Welding as a career, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

[WhyWeld]

Hey, first off I am not sure if this is the proper place to post this kind of question, but I am heavily considering to become a welder.

So I was wondering if any veterans of the trade could fill me in on the best schools to learn welding, would you recommend to learn the trade, pros/cons, what types i should learn, and looking back on your experiences what would you tell someone that you wish you were told before getting into the trade.

Some background information on me:
Age:19
No work experience in welding.
Enrolled in college at as a second semester freshman making decent grades but don't want a desk job.
Live in Texas

[ironlion]

depends on what aspect of the trade you are considering....fab shop, factory, pipeline....

i have run and owned my own business for a few months shy of 25yrs now....i dont know too many people who LOVE their jobs as much as i do....it is like 100 things wrapped into one for me and short of the customers who dont like to pay on a timely manner i would not trade it for anything....

tulsa welding school is a great institution if you are looking to weld structural as well as pipeline, a bit pricey but IMHO worth it....or lincoln electric also has a good school too....as do many community colleges....the first thing would be to get yourself under the hood for a while and see if you really want to wear a leather jacket in 100* heat and breathe the smoke and grindings etc with spatter going down your neck etc....
it is a perfect job for a young person starting out and there do not seem to be as many younger people following up behind us old farts so soon enough there will be a deficiency in the market place....so if it your dream i say follow it!

good luck!

[WhyWeld]

Thanks for the feed back its funny that you were mentioning Tulsa welding school because that's where i was looking to go. You said pipe welding is good to learn there so i was wondering if you could tell me if that is a good type of welding to get into?

[CEA1973]

You should really check out Vernon College in Wichita Falls Tx. It's not a trade school like Tulsa and Lincoln tech. You will get a well rounded schooling there. Blueprint, metallurgy, tig, mig, and stick all positions plate and pipe. Go for the advanced welding courses and you will be ahead of the game when you get in the field.

[WhyWeld]

Im on the Vernon webpage and looking at the course requirements for welding. I was wondering what makes college training better than tech school training.

Also thank you for the advice.

[admswelding]

Look into a union apprenticeship the training is free and you get a decent wage to learn on the job.

[WhyWeld]

Could you expand more on the apprenticeship, I googled it but i really couldn't find anything with the welders union.

[CEA1973]

My family has been in the welding business since the 1960's and I have had cousins and other family members go to Tulsa, Lincoln, and Vernon. Vernon offered more classes and more hands on with the students. Lincoln has 100 or so people in a class. That's a lot less time spent with each student.

[claymans13]

Originally Posted by admswelding

Look into a union apprenticeship the training is free and you get a decent wage to learn on the job.

look into fitters or boilermakers those are going to be your best source for learning welding. I would honestly reccommend against the boilermakers though. I am one and work is far and few in between, fitters however have lots of work in lots of places.

[bgroves]

I second that on vernon college it is a very good school. I am currently enrolled there and I have learned so much I just got certified in stick and mig and hopefully ill be in tig next week. This school will teach you so much especially on pipe. In my opinion its a very good school and you should learn a lot if you decide to go.

[She_Welds]

The site for the Unied Association homepage is ua.org. Union of Plumbers, Fitters, Welders, and HVAC Service Techs. The site will give you information on their apprenticeship and training. Click on links and you will be directed to a list of Union Locals United States listed by states.

[robphillips00]

Check out TSTC also. Their welding school is in Brownwood.

[regularfella]

Here's where I learned to weld. I'm still learning but I'm no longer in school. Finally made Journeyman. It's the UA's welding facility located near Atlanta

http://weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=32111

[FMX_22]

Originally Posted by WhyWeld

Could you expand more on the apprenticeship, I googled it but i really couldn't find anything with the welders union.

im a apprentice boilermaker its great im 16 nealy 17 and have been doing it since i was 15. i get paied to to what i love 5 days of the week . you get to work with highly qualified tradsmen and get all the training for free in a full swing shop doing jobs that will be expected buy customers on a date. . at the end of my appreniceship i will be qualified in mig , tig, arc , in all possitions.

also you get taught everything else you need to know how to read teck drawings ect.

its a great way to learn and i wouldnt change it for the world.

hope that helps cheers Troy