How to Enroll In the Right Welder Degree Program near Whitehall Wisconsin

Locating the ideal welder technical school near Whitehall WI is an important first step to launching your new occupation 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 fine tuned your options, how do you select the right one? A number of people start by reviewing the schools that are nearest to their residences. When they have found those that are within driving distance, they are drawn toward the least expensive one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are important concerns when examining 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 wise to develop a list of qualifications that your chosen 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 Training Courses

There are a number of alternatives available to obtain training as a welder in a trade or technical school. You can earn a a certificate, a diploma or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are available in Welding Technology or Welding Engineering, but are more advanced courses than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also made available in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Below are short summaries of the most typical welding programs available in the Whitehall WI.

• Diploma and Certificate Programs are usually made available by trade and technical schools and require about one year to complete. They are more hands-on training in nature, designed primarily to develop welding skills. They can furnish a good foundation for a new journeyman or apprentice welder, or additional skills for experienced welders.
• Associate Degree Programs will take two years to finish and are usually 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 prepares students to enter the workforce.

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

Welding Certification Choices

There are multiple institutions that offer welder certifications, which evaluate the knowledge and skill level of those applying. Numerous Whitehall WI employers not only require a degree or certificate from an accredited welding program, but also certification from a highly regarded organization like the American Welding Society (AWS). A variety of certifications are offered based on the type of work that the welder does. A few of the things that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to

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

As earlier stated, many cities, states or local municipalities have licensing requirements for welders. Of those mandating licensing, many also require certification for different kinds of work. Certification is also a way to demonstrate to employers that you are a highly skilled and knowledgeable welder. So similarly as with licensing, check the requirements for your location and confirm that the welding tech school you select prepares you for certification as needed.

What to Ask Welder Technical Programs

After you have chosen the credential you want to obtain, a diploma, certificate or degree, you can begin to compare schools. As you can imagine, there are many welder trade and vocational schools in the Whitehall WI area. That’s why it’s essential to determine in advance what qualifications your school of choice must have. We have already discussed a couple of important ones that most people look at first, which are location and the cost of tuition. As mentioned, although they are essential qualifications, they are not the only ones that must be looked at. After all, the school you choose is going to furnish the instruction that will be the foundation of your new career as a welder. So below are some additional factors you might need to evaluate before selecting a welding technical school.

Accreditation. It’s essential that the welding vocational school you select is accredited by either a national or a regional organization. There are two standard kinds of accreditation. The school may receive Institutional Accreditation based on all of their programs. Programmatic Accreditation is based on a specific program the school offers, such as Welding Technology. So verify that the program you pick is accredited, not just the school itself. Also, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting agency, like the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). Besides helping make sure that you get a superior education, the accreditation may also help in getting financial aid or student loans, which are frequently not offered in Whitehall WI for schools that are not accredited. Also, for those states or municipalities that require licensing, they may require that the welding training program be accredited as well.

Apprenticeship and Job Assistance Programs. Many welder degree or certificate programs are offered in conjunction with an apprenticeship program. Various other schools will assist in placing you in an apprenticeship or a job after graduation. Find out if the schools you are looking at assist in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job assistance program. These schools should have relationships 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 referrals. These programs can assist students in finding employment and develop associations within the Whitehall WI welding community.

Job Placement and Completion Rates. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students that start an academic program and finish it. It’s essential that the welding program you select has a higher completion rate. A low rate might indicate that the students who enrolled in the program were unhappy with the training, the instructors, 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 affirm that the program has a good reputation within the field, but additionally that it has the network of Whitehall WI contacts to help students obtain employment or apprenticeships after graduation.

Modern Equipment and Facilities. Once you have limited your choice of welding schools to 2 or 3 options, you should think out going to the campuses to evaluate their facilities. Verify that both the equipment and the facilities that you will be taught on are modern. In particular, the training equipment should be similar to what you will be working with in the field. If you are unsure 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 Whitehall WI welding contractor if they can give you some suggestions.

School Location. Even though we previously briefly covered the relevance of location, there are a couple of additional issues that we need to cover. You should keep in mind that unless you can move, the welder school you select must be within commuting distance of your Whitehall WI home. If you do decide to enroll in an out-of-state school, apart from moving expenses 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 offers a job placement or apprenticeship program, often their placements are within the school’s regional community. So the location of the school should be in a region or state where you ultimately will want to work.

Smaller Classes. One-on-one training is important for a manual trade such as welding. It’s possible to be lost in larger classes and not get much personalized training. Find out what the typical class size is for the welding schools you are considering. Inquire if you can attend a few classes so that you can witness how much individual attention the students are receiving. While there, talk with some of the students and get their evaluations. Also, speak with a couple of the instructors and find out what their welding experience has been and what credentials and certifications they have earned.

Convenient Class Schedules. Some people learn a new trade while still employed at their current job. Confirm that the class schedules for the programs you are looking at are flexible enough to meet your needs. If you can only go to classes at night or on weekends near Whitehall WI, make sure that the schools you are considering provide those alternatives. If you can only attend part-time, make sure that the school you pick offers part-time enrollment. Also, ask what the policy is to make up classes should you miss any due to work, illness or family emergencies.

Online Welding Schools

Welding is very much a hands-on kind of profession, and for that reason not very suitable for online training. Even so, there are some online welding programs offered by various community colleges and vocational schools in the greater Whitehall WI area that may be credited toward a certificate or degree program. These classes mainly cover such subjects as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help provide a novice a basis to start their training and education. However, 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 accomplished online. These skills have to be learned in an on-campus environment or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is better suited for experienced welders that want to advance their expertise or perhaps obtain a more advanced degree. So if you should find an online welding degree or certificate program, be extremely careful and confirm that the greater part of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of setting.

Attending a Welding School in Whitehall WI?

If you have decided to enroll in a welder training program in the Whitehall Wisconsin area, you may find the following information both informative and helpful about the location of your new school campus.

Select the Ideal Welding Trade Program Whitehall WI

Picking the right welding training program will probably be the most critical decision you will make to start your new profession. You originally stopped by our website because you had an interest in Certified Welder Training. However, as we have addressed in this article, there are several things that you will need to examine and compare between the schools you are reviewing. It’s a prerequisite that any welder training that you are examining includes a good deal of hands-on instruction. Classes should be smaller in size and each student should have their own welding machine to train on. Classroom teaching should provide a real-world context, and the training program should be current and in-line with industry standards. Courses differ in length and the type of credential offered, so you will need to ascertain what length of program and degree or certificate will best satisfy your needs. Every program offers unique options for certification also. Perhaps the best way to research your short list of schools is to visit each campus and speak 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 school you decide on is the ideal one for you. With the right training, effort and commitment, the final outcome will be a new occupation as a professional welder in Whitehall WI.