How to Find the Right Welding Certificate Program near Memphis Tennessee
Enrolling in the ideal welding technical school near Memphis TN is an important first step to starting your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are numerous schools to choose from, how do you determine which ones to consider? And more notably, once you have narrowed down your choices, how do you select the right one? Most people start by checking out the schools that are nearest to their homes. When they have identified those that are within driving distance, they gravitate toward the cheapest one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are crucial concerns when examining welder trade schools, but they are not the only ones. Other factors 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 sensible to create a list of qualifications that your chosen school must have. But before we examine our due diligence checklist, let’s talk a little bit about how to become a welder.
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Welding Degree and Certificate Training Courses
There are several alternatives available to obtain training as a welder in a technical or trade school. You can receive 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 made available along with an apprenticeship program. Below are short explanations of the most prevalent welding programs offered in the Memphis TN area.
- Diploma and Certificate Programs are generally offered by trade and technical schools and require about a year to complete. They are more hands-on training in scope, created largely to develop welding skills. They can furnish a good foundation for a new journeyman or apprentice welder, or supplemental skills for experienced welders.
- Associate Degree Programs will take two 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 diploma or certificate while still providing the foundation that readies students to enter the workforce.
A number of municipalities and states do have licensing requirements for welders, therefore don’t forget to find out for your location of future employment. As needed, the welder school you pick should prep you for any licensing examinations that you will have to pass in addition to providing the suitable training to become a professional welder.
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Welding Certification Alternatives
There are a number of institutions that offer welder certifications, which evaluate the skill level and knowledge of those applying. Many Memphis TN 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). Different certifications are available based upon the type of work that the welder does. A few of the skills that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to
- Work in compliance with specific codes
- Work with certain metal thicknesses
- Work with certain types of welds
- Operate according to contract specifications
As previously mentioned, various states, cities or local municipalities have licensing mandates for welders. Of those requiring licensing, some additionally require certification for various types of work. Certification is also a means to demonstrate to employers that you are a highly skilled and knowledgeable welder. So just as with licensing, check the requirements for your local area and make certain that the welder vocational school you choose readies you for certification if needed.
What to Ask Welder Vocational Schools
When you have decided on the credential you would like to attain, a diploma, certificate or degree, you can start to compare schools. As you probably know, there are many welding vocational and trade schools in the Memphis TN area. That’s why it’s necessary to determine in advance what qualifications your selected school must have. We have already covered a couple of important ones that many people look at first, which are location and tuition cost. As mentioned, although they are essential qualifiers, they are not the only ones that need to 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 following are more factors you may want to consider before picking a welder vocational school.
Accreditation. It’s essential that the welder trade school you pick is accredited by either a regional or a national organization. There are two basic kinds of accreditation. The school may attain Institutional Accreditation based on all of their programs. Programmatic Accreditation is based on a specific program the school has, for instance Welding Technology. So make sure that the program you choose is accredited, not just the school alone. 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 get an excellent education, the accreditation can also help in acquiring financial aid or student loans, which are often not available in Memphis TN 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.
Job Placement and Apprenticeship Programs. A large number of welding degree or diploma programs are provided combined with an apprenticeship program. Various other schools will help place you in a job or an apprenticeship upon graduation. Find out if the schools you are considering help in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job placement program. The schools should have partnerships with local unions and other metal working businesses to which they can place their students. Older schools may have a larger network of graduates that they can rely upon for referrals. These programs can assist students in finding employment and establish associations within the Memphis TN welding community.
Completion and Job Placement Rates. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students that start an academic program and complete it. It’s crucial that the welder program you select has a high completion rate. A lower rate may indicate that the students who were in the program were unhappy with the instruction, the instructors, or the facilities, and quit. The job placement rate is also a good indicator of the caliber of training. A higher job placement rate will not only verify that the program has a good reputation within the trade, but also that it has the network of Memphis TN employer relationships to assist students obtain apprenticeships or employment after graduation.
Modern Facilities and Equipment. After you have narrowed down your selection of welder programs to 2 or 3 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 working with in the field. If you are not sure 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 Memphis TN welding contractor if they can give you some pointers.
