How to Select the Right Welder Technical School near Lemont Illinois
Finding the right welding technical school near Lemont IL is an essential first step to starting your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are numerous schools to pick from, how do you determine which ones to consider? And more significantly, once you have narrowed down your options, how do you pick the right one? Many prospective students begin by looking at the schools that are closest to their residences. Once they have identified those that are within driving distance, they are drawn toward the cheapest one. Yes, location and tuition cost are crucial concerns when evaluating welding technical schools, but they are not the only ones. Other concerns 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 sensible to establish a list of qualifications that your chosen school must have. But before we explore our due diligence checklist, let’s cover a little bit about how to become a welder.
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Welder Certificate and Degree Training Classes
There are a number of options to get training as a welder in a technical or trade 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 programs than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also offered combined with an apprenticeship program. Below are brief summaries of the most typical welding programs available in the Lemont IL area.
- Diploma and Certificate Programs are generally made available by trade and technical schools and take about a year to finish. They are more hands-on training in scope, created largely to teach welding skills. They can furnish a good foundation for a new journeyman or apprentice welder, or specialized skills for experienced welders.
- Associate Degree Programs will take 2 years to complete 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 furnishing the foundation that prepares students to enter the workforce.
Some states and municipalities do have licensing prerequisites for welders, therefore be sure to check for your location of future employment. If required, the welder school you pick should prep you for any licensing examinations that you will need to take in addition to supplying the appropriate training to become a qualified welder.
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Welding Certification Choices
There are a number of organizations that provide welding certifications, which assess the knowledge and skill level of those applying. A large number of Lemont IL employers not only demand a degree or certificate from an accredited welding program, but also certification from a respected organization like the American Welding Society (AWS). A wide range of certifications are offered dependent on the type of work that the welder performs. Some of the things that certification can acknowledge are the welder’s ability to
- Operate in compliance with specific codes
- Work with specific metal thicknesses
- Work with certain kinds of welds
- Work according to contract specifications
As earlier stated, some states, cities or local municipalities have licensing requirements for welders. Of those mandating licensing, a number additionally require certification for various types of work. Certification is also a means to prove to employers that you are an exceptionally skilled and knowledgeable welder. So similarly as with licensing, check the requirements for your location and verify that the welding tech school you select preps you for certification if needed.
Points to Ask Welding Trade Programs
As soon as you have chosen the credential you want to earn, a certificate, diploma or degree, you can begin to evaluate schools. As you probably know, there are many welding vocational and trade schools in the Lemont IL area. That’s why it’s essential to decide in advance what qualifications your school of choice must have. We have previously discussed two important ones that most people look at first, which are location and tuition cost. As stated, although they are essential qualifications, they are not the only ones that should be looked at. After all, the program you decide on is going to furnish the instruction that will be the foundation of your new vocation as a welder. So following are some additional factors you may want to evaluate before picking a welder technical school.
Accreditation. It’s essential that the welder trade school you select is accredited by either a national or a regional agency. There are 2 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, for instance Welding Technology. So verify that the program you pick is accredited, not just the school alone. Additionally, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting agency, such as the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). Besides helping ensure that you obtain an excellent education, the accreditation can also help in securing financial aid or student loans, which are in many cases unavailable in Lemont IL for non-accredited schools. Also, for those states or municipalities that mandate licensing, they may require that the welding training program be accredited also.
Job Placement and Apprenticeship Programs. A large number of welding certificate or degree programs are provided combined with an apprenticeship program. Various other schools will assist in placing you in a job or an apprenticeship after graduation. Ask if the schools you are considering help in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job placement program. The schools must have relationships with local unions and other metal working businesses to which they can refer their students. More established schools may have a larger network of graduates that they can rely upon for placements. These programs can help students find employment and develop relationships within the Lemont IL welding community.
Completion and Job Placement Rates. The completion rate is the portion or percentage of students that begin an educational program and complete it. It’s essential that the welding school you select has a high completion rate. A lower rate could indicate that the students who were in the program were unhappy 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 a good reputation within the field, but also that it has the network of Lemont IL employer relationships to assist students secure employment or apprenticeships after graduation.
