How to Choose the Right Welder Training Class near Kittery Maine
Choosing the right welder vocational school near Kittery ME is an important first step to starting your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are a lot of schools to select from, how do you know which ones to consider? And more notably, once you have fine tuned your options, how do you select the best one? Many prospective students start by checking out the schools that are nearest to their residences. When they have found those that are within commuting distance, they gravitate toward the least costly one. Yes, location and tuition cost are important considerations when examining welding vocational 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 trade 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.
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Welder Degree and Certificate Training Classes
There are several options available to receive training as a welder in a technical or trade school. You can receive a diploma, a certificate or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are offered in Welding Engineering or Welding Technology, but are more advanced degrees 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 common welding programs offered in the Kittery ME area.
- Diploma and Certificate Programs are generally offered by trade and technical schools and take about a year to finish. They are more hands-on training in nature, fashioned 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 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 certificate or diploma while still furnishing the foundation that readies students to enter the workforce.
Many municipalities and states do have licensing prerequisites for welders, therefore be sure to check for your location of potential employment. If required, the welder school you choose should prep you for any licensing examinations that you will have to take in addition to providing the appropriate training to become a professional welder.
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Welder Certification Options
There are multiple organizations that provide welder certifications, which test the skill level and knowledge of those applying. Many Kittery ME employers not only demand a certificate or degree 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 upon the kind of work that the welder does. A few of the things that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to
- Work in compliance with specific codes
- Work with specified metal thicknesses
- Work with certain types of welds
- Operate in compliance with contract specifications
As formerly mentioned, some states, cities or local municipalities have licensing mandates for welders. Of those requiring licensing, a number also require certification for different types of work. Certification is also a way to demonstrate to employers that you are an exceptionally skilled and qualified welder. So just as with licensing, check the requirements for your local area and confirm that the welding tech school you select prepares you for certification as needed.
Topics to Ask Welder Tech Programs
After you have decided on the credential you want to obtain, a diploma, certificate or degree, you can begin to compare schools. As you are no doubt aware, there are a large number of welder trade and technical schools in the Kittery ME area. That’s why it’s important to determine up front what qualifications your school of choice must have. We have previously discussed 2 significant ones that many people consider first, which are location and tuition cost. As stated, although they are very important qualifications, they are not the only ones that should be looked at. After all, the program you select is going to furnish the training that will be the foundation of your new profession as a welder. So following are some additional factors you might want to evaluate before selecting a welder trade school.
Accreditation. It’s extremely important that the welding trade school you decide on is accredited by either a regional or a national organization. There are two standard kinds of accreditation. The school may earn 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 itself. Additionally, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting organization, for example the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). Besides helping ensure that you get a quality education, the accreditation may also assist in acquiring financial aid or student loans, which are often not available in Kittery ME for schools that are not accredited. Finally, for those states or municipalities that mandate licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited also.
Apprenticeship and Job Placement Programs. A large number of welder certificate or degree programs are offered combined with an apprenticeship program. Some other schools will assist in placing you in a job or an apprenticeship after graduation. Find out if the schools you are reviewing assist in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job placement program. These schools should have relationships 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 utilize for placements. These programs can assist students in finding employment and develop associations within the Kittery ME welding community.
Job Placement and Completion Rates. The completion rate is the percentage of students that start an educational program and finish it. It’s important that the welder school you select has a high completion rate. A low rate may mean that the students who were in the program were dissatisfied with the instruction, the teachers, or the facilities, and dropped out. The job placement rate is also a good indicator of the quality of training. A high job placement rate will not only verify that the program has an excellent reputation within the industry, but also that it has the network of Kittery ME employer relationships to help students secure employment or apprenticeships after graduation.
Modern Equipment and Facilities. After you have narrowed down your choice of welding programs to two or three options, you should consider going to the campuses to inspect their facilities. Make sure that both the equipment and the facilities that you will be instructed on are modern. In particular, the training equipment should be similar to what you will be working with on the job. If you are uncertain 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 Kittery ME welding professional if they can give you some pointers.
