B.S. Welding Engineering Degree Questions

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I am curious about the Bachelor of Science degree in welding engineering. In august I will begin a 40 tech credit hour program for an Applied Welding Technologies Technical Certificate. The course is held at my local community college which is accredited and well known school. What I would like to know is do these tech credit hours transfer if I was going to get a B.S. in Welding Engineering Tech? The school I will be a attending doesn't offer a B.S. program in welding. I've looked at the schools that do (Ferris, OH, Montana Tech, etc) and they only mention getting a degree in welding and nothing about welding certificates. I would like to know would it be better for me to do the 13 months welding school first and then transfer to college or would it be better to start of getting a degree in Welding Engineering tech. I am interested in doing Aerospace welding or welding for NASA one day and I know many of these jobs are looking for a Welding Engineering Degree. I am looking for the right path.Thanks
Reply:My daughter is going to Ohio State this Fall and I noticed they have both a BS and MS in welding engineering.  BTW, no, my daughter is not going for one of those degrees.  The program at Ohio State seems to have many ties with AWS.  I would start my search by contacting AWS.  Note, AWS also has some scholarships available.  Every dollar counts when it comes to paying for college.Con Fuse!Miller Dynasty 350Millermatic 350P-Spoolmatic 30AMiller Multimatic 200Hypertherm PowerMax 1000G3Miller Maxstar 200DX
Reply:Call the colleges you mentioned and speak with the registrar's office, or the office of the dean of students, or whoever is listed as a student adviser for the welding engineering dept.Most accredited colleges will allow students to transfer at least some credits from another accredited school.  But every school has different rules and limits on how many credits you can transfer and still receive a degree from the college or university.  Chances are your general Education classes will transfer.  Technical or degree-specific classes are less likely to be accepted.Benson's Mobile Welding - Dayton, OH metro area - AWS Certified Welding Inspector
Reply:For what its worth, I spent 5 + years @ community college getting a 2 yr AAS in welding, a certificate of some sort for completing the machining program, and knocked out my first 2 years of pre-major stuff before going the last 2 years to get my BS in welding engineering technology.  Also ended up working for the comm. college as a math tutor, adjunct machining instructor, and 3 years in the heating plant/welding shop.  Never regretted it a bit.  Of course I could have become a Dr. In the same amount of time.  YMMVExperience is something you get right after you need it
Reply:Originally Posted by Fred sFor what its worth, I spent 5 + years @ community college getting a 2 yr AAS in welding...
Reply:Ferris has a wonderful program. --Gol'
Reply:As already mentioned, check with the registrars offices at the schools you are looking into to see if your credits will transfer. I have a B.S. degree in Welding and Fabrication Engineering Technology from Pennsylvania College of Technology and it is one of the greatest things I have ever done.
Reply:If NASA is one of your goals it may be best to major in one of the classical engineering disciplines (ie: mechanical) and specialize at the graduate level in a more narrow field. Having the experience of prior tech school will certainly help down the line, and having a broad foundation of a classical discipline will be well worth it.Sent from my XT1032 using TapatalkTweco Fabricator 211i
Reply:Stretch-I agree with the previous posts.  To start - I'm no welder (hope to be at the hobby level - just starting out), but I do have a fair amount of schooling - a B.S. in PoliSci and a B.S. in Computer Science (currently utilizing the latter career-wise).  So you could probably say I'm full of BS (har har  ).  Anyway, I typically fall on the side of more education.  That being said, I strongly recommend looking at the job market/salaries, where you'll be working/cost of living etc. and do a cost/benefit analysis.  I don't know much about welding certificates or a B.S. in Welding Engineering Tech, but I will say that in general, you can do "more" with the B.S. in Welding Engineering Tech.  By "more" I don't necessarily mean welding, but more "general" things.  Once you get your foot in the door anywhere, the specifics of the degree don't matter very much (unless you start getting up to Masters/Doctoral level).  You will learn more on the job than in your schooling (more than likely, at least).  A B.S. will stand out more at a place like NASA, as well as many others-especially if they are actually requiring/requesting the job candidates have the degree (as opposed to the certificate).The other benefit of doing the B.S. is that if you feel like going into the classical engineering side down the road, most universities will accept you for a Masters in an engineering field based on the fact that you have a B.S., even more so that it is in an engineering/technology related field due to the B.S. requirements (a little more science and math - I think for poli sci it was like 3 more classes total - 2 math and 1 science on top of the standard Bachelor requirements).  