School Location. Although we previously briefly covered the importance of location, there are a couple of additional issues that we need to cover. You should remember that unless you are able to relocate, the welder school you select needs to be within commuting distance of your Memphis TN home. If you do decide to attend an out-of-state school, in addition to moving costs there may be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is particularly the case for welding degree programs offered by community colleges. Also, if the school provides 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 want to work.
Small Classes. Personalized instruction is important for a hands-on trade such as welding. It’s possible to get lost in bigger classes and not get much one-on-one training. Ask what the average class size is for the welder schools you are looking at. Inquire if you can attend a few classes so that you can witness how much individual attention the students are getting. While there, talk with a few of the students and get their evaluations. Similarly, talk to some of the instructors and find out what their welding experience has been and what credentials and certifications they have earned.
Convenient Class Scheduling. Some people learn a new trade while still working at their present job. Verify that the class schedules for the programs you are considering are convenient enough to fulfill your needs. If you can only go to classes in the evenings or on weekends near Memphis TN, make sure that the schools you are reviewing offer those options. If you can only attend part-time, verify that the school you select offers part-time enrollment. Also, ask what the protocol is to make up classes if you you miss any due to illness, work or family circumstances.
Online Welding Courses
Welding is truly a hands-on type of trade, and therefore not extremely compatible with online training. However, there are a small number of online welding classes offered by various community colleges and vocational schools in the greater Memphis TN area that may count toward a certificate or degree program. These classes mainly deal with such topics as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help give a beginner a foundation to start their training and education. Nevertheless, the most significant point is that you can’t learn how to weld or work with welding materials unless you actually do it. Naturally that can’t be accomplished online. These skills must 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 knowledge or possibly obtain a more advanced degree. So if you should find an online welding degree or certificate program, be extremely careful and make certain that the greater part of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of environment.
Affordable Weekend Welding Training Memphis TN
Choosing the ideal welder school will undoubtedly be the most critical decision you will make to start your new trade. You originally stopped by our website because you had an interest in Affordable Weekend Welding Training and wanted more information on the topic Low Cost Fast Track Welding Training. However, as we have discussed in this article, there are several factors that you will need to evaluate and compare among the schools you are looking at. It’s a must that any welder training that you are assessing includes a lot of hands-on instruction. Classes should be small in size and every student must have their personal welding machine to train on. Classroom instruction needs to offer a real-world perspective, and the training program should be up-to-date and conform with industry standards. Training programs differ in duration and the kind of credential provided, so you will have to determine what length of program and certificate or degree will best serve your needs. Every program provides different options for certification also. Perhaps the best means to research your short list of schools is to check out each campus and speak with the students and faculty. Invest some time to monitor a few classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make sure that you are confident that the training program you choose is the right one for you. With the proper training, effort and commitment, the end result will be a new occupation as a professional welder in Memphis TN.
Other Tennessee Welder Locations
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city located along the Mississippi River in southwestern Shelby County, Tennessee, United States. The 2018 city population was 650,618,[2] making Memphis the largest city on the Mississippi River,[5]the second most populous city in Tennessee, as well as the 26th largest city in the United States. Greater Memphis is the 42nd largest metropolitan area in the United States, with a population of 1,348,260 in 2017.[6] The city is the anchor of West Tennessee and the greater Mid-South region, which includes portions of neighboring Arkansas and Mississippi. Memphis is the seat of Shelby County, the most populous county in Tennessee. As one of the most historic and cultural cities of the southern United States, the city features a wide variety of landscapes[citation needed] and distinct neighborhoods.
The first European explorer to visit the area of present-day Memphis was Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto in 1541 with his expedition into the New World. The high Chickasaw Bluffs protecting the location from the waters of the Mississippi would then be contested between the Spanish, French, and the English as Memphis took shape. Modern Memphis was founded in 1819 by three prominent Americans: John Overton, James Winchester, and future president Andrew Jackson.[7]
Memphis grew into one of the largest cities of the Antebellum South as a market for agricultural goods, natural resources like lumber, and the American slave trade. After the American Civil War and the end of slavery, the city experienced even faster growth into the 20th century as it became among the largest world markets for cotton[8] and lumber.
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