How to Find the Best Welder Certification Class near Harleysville Pennsylvania
Selecting the ideal welder technical school near Harleysville PA is an essential first step to beginning your new career as a professional welder. But since there are numerous schools to select from, how do you know which ones to consider? And more importantly, once you have fine tuned your choices, how do you pick the best one? Many prospective students start by looking at the schools that are nearest to their residences. When they have found those that are within driving distance, they gravitate toward the cheapest one. Yes, location and the cost of tuition are important considerations when evaluating welder technical schools, but they are not the only ones. Other considerations include such things as accreditation, reputation and job placement rates. So before starting 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 Certificate and Degree Training
There are a number of options available to obtain training as a welder in a trade or technical school. You can earn a diploma, a certificate or an Associate Degree. Bachelor Degrees are available in Welding Engineering or Welding Technology, but are more advanced courses than most journeyman welders will need. Some programs are also made available along with an apprenticeship program. Below are short explanations of the most common welding programs offered in the Harleysville PA area.
- Diploma and Certificate Programs are normally offered by technical and trade schools and take about one year to finish. They are more hands-on training in scope, created primarily to develop welding skills. They can provide a good foundation for a new journeyman or apprentice welder, or additional 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 furnishes a more well-rounded education than the diploma or certificate while still furnishing the foundation that readies students to enter the workforce.
A number of municipalities and states do have licensing prerequisites for welders, therefore be sure to find out for your location of potential employment. If needed, the welding school you select should prepare you for any licensing examinations that you will need to take in addition to furnishing the proper training to become a qualified welder.
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Welding Certification Options
There are multiple institutions that offer welder certifications, which evaluate the skill level and knowledge of those applying. A large number of Harleysville PA employers not only demand 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 available based upon the type of work that the welder does. Just some of the things that certification can attest to are the welder’s ability to
- Work in compliance with specific codes
- Work with specific metal thicknesses
- Work with certain kinds of welds
- Perform according to contract specifications
As earlier stated, many states, cities or local municipalities have licensing requirements for welders. Of those calling for licensing, a number also require certification for different types of work. Certification is also a way to prove to employers that you are an exceptionally skilled and knowledgeable welder. So just as with licensing, look into the requirements for your local area and verify that the welder technical school you decide on prepares you for certification if needed.
Points to Ask Welding Tech Schools
As soon as you have chosen the credential you want to obtain, a diploma, certificate or degree, you can start to compare schools. As you are no doubt aware, there are a large number of welding vocational and trade schools in the Harleysville PA area. That’s why it’s essential to decide 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 mentioned, although they are very important qualifications, they are not the only ones that must be considered. After all, the program you decide on is going to furnish the training that will be the foundation of your new profession as a welder. So below are more factors you may need to evaluate before choosing a welding technical school.
Accreditation. It’s essential that the welder tech school you decide on is accredited by either a regional or a national 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 single program the school has, for example Welding Technology. So verify that the program you pick is accredited, not just the school alone. Also, the accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting organization, such as the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). Besides helping make sure that you obtain a quality education, the accreditation may also help in securing financial aid or student loans, which are frequently not available in Harleysville PA for non-accredited schools. Finally, for those states or local governments that mandate licensing, they may require that the welder training program be accredited as well.
Job Placement and Apprenticeship Programs. Many welding 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 upon graduation. Ask if the schools you are looking at assist in placing students in apprenticeships or have a job assistance program. The schools should have associations 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 rely upon for placements. These programs can help students find employment and develop relationships within the Harleysville PA welding community.
Job Placement and Completion Rates. The completion rate is the percentage of students that enroll in an instructional program and finish it. It’s important that the welder program you choose has a high completion rate. A reduced rate may indicate that the students who were in the program were unhappy with the instruction, the teachers, or the facilities, and dropped out. The job placement rate is also an indication of the quality of training. A higher job placement rate will not only affirm that the program has an excellent reputation within the industry, but additionally that it has the network of Harleysville PA contacts to assist students secure employment or apprenticeships upon graduation.