On the topic of classical engineering, I agree with ajmartinez.  If you have an interest in engineering and a desire to work for NASA, as well as an aptitude for Math/Science (at minimum a STRONG desire/motivation and work ethic), taking a serious look at a Mechanical engineering program might be worth it.  My friends who did mechanical got to weld (more hobby level - for school projects etc), but most of their time was learning fluid dynamics, mechanics/various physics/math, and then prototyping/designing.  Many of these folks continued on to get a Masters (easier to get a job with a masters in mechanical-at least at places like NASA, though there are jr./entry level positions).  In this case, the welding is sort of a side that "may" happen.  There are plenty of clubs to join where you can fabricate - like Formula SAE - which is awesome, especially if you like cars/racing).  If you want to weld, then this may not be the best option.  About Transfer CreditsRegarding the transfer credits - look at the community college's credit hours/course descriptions, and then find the universities/colleges that offer the engineering tech programs.  They may have a sheet that says what they will transfer in.  In many (not all) programs, the advisors have wiggle room to "fit" similar courses in as transfer credit.  They will often require you to submit a syllabus from the class you want to transfer, and possibly a description/statement about the class from the instructor.  I have done this with 2 or 3 classes and all have transferred.  If you can't find a sheet, send an email to the advisor for that program, explain the situation and ask if they can assist you in determining if/how the credits would transfer into the program.  I would also ask if anyone else has done this before.  They may want you to come in for an appointment to discuss it in more detail, but usually these questions can be answered in email.  Just be friendly and express interest and they're usually pretty helpful (at least until you get into the major :P ).-- You can stop reading here if you don't care to read my personal story haha - but it might give some insight (or maybe not).If you do want to consider this route - take a serious look at yourself, finances, willingness to commit a serious effort - any math/science/engineering discipline will take a significant effort-60-80 hrs/wk (maybe more sometimes) between classes and homework.  I went back to school after 6 months of job searching locally with poli sci.  I had bounced around in Physics/Math/Chem/Electrical engineering etc. before getting that degree.  Finally, I decided I just needed to graduate, so I switched to Political Science, (already had a bunch of electives in the major), took 2 more semesters and graduated.  Because of all of my bouncing, I had accumulated 130+credit hours (and spent a ridiculous amount of money in student loans (BAD Idea!), but I did have almost all of the math/science needed for CS (Calculus 1-3, Physics 1 (for engineering - aka you need calc I & II to take it), linear algebra was optional, discrete math was required, science writing, a stats class, then the basic bio/chem - one had to be a sequence (aka 2 semesters in series - like bio 1&2, chem 1&2, or physics 1&2).  Because of this, I was able to basically take the second physics class and then full time as a CS major (no electives outside the major).  This was nice, but it also meant I had 3 programming intensive courses + theory my last semester.  Great and all - but my usual 60-70ish hour week was bumped to 90-100.  I usually took 1/2 to 1 day off a week (usually Saturday), but most of the time it was non-stop (prior to this major, I'd had < 3 all-nighters, this major I had REGULAR all-nighters - and I started early - like day OF assignment handout).  I did this while having a 4 y/o and 3 y/o, and in the summer before my last year a newborn.  It was definitely a strain on my wife and family because of the time dedication.I met a lot of awesome people and got to know them very well - we were all in the same boat.  Got A's - graduated - got a great job locally doing what I want to do.  That said, the 4-year degree isn't for everyone.  I did a cost benefit analysis and looked at myself - was I going to be able to tough out a CS degree for 2 years going pretty hardcore?  I was borrowing another $30K to do it.  My job prospects were MUCH better and the salary was double+ what the average starting salary for a Polisci B.S. was.  I determined I could do it, and that the degree would pay for itself in the first year of work (unfortunately the loans are still here  ).  There is certainly nothing wrong with going the certificate route, getting work, getting experience, and then going back for further education.  There is also something to be said for jumping in and getting the 4-year degree right off the bat - it requires significant time/dedication, but is very rewarding.  At the end of the day, they're all pieces of paper to get your foot in the door.  What you learn on the job and who you meet, how you interact with others (possibly customers?) aka "networking" will be at least part of your ticket to doing bigger and better things.Probably more than you bargained for, but you accumulate a lot of "cents" on this site from what I've seen - just $0.02 at a time.- Jeff
Reply:Originally Posted by SuperArcSorry, I just couldn't resist with your comment.
