How to Select a Welding Certification Class near Winona Lake Indiana

Locating the ideal welding vocational school near Winona Lake IN is an essential first step to beginning your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are a lot of schools to choose from, how do you determine which ones to consider? And more significantly, once you have narrowed down your choices, how do you select the best one? A number of people start by looking at the schools that are closest to their residences. Once they have located those that are within commuting distance, they are drawn toward the least costly one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are crucial considerations when evaluating welder technical schools, but they are not the only ones. Other considerations include such things as accreditation, reputation and job placement rates. So before initiating your search for a vocational school to become a welder, it’s prudent to develop a list of qualifications that your selected school must have. But before we examine our due diligence checklist, let’s cover a little bit about how to become a welder.

Welder Degree and Certificate Programs

There are multiple options available to obtain training as a welder in a trade or technical school. You can obtain a diploma, a certificate or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are available in Welding Technology or Welding Engineering, but are more advanced degrees than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also offered along with an apprenticeship program. Below are brief descriptions of the most prevalent welding programs available in the Winona Lake IN.

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

A number of municipalities and states do have licensing requirements for welders, therefore make sure to find out for your location of potential employment. As required, the welder school you select should ready you for any licensing exams that you will have to take in addition to supplying the proper training to become a professional welder.

Welding Certification Choices

There are multiple organizations that offer welder certifications, which test the skill level and knowledge of those applying. A large number of Winona Lake IN employers not only require a certificate or degree from an accredited welding school, but also certification from a highly regarded agency like the American Welding Society (AWS). A variety of certifications are available based upon the kind of work that the welder performs. Just some of the skills that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to

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

As earlier mentioned, some states, cities or local municipalities have licensing requirements for welders. Of those calling for 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 experienced welder. So just as with licensing, check the requirements for your location and make certain that the welder technical school you decide on readies you for certification if needed.

How to Pick a Welding Technical Program

When you have chosen the credential you would like to obtain, a degree, certificate or diploma, you can begin to assess schools. As you can imagine, there are many welder trade and technical schools in the Winona Lake IN area. That’s why it’s necessary to decide in advance what qualifications your selected school must have. We have already covered two important ones that most people consider first, which are location and the cost of tuition. As mentioned, although they are essential qualifiers, they are not the only ones that need to be considered. After all, the program you select is going to provide the training that will be the foundation of your new profession as a welder. So following are more factors you may want to consider before picking a welder technical school.

Accreditation. It’s very important that the welding vocational school you choose is accredited by either a national or a regional 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 a single program the school offers, for example Welding Technology. So confirm that the program you pick is accredited, not just the school itself. Additionally, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting organization, such as the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). In addition to helping ensure that you get a superior education, the accreditation can also help in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are frequently unavailable in Winona Lake IN for non-accredited schools. Also, for those states or local governments that require licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited as well.

Apprenticeship and Job Placement Programs. Numerous welder certificate or degree programs are provided in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Other schools will assist in placing you in an apprenticeship or a job upon graduation. Find out if the schools you are looking at assist in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job placement program. These schools should have associations with local unions and various metal working businesses to which they can refer their students. More established schools may have a more substantial network of graduates that they can rely upon for placements. These programs can help students find employment and develop relationships within the Winona Lake IN welding community.

Job Placement and Completion Rates. The completion rate is the percentage of students that enroll in an academic program and complete it. It’s crucial that the welder program you pick has a high completion rate. A low rate could indicate that the students who enrolled in the program were dissatisfied with the instruction, the instructors, 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 verify that the school has a good reputation within the trade, but also that it has the network of Winona Lake IN employer relationships to help students secure apprenticeships or employment after graduation.

Modern Equipment and Facilities. Once you have decreased your choice of welder programs to two or three options, you should consider going to the campuses to evaluate their facilities. Verify that both the facilities and the equipment that you will be trained on are up-to-date. In particular, the training equipment should be comparable to what you will be using on the job. If you are uncertain what to look for, and are currently in an apprenticeship program, consult with the master welder you are working under for guidance. If not, ask a local Winona Lake IN welding contractor if they can give you a few tips.

School Location. Even though we previously briefly discussed the significance of location, there are a few additional issues that we should cover. You should remember that unless you are able to relocate, the welder school you select must be within commuting distance of your Winona Lake IN home. If you do opt to attend an out-of-state school, besides relocation costs there could be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is particularly true for welding certificate programs offered by community colleges. Also, if the school offers an apprenticeship or job placement program, most likely their placements are within the school’s regional community. So the location of the school should be in an area or state where you subsequently will wish to work.

Smaller Classes. Personalized instruction is essential for a hands-on trade such as welding. It’s possible to get lost in larger classes and not obtain much one-on-one instruction. Find out what the typical class size is for the welder programs you are looking at. Ask if you can sit in on a few classes so that you can witness how much personal attention the students are getting. While there, talk with several of the students and get their evaluations. Also, talk to some of the instructors and ask what their welding experience has been and what credentials and certifications they hold.

Convenient Class Schedules. Lots of folks learn a new trade while still employed at their present job. Check to see that the class schedules for the schools you are considering are convenient enough to meet your needs. If you can only attend classes in the evenings or on weekends near Winona Lake IN, confirm that the schools you are reviewing provide those alternatives. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, verify that the school you select offers part-time enrollment. Also, ask what the protocol is to make up classes should you miss any due to illness, work or family circumstances.

Will You Be Attending Welding School Near Winona Lake IN?

Perhaps you live in the Winona Lake Indiana 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 very much a hands-on kind of trade, and for that reason not extremely suitable for training online. However, there are a small number of online welding classes offered by certain community colleges and trade schools in the greater Winona Lake IN area that may be credited toward a degree or certificate program. These classes primarily deal with such topics as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help provide a beginner a foundation to start their education and training. However, the most important point is that you can’t learn how to weld or handle welding materials until you actually do it. Obviously that can’t be performed online. These skills need to be learned in an on-campus setting or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is better suited for seasoned welders that want to advance their expertise or possibly obtain a more advanced degree. So if you should find an online welding degree or certificate program, be very cautious and verify that the majority of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of setting.

Choose the Right Welding Vocational Program Winona Lake IN

Choosing the best welder school will probably be the most important decision you will make to start your new trade. As we have discussed in this article, there are several things that you will need to assess and compare between the programs you are looking at. It’s a must that any welder training program that you are assessing includes a considerable amount of hands-on instruction. Classes should be small in size and each student should have their own welding machine to train with. Classroom instruction needs to provide a real-world frame of reference, and the curriculum should be current and in-line with industry standards. Courses vary in length and the kind of credential provided, so you will need to determine what length of program and degree or certificate will best satisfy your needs. Every training program offers unique possibilities for certification also. Probably the best approach to research your final list of schools is to check out each campus and talk with the students and instructors. Invest some time to monitor some classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make sure that you are confident that the program you select is the best one for you. With the right training, hard work and dedication, the end outcome will be a new occupation as a professional welder in Winona Lake IN.