How to Pick the Best Welding Certification Course near Altus Afb Oklahoma
Choosing the right welding trade school near Altus Afb OK is an essential first step to starting your new occupation as a professional welder. But since there are so many schools to select from, how do you know which ones to consider? And more importantly, once you have narrowed down your choices, how do you pick the best one? Many people start by looking at the schools that are nearest to their homes. When they have located those that are within driving distance, they gravitate toward the least costly one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are important issues when reviewing welding vocational schools, but they are not the only ones. Other factors 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 selected 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 Degree and Certificate Training Classes
There are several options to get training as a welder in a trade or vocational school. You can earn a diploma, a certificate 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 combined with an apprenticeship program. Following are short explanations of the most common welding programs available in the Altus Afb OK area.
- Diploma and Certificate Programs are generally made available by trade and technical schools and require about 1 year to finish. They are more hands-on training in nature, created largely to develop welding skills. They can provide a good foundation for a new journeyman or apprentice welder, or specialized skills for experienced welders.
- Associate Degree Programs will take two years to complete and are usually offered by community colleges. An Associate Degree in Welding Technology provides a more well-rounded education than the certificate or diploma while still supplying the foundation that readies students to enter the workforce.
Some municipalities and states do have licensing prerequisites for welders, so don’t forget to check for your location of potential employment. If required, the welding school you select should prepare you for any licensing examinations that you will need to take in addition to furnishing the suitable training to become a professional welder.
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Welding Certification Options
There are a number of organizations that offer welding certifications, which evaluate the skill level and knowledge of those applying. Numerous Altus Afb OK employers not only require a degree or certificate from an accredited welding program, but also certification from a highly regarded organization such as the American Welding Society (AWS). Different certifications are available based upon 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 specified metal thicknesses
- Work with certain kinds of welds
- Work in compliance with contract specifications
As previously mentioned, various states, cities or local municipalities have licensing requirements for welders. Of those mandating licensing, some also require certification for various types of work. Certification is also a means to prove to employers that you are a highly skilled and knowledgeable welder. So just as with licensing, check the requirements for your location and make sure that the welder tech school you choose preps you for certification as needed.
Points to Ask Welder Trade Schools
As soon as you have decided on the credential you would like to earn, a certificate, diploma or degree, you can start to evaluate schools. As you can imagine, there are many welding trade and technical schools in the Altus Afb OK area. That’s why it’s important to establish up front what qualifications your selected school 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 qualifiers, they are not the only ones that should be considered. After all, the program you pick 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 need to consider before selecting a welder trade school.
Accreditation. It’s essential that the welder technical school you choose is accredited by either a regional or a national agency. 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 has, for example 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 agency, for example the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). In addition to helping make sure that you receive a superior education, the accreditation might also help in obtaining financial aid or student loans, which are in many cases unavailable in Altus Afb OK for non-accredited schools. Finally, for those states or municipalities that require licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited also.
Job Placement and Apprenticeship Programs. Many welder degree or certificate programs are offered combined with an apprenticeship program. Various other schools will help place you in a job or an apprenticeship after graduation. Ask if the schools you are looking at help in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job placement program. These schools must have associations with local unions and other 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 placements. These programs can assist students in finding employment and establish associations within the Altus Afb OK 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 welder school you choose has a high completion rate. A reduced rate might mean that the students who joined 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 high job placement rate will not only confirm that the school has a good reputation within the trade, but additionally that it has the network of Altus Afb OK contacts to assist students secure apprenticeships or employment upon graduation.
Up-to-date Equipment and Facilities. After you have narrowed down your choice of welding programs to two or three options, you should consider visiting the campuses to inspect their facilities. Confirm that both the facilities and the equipment that you will be taught on are modern. In particular, the training equipment should be similar to what you will be using on the job. If you are unsure what to look for, and are already in an apprenticeship program, consult with the master welder you are working under for guidance. If not, ask a local Altus Afb OK welding contractor if they can give you a few tips.