Up-to-date Facilities and Equipment. Once you have decreased your choice of welder schools to 2 or 3 possibilities, you should think out visiting the campuses to evaluate their facilities. Verify that both the facilities and the equipment that you will be instructed on are modern. In particular, the training equipment should be comparable to what you will be using on the job. If you are not sure 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 Lemont IL welding professional if they can give you some tips.
School Location. Although we previously briefly talked about the significance of location, there are a couple of additional points that we should deal with. You should remember that unless you are able to relocate, the welding program you choose needs to be within commuting distance of your Lemont IL home. If you do choose to attend an out-of-state school, in addition to moving costs there could be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is especially true for welder diploma programs offered by community colleges. Additionally, if the school offers an apprenticeship or job placement program, more than likely their placements are within the school’s local community. So the location of the school should be in a region or state where you subsequently will want to work.
Small Classes. One-on-one 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 training. Find out what the average class size is for the welding schools you are looking at. Inquire if you can sit in on a couple of classes so that you can witness just how much personal attention the students are receiving. While there, talk with some of the students and get their feedback. Also, talk with a couple of the teachers and ask what their welding experience has been and what certifications and credentials they hold.
Convenient Class Schedules. Many people learn a new profession while still working at their current job. Make sure that the class schedules for the programs you are considering are flexible enough to meet your needs. If you can only go to classes at night or on weekends near Lemont IL, make sure that the schools you are considering offer those choices. If you can only attend part-time, verify that the school you decide on offers part-time enrollment. Also, check to see what the policy is to make up classes should you miss any because of work, sickness or family responsibilities.
Online Welding Courses
Welding is very much a hands-on kind of profession, and consequently not very suitable for online training. However, there are a small number of online welding courses offered by various community colleges and vocational schools in the greater Lemont IL area that can be credited toward a degree or certificate program. These classes primarily cover such subjects as safety, reading blueprints, and metallurgy. They can help provide a novice a foundation to start their training and education. However, the most important point is that you can’t learn how to weld or handle welding materials unless you actually do it. Naturally that can’t be performed online. These skills need to be learned in an on-campus environment or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is more appropriate for seasoned welders that want to advance their knowledge or perhaps earn a more advanced degree. So if you should come across an online welding certificate or degree program, be extremely cautious and verify that the bulk of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of environment.
Top Local Welding Trade Schools Near Me Lemont IL
Selecting the right welder training program will probably be the most important decision you will make to launch your new trade. You originally stopped by our website because you had an interest in Top Local Welding Trade Schools Near Me and wanted more information on the topic Top Night Welding Trade Schools Near Me. However, as we have addressed in this article, there are a number of things that you will need to evaluate and compare among the schools you are reviewing. It’s a prerequisite that any welder training program that you are reviewing includes a considerable amount of hands-on instruction. Classes need to be small in size and every student must have their personal welding machine to train with. Classroom teaching should provide a real-world frame of reference, and the curriculum should be up-to-date and conform with industry standards. Training programs 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 fulfill your needs. Every program offers unique options for certification also. Perhaps the best approach to research your short list of schools is to go to each campus and speak with the faculty and students. Invest some time to sit in on some classes. Inspect the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the program you pick is the best one for you. With the right training, hard work and commitment, the end result will be a new career as a professional welder in Lemont IL.
Other Illinois Welder Locations
Lemont, Illinois
Lemont is a village located in Cook, DuPage, and Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, and is a suburb of Chicago. The population was 16,000 as of the 2010 census. Lemont is home to Argonne National Laboratory and other heavy industrial sites, and has a substantial European immigrant population.
Lemont was originally known as Keepataw (after a Potawatomi chief) and a post office was established in 1840 as Keepatau. After that, it was named Athens and then Palmyra. The name Lemont (literally, 'the mountain' in French) was chosen in 1850 at the suggestion of Lemuel Brown, the postmaster and justice of the peace, or perhaps by his brother Nathaniel Brown.[3]
Before white settlers arrived in Lemont, Native Americans traveled the Des Plaines River in birch bark canoes on trading trips between the Mississippi River and Lake Michigan. The native Potawatomi lived off the land in this area, directly using natural resources for food, shelter, clothing and medicine. In the 18th century, French voyageurs traveled down the Des Plaines River, trading Native Americans metal, beads and cloth for animal furs and changing the Native American lifestyle forever.
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