How to Choose a Welding Certification Class near Bay Saint Louis Mississippi

Finding the ideal welder trade school near Bay Saint Louis MS is an important first step to starting your new career as a professional welder. But since there are a lot of schools to choose from, how do you know which ones to consider? And more importantly, once you have narrowed down your options, how do you pick the best one? Many prospective students start by reviewing the schools that are nearest to their homes. Once they have found those that are within commuting distance, they gravitate toward the least costly one. Yes, location and tuition cost are necessary issues when examining welder technical schools, but they are not the only ones. Other factors include such things as accreditation, reputation and job placement rates. So before starting your search for a trade school to become a welder, it’s wise to develop 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.

Welder Degree and Certificate Programs

There are a number of options to get training as a welder in a trade or vocational school. You can obtain a a certificate, a diploma or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are offered in Welding Technology or Welding Engineering, but are more advanced programs than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also made available in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Below are short explanations of the most prevalent welding programs available in the Bay Saint Louis MS.

• Diploma and Certificate Programs are normally offered by trade and technical schools and take about 1 year to finish. They are more hands-on training in scope, fashioned primarily to teach 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 2 years to finish and are most often offered by community colleges. An Associate Degree in Welding Technology offers a more well-rounded education than the diploma or certificate while still supplying the foundation that readies students to enter the workforce.

A number of municipalities and states do have licensing prerequisites for welders, therefore don’t forget to check for your location of potential employment. As needed, the welding school you pick should prepare you for any licensing examinations that you will have to take in addition to furnishing the suitable training to become a qualified welder.

Welding Certification Alternatives

There are multiple institutions that provide welder certifications, which evaluate the knowledge and skill level of those applying. A large number of Bay Saint Louis MS employers not only require a degree or certificate from an accredited welding program, but also certification from a respected organization like the American Welding Society (AWS). A wide range of certifications are offered dependent on the kind of work that the welder does. Just some of the skills that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to

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

As earlier mentioned, many cities, states or local municipalities have licensing mandates for welders. Of those requiring licensing, some also require certification for different types of work. Certification is also a way to prove to employers that you are an exceptionally skilled and qualified welder. So just as with licensing, check the requirements for your location and make sure that the welding tech school you decide on readies you for certification if needed.

How to Pick a Welder Tech Program

Once you have chosen the credential you want to obtain, a diploma, certificate or degree, you can start to compare schools. As you probably know, there are numerous welding trade and vocational schools in the Bay Saint Louis MS 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 important ones that many people look at first, which are location and the cost of tuition. As stated, although they are very important qualifications, they are not the only ones that should be considered. After all, the school you choose is going to provide the instruction that will be the foundation of your new profession as a welder. So following are some additional factors you may need to consider before selecting a welder trade school.

Accreditation. It’s very important that the welder technical school you choose 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 an individual program the school has, for instance Welding Technology. So make sure that the program you pick is accredited, not just the school itself. Also, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting organization, for example the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). In addition to helping ensure that you get a quality education, the accreditation may also assist in acquiring financial assistance or student loans, which are often unavailable in Bay Saint Louis MS for non-accredited schools. Also, for those states or local governments that mandate licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited also.

Apprenticeship and Job Placement Programs. A large number of welder diploma or degree programs are provided 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 reviewing assist 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 place their students. More established schools may have a more substantial network of graduates that they can utilize for referrals. These programs can assist students in finding employment and develop relationships within the Bay Saint Louis MS welding community.

Completion and Job Placement Rates. The completion rate is the percentage of students that start an instructional program and finish it. It’s important that the welding school you choose has a high completion rate. A low rate might 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 a good indicator of the quality of training. A higher job placement rate will not only confirm that the school has an excellent reputation within the trade, but also that it has the network of Bay Saint Louis MS employer relationships to help students obtain apprenticeships or employment upon graduation.

Modern Facilities and Equipment. After you have narrowed down your selection of welding programs to two or three possibilities, you should consider visiting the campuses to inspect their facilities. Make sure 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. If not, ask a local Bay Saint Louis MS welding professional if they can give you some pointers.

School Location. Even though we already briefly discussed the importance of location, there are a few additional points that we should cover. You should bear in mind that unless you are able to move, the welder program you select must be within commuting distance of your Bay Saint Louis MS home. If you do opt to enroll in an out-of-state school, besides relocation costs there might be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is particularly true for welder diploma programs offered by community colleges. Furthermore, if the school provides an apprenticeship or job placement program, most likely their placements are within the school’s local community. So the location of the school needs to be in a region or state where you ultimately will wish to work.

Smaller Classes. Individualized instruction is important for a hands-on trade such as welding. It’s possible to be lost in larger classes and not receive much individualized training. Find out what the usual class size is for the welding programs you are considering. Inquire if you can sit in on a few classes so that you can see how much individual attention the students are getting. While there, speak with several of the students and get their feedback. Similarly, talk to some of the instructors and find out what their welding experience has been and what credentials and certifications they have earned.

Flexible Class Scheduling. Some people learn a new trade while still working at their current job. Make sure that the class schedules for the programs you are reviewing are flexible enough to meet your needs. If you can only go to classes at night or on weekends near Bay Saint Louis MS, make sure that the schools you are looking at offer those options. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, make sure 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 work, illness or family responsibilities.

Will You Be Attending Welding School Near Bay Saint Louis MS?

Perhaps you live in the Bay Saint Louis Mississippi 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 hands-on type of vocation, and therefore not extremely suitable for training online. Having said that, there are some online welding classes offered by various community colleges and vocational schools in the greater Bay Saint Louis MS area that may count toward a certificate or degree program. These classes mainly cover such subjects as reading blueprints, safety,, and metallurgy. They can help give a beginner a basis to start their education and training. Nevertheless, the most significant point is that you can’t learn how to weld or work with welding materials unless you actually do it. Clearly that can’t be done online. These skills need to be learned in an on-campus environment or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is better suited for seasoned welders that desire to advance their knowledge or possibly earn a more advanced degree. So if you should discover 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 environment.

Find the Right Welding Trade School Bay Saint Louis MS

Selecting the right welder training program will probably be the most important decision you will make to start your new trade. As we have addressed in this article, there are a number of factors that you will need to assess and compare between the schools you are considering. It’s a must that any welding training that you are evaluating includes a lot of hands-on training. Classes need to be small in size and every student must have their personal welding machine to train with. Classroom teaching should provide a real-world frame of reference, and the training program should be up-to-date and conform with industry standards. Courses differ in duration and the type of credential offered, so you will have to ascertain what length of program and credential will best satisfy your needs. Each program provides different options for certification also. Perhaps the best way to research your final list of schools is to check out each campus and speak with the students and instructors. Invest some time to monitor some classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the school you pick is the best one for you. With the proper training, hard work and dedication, the final result will be a new occupation as a professional welder in Bay Saint Louis MS.