Read up on welding with self-paced learning through welding instruction manuals, such as "Welding Secrets Revealed," "Welding Basics," "Welding Essentials" and "Basic Tig and Mig Welding." These manuals are available through online and standard bookstores and welding-specific websites.
Check your local community college; many offer short-term certificates or year-long diploma programs in welding. For example, at Maryland Community College, students can take classes such as Basic Welding Processes, Welding Metallurgy, Fabrication, Stick Plating and Certification Practices. Most schools have few to no prerequisites or requirements.
Review the offerings from an industry society. For example, the American Welding Society's website offers certified welding inspector courses, a two-day intensive basics of resistance welding course and links to educational conferences such as "New Welding Technologies: The Key to Higher Productivity." Society membership is usually not required, but members may receive discounts on enrollment.
Join a webinar. Webinars (the word comes from a combination of web and seminar) are offered daily, through websites teaching topics such as "Heavy Structural Steel," where you log on at an appointed date and time for between one to three hours and take a course from a live teacher through conferencing software. Other webinars are pre-recorded and may be downloaded and watched at your own pace.
Attend welding conventions, which are held across the country throughout the year. For one admission fee, you'll have access to an array of instructional seminars (some may give continuing education credits or certificates of completion) and access to the top welding companies and product manufacturers.