Up-to-date Facilities and Equipment. Once you have limited your choice of welder programs to two or three options, you should consider visiting the campuses to evaluate their facilities. Make sure that both the facilities and the equipment that you will be taught on are up-to-date. In particular, the training equipment should be similar to what you will be working with in the field. If you are uncertain what to look for, and are currently in an apprenticeship program, ask the master welder you are working under for guidance. Otherwise, ask a local Harleysville PA welding professional if they can give you a few suggestions.
School Location. Although we previously briefly covered the significance of location, there are a few additional points that we should address. You should remember that unless you have the ability to move, the welder school you choose must be within driving distance of your Harleysville PA home. If you do opt to enroll in an out-of-state school, in addition to moving expenses there could be higher tuition fees for out-of-state residents. This is especially the case for welding diploma programs offered by community colleges. Also, if the school provides a job placement or apprenticeship program, most likely their placements are within the school’s regional community. So the location of the school should be in a region or state where you subsequently will want to work.
Small Classes. Personalized instruction is essential for a manual trade such as welding. It’s easy to be lost in bigger classes and not get much one-on-one training. Ask what the typical class size is for the welding programs you are reviewing. Inquire if you can attend some classes so that you can witness how much individual attention the students are getting. While there, speak with a few of the students and get their evaluations. Similarly, talk with some of the trainers and ask what their welding experience has been and what certifications and credentials they hold.
Convenient Class Schedules. Some people learn a new profession while still working at their current job. Verify that the class schedules for the programs you are reviewing are flexible enough to meet your needs. If you can only go to classes in the evenings or on weekends near Harleysville PA, verify that the schools you are assessing provide those options. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, confirm that the school you select offers part-time enrollment. Also, check to see what the protocol is to make up classes if you you miss any because of work, illness or family emergencies.
Online Welding Schools
Welding is truly a manual kind of profession, and consequently not very compatible with training online. Even so, there are a small number of online welding courses offered by specific community colleges and technical schools in the greater Harleysville PA area that may count toward a degree or certificate program. These courses mainly deal with such topics as reading blueprints, safety,, and metallurgy. They can help provide a beginner a basis to initiate their education and training. Nevertheless, 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 accomplished online. These skills need to be learned in an on-campus setting or in an apprenticeship. Online or distance learning is better suited for seasoned welders that want to advance their knowledge or perhaps obtain a more advanced degree. So if you should discover an online welding degree or certificate program, be extremely careful and make certain that the larger part of the training is done on campus or in a workshop type of setting.
Best Part Time Welding Courses Harleysville PA
Picking the best welder school will probably 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 Best Part Time Welding Courses and wanted more information on the topic Compare Accelerated Welding Courses. However, as we have discussed in this article, there are many things that you will need to evaluate and compare among the programs you are looking at. It’s a prerequisite that any welder school that you are evaluating includes a considerable amount of hands-on training. Classes should be smaller in size and each student must have their personal welding machine to train with. Classroom teaching should provide a real-world frame of reference, and the course of study should be current and conform with industry standards. Courses vary in length and the kind of credential offered, so you will have to decide what length of program and degree or certificate will best fulfill your needs. Every program offers unique options for certification as well. Probably the best way to research your short list of schools is to go to each campus and talk with the teachers and students. Invest some time to monitor a few classes. Tour 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 trade as a professional welder in Harleysville PA.
Other Pennsylvania Welder Locations
Harleysville, Pennsylvania
Harleysville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. The population was 9,286 at the 2010 census. It is located mostly within Lower Salford Township and also in Franconia Township. Harleysville was settled by Pennsylvania Dutch in the 18th century and was named after Samuel Harley.
Route 63 (Main Street) and Route 113 (Harleysville Pike) meet in Harleysville and provide access to other routes on the main grid. Interstate 476 is a five-minute drive via 63 from Harleysville to the Lansdale Interchange, on the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Center City Philadelphia is less than 30 miles from Harleysville.
As of the 2010 census, the CDP was 90.4% Non-Hispanic White, 2.6% Black or African American, 0.1% Native American and Alaskan Native, 3.5% Asian, 0.6% were Some Other Race, and 1.2% were two or more races. 2.4% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry.[3]
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