on all of their programs. Programmatic Accreditation is based on an individual program the school has, for instance Welding Technology. So make certain that the program you select is accredited, not just the school itself. Additionally, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting organization, for example the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). In addition to helping make sure that you receive a superior education, the accreditation might also assist in securing financial aid or student loans, which are frequently not available in Westbrook ME for non-accredited schools. Finally, for those states or municipalities that mandate licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited also.

Apprenticeship and Job Placement Programs. Numerous welding degree or certificate programs are offered in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Other schools will help place 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 placement program. The schools must have partnerships with local unions and various metal working businesses to which they can refer their students. Older schools may have a more substantial network of graduates that they can utilize for placements. These programs can assist students in finding employment and develop relationships within the Westbrook ME welding community.

Job Placement and Completion Rates. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students that enroll in an educational program and finish it. It’s crucial that the welding program you choose has a high completion rate. A lower rate could signify that the students who enrolled in the program were dissatisfied with the training, the instructors, 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 program has an excellent reputation within the industry, but also that it has the network of Westbrook ME employer relationships to help students secure apprenticeships or employment upon graduation.

Up-to-date Facilities and Equipment. After you have decreased your selection of welding programs to two or three options, you should consider going to the campuses to look over their facilities. Verify that both the equipment and the facilities that you will be trained on are modern. Specifically, 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 already in an apprenticeship program, ask the master welder you are working under for guidance. Otherwise, ask a local Westbrook ME welding contractor if they can give you a few suggestions.

School Location. Even though we already briefly talked about the importance of location, there are a few additional points that we need to deal with. You should remember that unless you have the ability to move, the welder school you choose must be within commuting distance of your Westbrook ME home. If you do opt to attend an out-of-state school, apart from relocation costs there might be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is especially true for welder certificate 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 local community. So the location of the school needs to be in an area or state where you ultimately will wish to work.

Small Classes. Individualized training is essential for a hands-on trade such as welding. It’s easy to get lost in larger classes and not receive much personalized training. Find out what the average class size is for the welding schools you are looking at. Inquire if you can sit in on some classes so that you can observe just how much individual attention the students are getting. While there, talk with some of the students and get their feedback. Similarly, chat with some of the teachers and find out what their welding experience has been and what credentials and certifications they hold.

Convenient Class Schedules. Many people learn a new trade while still employed at their present job. Verify that the class schedules for the programs you are considering are convenient enough to meet your needs. If you can only attend classes at night or on weekends near Westbrook ME, confirm that the schools you are reviewing provide those options. If you can only attend part-time, verify that the school you decide on offers part-time enrollment. Also, find out what the policy is to make up classes should you miss any because of illness, work or family emergencies.

Will You Be Attending Welding School Near Westbrook ME?

Perhaps you live in the Westbrook Maine 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 Welding Training

Welding is very much a hands-on kind of vocation, and therefore not very compatible with training online. Having said that, there are a small number of online welding classes offered by certain community colleges and technical schools in the greater Westbrook ME area that can count toward a certificate or degree program. These courses mainly deal with such topics as reading blueprints, safety,, and metallurgy. They can help give a novice a foundation to initiate their education and training. Nevertheless, the most important point is that you can’t learn how to weld or work with welding materials until you actually do it. Clearly 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 would like to advance their expertise or possibly attain a more advanced degree. So if you should come across an online welding certificate or degree program, be very cautious and verify that the majority of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of setting.

Pick the Ideal Welding Technical School Westbrook ME

Picking the ideal welder training program will undoubtedly be the most important decision you will make to launch your new career. As we have covered in this article, there are a number of factors that you will need to assess and compare between the schools you are reviewing. It’s a prerequisite that any welder training that you are considering includes a lot of hands-on training. Classes should be small in size and each student must have their personal welding machine to train with. Classroom instruction needs to provide a real-world frame of reference, and the course of study should be current and in-line with industry standards. Training programs differ in duration and the type of credential provided, so you will have to determine what length of program and degree or certificate will best satisfy your needs. Each training program offers unique options for certification as well. Perhaps the best means to research your final list of schools is to check out each campus and talk with the students and instructors. Invest some time to sit in on a few classes. Inspect the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the program you decide on is the ideal one for you. With the proper training, effort and dedication, the final result will be a new career as a professional welder in Westbrook ME.