Welding Certification: How to Become a Certified Welder

AWS Welding Certification Requirements

The Certified Welder program has few rules, and they're all about the test itself, not about school:

• Test to the QC47 specification. Every Certified Welder test follows AWS QC47 and its supplements.
• Test at an Accredited Test Facility, by appointment. Facilities test using AWS Standard Welding Procedures, industry specifications, or a company's own procedure.
• Pass inspection by a Certified Welding Inspector. The CWI checks that you followed the Welding Procedure Specification, including fit-up, assembly and positioning, and inspects your weld.
• Let the facility file for you. It sends your application, test record and fee to AWS within about two weeks; your digital credential follows two to three weeks after AWS receives it.
• Maintain it. Keep an annual WeldCert Pro subscription and submit maintenance records before expiration.

If you fail, you can retest at any time. AWS certifies welders for structural steel, petroleum pipelines, sheet metal and chemical refinery work, and each certification names the process, material and position you tested. That's why a certified welder often holds several certifications, one per test. Our step-by-step guide to getting certified covers codes, positions and what schools charge for testing.

Welding Certification Programs Built to AWS SENSE

47 verified programs say their curriculum follows AWS SENSE, a set of training standards that Harper College describes as Schools Excelling through National Skill Standards Education, for certification as an AWS Level 1 Entry Welder. Mid Michigan College says students who complete a SENSE-compliant program can receive an AWS SENSE certificate of completion and wallet card, and East Central College proctors the SENSE 1 certificate in its capstone course.

SENSE shapes what a school teaches; the Certified Welder test proves what you can do. When you compare welding certification programs, ask which credentials you leave with: a school certificate, a SENSE completion, one or more AWS Certified Welder tests, or all three. 333 verified programs describe AWS, ASME or code-based testing on their official pages.

Paying for Welding Certification

AWS says the cost depends on the Accredited Test Facility, the process tested and the qualification requirements. Schools handle it in different ways: Lynnes Welding Training includes up to 12 welder qualifications in tuition, North American Trade Schools covers the first AWS attempt, and Vantage Career Center charges for AWS tests separately. Veterans can use GI Bill entitlement for licensing and certification tests required for a job, up to $2,000 per test including registration fees, and VA pays for retakes while entitlement lasts. BLS adds that some employers pay the cost of training and testing for their welders.