This Troy, Ohio-based school was founded in 1930 and says it is the largest welding school in the United States. It offers skills and technical training for beginning welders as well as courses to help more qualified welders pass exams as supervisors or trainers. The beginning welding course takes 36 weeks and tuition is $14,870 in February 2011. The classes include blueprint reading and shielded metal, gas tungsten and gas metal arc welding. Completion of the course should qualify a student for an entry level job.
Hobart Institute of Welding Technology
400 Trade Square East
Troy, OH 45373
800-332-9448
welding.org
The Lincoln Technical Institute offers a beginner's welding program at its campuses in East Windsor, Connecticut, and Grand Prairie, Texas. The first part of the course is a 10-hour safety orientation and students receive an OSHA card upon completion. Students then complete skills and hands-on training in welding basics. Students also learn how to use plasma arc cutting techniques, in which precision cuts are made using the gases produced by the process.
Lincoln Technical Institute
Many locations
lincolnedu.com
The Welder Apprentice Training program at Penn Foster Workforce Development is designed to meet U.S. and state standards for apprenticeship programs. The coursework is designed to go hand-in-hand with on-the-job training. It includes a large section of pre-technical and basic industrial skills, starting with basic math and practical measurements and continuing with workplace safety, blueprints, types of tools and more advanced math. The program is estimated to take 715 hours.
Penn Foster - Workforce Development
P.O. Box 3957
Scranton, PA 18505
800-233-0259
workforcedevelopment.com
The Fab School is a private vocational school that has been teaching students about metal fabrication since 2005. It offers job placement assistance, resume preparation and interview practice sessions. The introductory course is six months long and covers tube bending, cutting and notching, pattern design, basic welding and sheet metal. Weekend classes are also offered for continuing education. Loan programs and scholarship opportunities are available, and the school takes part in many government tuition assistance programs.
The Fab School
2001 3rd St., Suite E
Riverside, CA 92507
951-782-0567
thefabschool.com