Welding Schools Near Me | How to Become a Welder – West Jordan UT

How to Choose a Welder Certification Program near West Jordan Utah

West Jordan UT welding school studentChoosing the right welder technical school near West Jordan UT is an important first step to launching your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are numerous schools to select from, how do you determine which ones to consider? And more importantly, once you have narrowed down your choices, how do you select the best one? Most people begin by looking at the schools that are closest to their residences. When they have identified those that are within driving distance, they gravitate toward the least expensive one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are crucial concerns when evaluating welding vocational 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 vocational 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 talk a little bit about how to become a welder.

Welder Degree and Certificate Training

West Jordan UT welder working on pipingThere are several 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 degrees than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also offered along with an apprenticeship program. Below are short descriptions of the most prevalent welding programs offered in the West Jordan UT.

  • Certificate and Diploma Programs are usually made available by technical and trade schools and take about 1 year to complete. They are more hands-on training in scope, fashioned largely to teach 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 usually offered by community colleges. An Associate Degree in Welding Technology offers a more well-rounded education than the diploma or certificate while still furnishing the foundation that prepares students to enter the workforce.

A number of states and municipalities do have licensing requirements for welders, therefore don’t forget to find out for your location of future employment. As required, the welder school you pick should prepare you for any licensing examinations that you will need to take in addition to providing the suitable training to become a professional welder.

Welding Certification Options

West Jordan UT welder working on poleThere are a number of organizations that offer welder certifications, which evaluate the knowledge and skill level of those applying. Many West Jordan UT employers not only require a certificate or degree from an accredited welding school, but also certification from a respected organization such as the American Welding Society (AWS). Different certifications are offered dependent on the kind of work that the welder performs. Just some of the skills that certification can acknowledge are the welder’s ability to

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

As earlier mentioned, various cities, states or local municipalities have licensing mandates for welders. Of those requiring licensing, a number also require certification for different kinds of work. Certification is also a means to prove to employers that you are an extremely skilled and knowledgeable welder. So similarly as with licensing, look into the requirements for your location and verify that the welder vocational school you choose preps you for certification if needed.

How to Decide on a Welding Technical School

West Jordan UT welder working on carAs soon as you have decided on the credential you want to attain, a degree, certificate or diploma, you can begin to assess schools. As you can imagine, there are numerous welder trade and technical schools in the West Jordan UT area. That’s why it’s essential to decide in advance what qualifications your school of choice must have. We have already discussed two important ones that most 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 must be considered. After all, the school you select is going to provide the instruction that will be the foundation of your new profession as a welder. So below are more factors you might want to evaluate before choosing a welding trade school.

Accreditation. It’s very important that the welding trade school you decide on is accredited by either a regional or a national organization. There are 2 standard types of accreditation. The school may receive Institutional Accreditation based on all of their programs. Programmatic Accreditation is based on a single program the school offers, for instance Welding Technology. So verify that the program you choose is accredited, not just the school itself. Also, 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 make sure that you get a superior education, the accreditation may also assist in securing financial assistance or student loans, which are frequently unavailable in West Jordan UT for non-accredited schools. Finally, 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. Many welding degree or certificate programs are offered combined with an apprenticeship program. Some other schools will help place you in a job or an apprenticeship upon graduation. Ask if the schools you are considering assist in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job assistance program. These schools must have partnerships with local unions and various 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 help students find employment and develop associations within the West Jordan UT welding community.

Job Placement and Completion Rates. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students that start an instructional program and finish it. It’s crucial that the welding program you select has a high completion rate. A low rate may indicate that the students who were 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 caliber of training. A higher job placement rate will not only affirm that the program has an excellent reputation within the field, but also that it has the network of West Jordan UT contacts to help students obtain employment or apprenticeships upon graduation.

Up-to-date Equipment and Facilities. Once you have limited your selection of welding schools to two or three options, you should consider visiting the campuses to look over their facilities. Verify that both the equipment and the facilities that you will be taught on are modern. Specifically, the training equipment should be similar to what you will be using in the field. If you are not sure what to look for, and are currently in an apprenticeship program, consult with the master welder you are working under for guidance. Otherwise, ask a local West Jordan UT welding professional if they can give you a few pointers.