School Location. Although we previously briefly talked about the significance of location, there are a couple of additional issues that we need to address. You should bear in mind that unless you can relocate, the welder program you choose needs to be within commuting distance of your Altus Afb OK home. If you do opt to enroll in an out-of-state school, apart from relocation costs there could be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is particularly true for welder certificate programs offered by community colleges. Also, if the school provides an apprenticeship or job placement program, more than likely their placements are within the school’s local community. So the location of the school needs to be in an area or state where you ultimately will desire to work.
Small Classes. Personalized training is essential for a hands-on trade such as welding. It’s easy to get overlooked in bigger classes and not get much personalized instruction. Find out what the usual class size is for the welding programs you are looking at. Inquire if you can attend some classes so that you can observe just how much individual attention the students are getting. While there, talk with several of the students and get their feedback. Also, speak with a few of the teachers and ask what their welding experience has been and what certifications and credentials they hold.
Flexible Class Scheduling. Some people learn a new profession while still working at their present job. Confirm that the class schedules for the programs you are reviewing are flexible enough to meet your needs. If you can only attend classes in the evenings or on weekends near Altus Afb OK, make certain that the schools you are assessing provide those options. If you can only enroll on a part-time basis, verify that the school you pick offers part-time enrollment. Also, find out what the protocol is to make up classes if you you miss any due to illness, work or family responsibilities.
Online Welder Schools
Welding is very much a manual kind of trade, and therefore not very suitable for training online. Having said that, there are some online welding programs offered by specific community colleges and trade schools in the greater Altus Afb OK area that may count toward a certificate or degree program. These classes primarily deal with such topics as reading blueprints, safety,, and metallurgy. They can help give a beginner a foundation to initiate their education and training. However, the most important point is that you can’t learn how to weld or use welding materials until you actually do it. Naturally that can’t be done online. These skills have to be learned in an on-campus setting or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is better suited for experienced welders that would like to advance their expertise or possibly obtain a more advanced degree. So if you should discover an online welding certificate or degree program, be very cautious and make certain that the larger part of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of setting.
Low Cost Night Welding Schools Altus Afb OK
Choosing the ideal welder school will probably be the most important decision you will make to begin your new career. You originally stopped by our website because you had an interest in Low Cost Night Welding Schools and wanted more information on the topic Requirements for Accredited Welding Schools. However, as we have discussed in this article, there are several things that you will need to assess and compare among the schools you are reviewing. It’s a must that any welder school that you are examining includes a lot of hands-on instruction. Classes should be smaller in size and each student must have their personal welding machine to train with. Classroom instruction needs to offer a real-world perspective, and the curriculum should be current and in-line with industry standards. Programs vary in length and the type of credential provided, so you will have to determine what length of program and degree or certificate will best satisfy your needs. Each program offers unique options for certification as well. Probably the best means to research your short list of schools is to check out each campus and talk with the students and faculty. Take the time to sit in on a few classes. Inspect the campus and facilities. Make certain that you are confident that the program you decide on is the best one for you. With the proper training, effort and dedication, the final result will be a new occupation as a professional welder in Altus Afb OK.
Other Oklahoma Welder Locations
Altus Air Force Base
The host unit at Altus AFB is the 97th Air Mobility Wing (97 AMW), assigned to the Nineteenth Air Force (19 AF) of the Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The wing's mission is to provide C-17 Globemaster III, KC-135 Stratotanker and KC-46 Pegasus formal initial and advanced specialty training programs for up to 3,000 flight crew and aircraft maintenance students annually.
Between 1945 and 1953, Altus AFB served as a scrap yard for hundreds of World War II era military aircraft. In 1945 the famous B-17F "Memphis Belle" was discovered at Altus awaiting disposal. The aircraft was saved and transferred to the city of Memphis, Tennessee, where it was displayed until 2005, when it was relocated to the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB in Ohio.
The base sat idle for only a few years. The onset of the Korean War in June 1950 created the need for more men to fly and service aircraft. During the early years of the conflict, many World War II airfields were examined for reactivation. On 1 August 1953, Altus Air Force Base was reactivated as a training base for transport aircraft. The C-47 "Skytrain" and the C-45 "Expediter" were the main aircraft assigned to the base, run briefly by the 63d Troop Carrier Wing from 8 January until 15 October 1953 under the watch of the Tactical Air Command (TAC).
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