How to Find the Right Welding Trade School near Boardman Oregon

Choosing the right welder technical school near Boardman OR is an essential first step to starting your new career as a professional welder. But since there are so many schools to select from, how do you know which ones to consider? And more importantly, once you have fine tuned your options, how do you select the best one? Most people start by looking at the schools that are closest to their residences. Once they have located those that are within driving distance, they gravitate toward the cheapest one. Yes, location and tuition cost are necessary considerations when examining welder vocational schools, but they are not the only ones. Other considerations include such things as reputation, accreditation and job placement rates. So before initiating your search for a vocational school to become a welder, it’s prudent to establish a list of qualifications that your selected school must have. But before we examine our due diligence checklist, let’s talk a little bit about how to become a welder.

Welding Certificate and Degree Training

There are multiple options available to receive training as a welder in a trade or vocational school. You can earn a diploma, a certificate or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are offered 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. Following are brief summaries of the most prevalent welding programs offered in the Boardman OR.

• Diploma and Certificate Programs are usually made available by technical and trade schools and take about a year to complete. They are more hands-on training in nature, created primarily to develop 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 2 years to finish and are most often offered by community colleges. An Associate Degree in Welding Technology furnishes a more well-rounded education than the certificate or diploma while still supplying the foundation that prepares students to enter the workforce.

Some municipalities and states do have licensing requirements for welders, therefore be sure to find out for your location of future employment. If needed, the welding school you select should prep you for any licensing exams that you will need to pass in addition to providing the suitable training to become a professional welder.

Welding Certification Choices

There are multiple organizations that provide welder certifications, which assess the knowledge and skill level of those applying. A large number of Boardman OR employers not only require a degree or certificate from an accredited welding program, but also certification from a renowned agency such as the American Welding Society (AWS). A variety of certifications are available dependent on the kind of work that the welder does. Some of the things that certification can acknowledge are the welder’s ability to

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

As previously mentioned, many states, cities or local municipalities have licensing mandates for welders. Of those requiring licensing, a number also require certification for various kinds of work. Certification is also a way to prove to employers that you are an exceptionally skilled and qualified welder. So similarly as with licensing, look into the requirements for your location and make certain that the welding vocational school you choose preps you for certification as needed.

How to Select a Welding Trade School

After you have decided on the credential you would like to attain, a diploma, certificate or degree, you can start to evaluate schools. As you are no doubt aware, there are numerous welding trade and technical schools in the Boardman OR area. That’s why it’s important to decide up front what qualifications your chosen school must have. We have already covered 2 significant ones that many 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 looked at. After all, the school you decide on is going to furnish the education that will be the foundation of your new vocation as a welder. So below are some additional factors you may need to consider before choosing a welder tech school.

Accreditation. It’s extremely important that the welder tech school you select is accredited by either a regional or a national agency. There are 2 standard types of accreditation. The school may earn Institutional Accreditation based on all of their programs. Programmatic Accreditation is based on an individual program the school has, such as Welding Technology. So make certain that the program you choose is accredited, not just the school itself. 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). In addition to helping ensure that you obtain a quality education, the accreditation can also assist in acquiring financial aid or student loans, which are often unavailable in Boardman OR for schools that are not accredited. Finally, for those states or municipalities that mandate licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited also.

Apprenticeship and Job Assistance Programs. Many welding degree or certificate programs are provided in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Various other schools will help place you in an apprenticeship or a job upon graduation. Ask if the schools you are considering assist in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job placement program. These schools should have relationships with local unions and other metal working businesses to which they can place their students. More established schools may have a larger network of graduates that they can utilize for referrals. These programs can help students find employment and establish associations within the Boardman OR welding community.

Completion and Job Placement Rates. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students that begin an academic program and complete it. It’s essential that the welding school you pick has a high completion rate. A low rate might signify that the students who enrolled in the program were unhappy with the instruction, the teachers, or the facilities, and dropped out. The job placement rate is also a good indicator of the quality of training. A high job placement rate will not only verify that the program has an excellent reputation within the industry, but additionally that it has the network of Boardman OR employer relationships to assist students obtain apprenticeships or employment after graduation.

Modern Equipment and Facilities. After you have decreased your choice of welding programs to 2 or 3 possibilities, you should consider going to the campuses to inspect their facilities. Verify that both the equipment and the facilities that you will be taught on are up-to-date. Specifically, the training equipment should be similar to what you will be using in the field. If you are uncertain what to look for, and are already in an apprenticeship program, consult with the master welder you are working under for guidance. Otherwise, ask a local Boardman OR welding contractor if they can give you a few suggestions.

School Location. Even though we previously briefly covered the relevance of location, there are a couple of additional issues that we need to address. You should remember that unless you are able to move, the welder program you pick needs to be within commuting distance of your Boardman OR home. If you do decide to enroll in an out-of-state school, in addition to moving costs there might be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is particularly true for welding diploma programs offered by community colleges. Also, 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. Personalized instruction is essential for a manual trade such as welding. It’s easy to get lost in bigger classes and not obtain much individualized instruction. Find out what the usual class size is for the welding schools you are reviewing. Ask if you can sit in on some classes so that you can experience how much personal attention the students are receiving. While there, speak with some of the students and get their feedback. Also, talk with a couple of the instructors and ask what their welding experience has been and what certifications and credentials they have earned.

Convenient Class Schedules. Lots of folks learn a new trade while still working at their current job. Confirm that the class schedules for the schools you are reviewing are flexible enough to fulfill your needs. If you can only attend classes in the evenings or on weekends near Boardman OR, make sure that the schools you are considering offer those options. If you can only enroll part-time, make sure that the school you choose offers part-time enrollment. Also, ask what the policy is to make up classes if you you miss any because of illness, work or family emergencies.

Will You Be Attending Welding School Near Boardman OR?

Perhaps you live in the Boardman Oregon 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 profession, and therefore not extremely compatible with training online. However, there are a small number of online welding courses offered by specific community colleges and vocational schools in the greater Boardman OR area that may be credited toward a degree or certificate program. These courses mainly deal with such subjects as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help give a beginner a basis to begin their training and education. However, the most critical point is that you can’t learn how to weld or handle welding materials until you actually do it. Obviously 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 experienced welders that would like to advance their knowledge or possibly obtain a more advanced degree. So if you should come across an online welding degree or certificate program, be very cautious and make sure that the majority of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of environment.

Choose the Ideal Welding Vocational Program Boardman OR

Picking the ideal welder school will undoubtedly be the most important decision you will make to start your new profession. As we have covered in this article, there are a number of factors that you will need to evaluate and compare among the schools you are considering. It’s a must that any welding school that you are reviewing includes a good deal of hands-on instruction. Classes should be small in size and every student should have their personal welding machine to train with. Classroom instruction needs to offer a real-world perspective, and the course of study should be current and conform with industry standards. Courses vary in length and the type of credential provided, so you will need to decide what length of program and certificate or degree will best satisfy your needs. Each training program provides different possibilities for certification as well. Perhaps the best approach to research your final list of schools is to check out each campus and speak with the teachers and students. Invest some time to monitor some classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the school you select is the ideal one for you. With the proper training, hard work and dedication, the final outcome will be a new trade as a professional welder in Boardman OR.