School Location. Even though we already briefly talked about the importance of location, there are a couple of additional issues that we need to cover. You should bear in mind that unless you can move, the welding school you choose needs to be within driving distance of your Kittery ME home. If you do decide to attend an out-of-state school, in addition to relocation expenses there could be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is especially the case for welding certificate programs offered by community colleges. Also, if the school offers an apprenticeship or job placement program, often their placements are within the school’s regional community. So the location of the school needs to be in a region or state where you subsequently will wish to work.
Smaller Classes. One-on-one instruction is important for a manual trade such as welding. It’s easy to be overlooked in larger classes and not get much personalized training. Find out what the average class size is for the welder programs you are considering. Ask if you can sit in on some classes so that you can see how much personal attention the students are getting. While there, talk with some of the students and get their feedback. Also, chat with a couple of the teachers and find out what their welding experience has been and what certifications and credentials they hold.
Flexible Class Scheduling. Many people learn a new trade while still employed at their present job. Confirm that the class schedules for the programs you are reviewing are convenient enough to meet your needs. If you can only attend classes at night or on weekends near Kittery ME, verify that the schools you are reviewing provide those alternatives. If you can only enroll part-time, verify that the school you pick offers part-time enrollment. Also, find out what the policy is to make up classes should you miss any because of work, illness or family responsibilities.
Online Welding Training
Welding is very much a manual kind of vocation, and consequently not very compatible with online training. Even so, there are a few online welding classes offered by certain community colleges and technical schools in the greater Kittery ME area that can count toward a certificate or degree program. These courses primarily cover such topics as reading blueprints, safety,, and metallurgy. They can help provide a novice a basis to start their education and training. Nevertheless, the most important 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 have to be learned in an on-campus setting or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is more appropriate for seasoned welders that would like to advance their knowledge or possibly attain a more advanced degree. So if you should find an online welding degree or certificate program, be extremely cautious and verify that the larger part of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of setting.
Top Accredited Schools for Welders Near Me Kittery ME
Choosing the best welder training program will undoubtedly be the most important decision you will make to begin your new trade. You originally stopped by our website because you had an interest in Top Accredited Schools for Welders Near Me and wanted more information on the topic Top Weekend Schools for Welders Near Me. However, as we have addressed in this article, there are a number of factors that you will need to examine and compare among the schools you are looking at. It’s a must that any welder training that you are evaluating includes a considerable amount of hands-on training. Classes need to be smaller in size and every student must have their personal welding machine to train on. Classroom education needs to offer a real-world perspective, and the training program should be up-to-date and in-line with industry standards. Programs differ in duration and the kind of credential offered, so you will need to decide what length of program and credential will best serve your needs. Each training program provides unique options for certification as well. Probably the best way to research your final list of schools is to visit each campus and talk with the students and instructors. Take the time to monitor a few classes. Tour the campus and facilities. Make sure that you are confident that the program you pick is the ideal one for you. With the proper training, hard work and dedication, the final result will be a new trade as a professional welder in Kittery ME.
Other Maine Welder Locations
Kittery, Maine
Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey's Island, Kittery includes Badger's Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of the Isles of Shoals. The town is a tourist destination known for its many outlet stores.
Kittery is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine metropolitan statistical area. The town's population was 9,490 at the 2010 census. Kittery may be the namesake of William Billings' 1783 anthem "Kittery", which is printed in the Shenandoah Harmony and Missouri Harmony shape note tunebooks, but because the song was published after the incorporation of the town, this is debated.
English settlement around the natural harbor of the Piscataqua River estuary began about 1623. By 1632 it was protected by Fort William and Mary on today's New Hampshire side of the river; in 1689 defensive works that later became Fort McClary in Kittery Point were added on today's Maine side to the north.
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