School Location. Although we previously briefly covered the importance of location, there are a few additional issues that we need to cover. You should keep in mind that unless you have the ability to relocate, the welding school you choose needs to be within commuting distance of your West Jordan UT home. If you do choose to enroll in an out-of-state school, besides relocation expenses there might be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is especially the case for welding degree programs offered by community colleges. Additionally, if the school offers a job placement or apprenticeship program, more than likely their placements are within the school’s regional community. So the location of the school should be in a region or state where you subsequently will wish to work.

Smaller Classes. Personalized training is important for a manual trade such as welding. It’s easy to get overlooked in larger classes and not obtain much individualized instruction. Ask what the average class size is for the welding schools you are reviewing. Inquire if you can attend a couple of classes so that you can observe how much individual attention the students are getting. While there, talk with a few of the students and get their evaluations. Similarly, chat with a few of the trainers and find out what their welding experience has been and what credentials and certifications they have earned.

Convenient Class Schedules. Many people learn a new profession while still employed at their present job. Confirm 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 West Jordan UT, make sure 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 choose offers part-time enrollment. Also, check to see 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 West Jordan UT?

Perhaps you live in the West Jordan Utah 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.

West Jordan, Utah

West Jordan is a city in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. West Jordan is a rapidly growing suburb of Salt Lake City and has a mixed economy. According to the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 103,712, placing it as the fourth most populous in the state.[3] The city occupies the southwest end of the Salt Lake Valley at an elevation of 4,330 feet (1,320 m). Named after the nearby Jordan River, the limits of the city begin on the river's western bank and end in the eastern foothills of the Oquirrh Mountains, where Kennecott Copper Mine, the world's largest man-made excavation is located.

Settled in the mid-19th century, the city has developed into its own regional center. As of 2012, the city has four major retail centers; with Jordan Landing being one of the largest mixed-use planned developments in the Intermountain West.[4] Companies headquartered in West Jordan include Mountain America Credit Union, Lynco Sales & Service, SME Steel, and Cyprus Credit Union. The city has one major hospital, Jordan Valley Medical Center, and a campus of Salt Lake Community College, which is designed to become the main campus by 2020.

City landmarks include Gardner Village, established in 1850, and South Valley Regional Airport, formerly known as "Salt Lake Airport #2." The airport serves general aviation operations as well as a base for the 211th Aviation Regiment of the Utah Army National Guard flying Apache and Black Hawk helicopters.

Online Welding Certificate and Degree Programs

pipe welder at work in West Jordan UTWelding is very much a manual kind of profession, and consequently not extremely compatible with training online. Having said that, there are a few online welding classes offered by various community colleges and technical schools in the greater West Jordan UT area that can be credited toward a certificate or degree program. These courses mainly cover such topics as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help give a beginner a basis to initiate their education and training. However, the most important point is that you can’t learn how to weld or use welding materials unless 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 experienced welders that want to advance their expertise or perhaps attain a more advanced degree. So if you should come across an online welding certificate or degree program, be very careful and make certain that the larger part of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of environment.

Select the Right Welding Vocational Program West Jordan UT

Picking the right welding school will undoubtedly be the most important decision you will make to begin your new career. As we have covered in this article, there are many factors that you will need to examine and compare among the schools you are reviewing. It’s a must that any welder training program that you are assessing includes a considerable amount of hands-on training. Classes need to be smaller in size and each student must have their personal welding machine to train with. Classroom teaching needs to provide a real-world context, and the training program should be current and in-line with industry standards. Courses vary in duration and the kind of credential offered, so you will have to ascertain what length of program and credential will best serve your needs. Every training program provides different possibilities for certification also. Probably The ideal means to research your final list of schools is to go to 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 sure that you are confident that the school you choose is the ideal one for you. With the proper training, effort and commitment, the end outcome will be a new occupation as a professional welder in West Jordan UT.

 

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