Reply:Since I was mentioned in Jeff's lengthy reply (which is nearly identical to what I was going to say myself before I condensed it down) I'll add a bit of my own background as well. I graduate with about a 3.0 on Friday with my BSME, and like Jeff because I bounced around a lot (to include a five year stay in the Army as an infantryman who spent most of his time deployed) I will graduate with many more hours than required. With only the things that transferred directly I've got 160hrs. All in all I've successfully completed more than 190hrs of college education in fields ranging from journalism to mechanical engineering.My advice to major in a classical discipline and supplement that with tech school (or relevant self study) in areas of specific interest is really advice from my grandfather - one of the NASA engineers responsible for figuring out how to make the avionics on the lunar module work back in the Apollo days. That's advice he gave to his sons, and then to his grandsons (of whom I'm the eldest). It's also advice he gave to his students in his post-NASA career as a university professor for some thirty years.I second the note about Formula SAE, just make sure the team is well managed and it will teach you the realities of all the theory much better than any other lab could ever do.Sent from my XT1032 using TapatalkLast edited by ajmartinez; 05-08-2014 at 08:36 AM.Tweco Fabricator 211i
Reply:For me, the combination of real world experience and good education is hard to beat.  Experience can be on the job and/or hands on welding.  For my AAS degree, you were expected to spend ~5-6 hrs a day, 4 days a week welding and cutting.  You had to run every rod they carried in every possible position in every possible joint.  We had maybe 7 or 8 flavors of rod, and you did bead on plate, fillets on tee and lap, then grooves all in flat, horizontal, vertical up and vertical down, and finally overhead.  You did it with oxy-fuel, stick, mig short arc, mig spray, TIG, dual-shield and innershield. You did it with carbon, stainless, and aluminum.  Then you were allowed to take fabrication courses, and learned a bit about HOW to put stuff together, not just weld.I had a pretty good deal with GI Bill and Army College Fund, and never paid a penny out of my own pocket.  Just for a bonus, courses at the community college were stupid cheap.  I was maybe paying ~$2,000 a year, and I would load up on the credits.  Turns out that calculus is calculus no matter where you take it, and at CC it costs about a third of the "big" schoolIf you have something like this under your belt, and then go ahead and get the 4 yr degree, you have a real solid base to actually go out and learn how things should be done.  This part will take the rest of your life.The first math you should do is a return on investement calculation on your education expense and compare it a few ways, 2 years and then go work with a tech degree, 4-5 years with and engineering degree and then work, etc.  I know a bunch of people who invested a ton of $$ (student loans) on ludicrous degrees, and dont make jack $hit, and never will.  They still owe 10's of thousands and spend 4-5-6 years, just so they can make $35,000 a year.  They will still be paying loans when they get their Dennys Golden Card for being 55Experience is something you get right after you need it
Reply:My two cents is to get both it will make you much better than the competition.  You'll need the "book smarts" but I personally know that practical experience will make you that much better at it than just have a degree in it.  One without the other doesn't always work too well especially for what you want to ultimately do.  If I were to do it, I would get the hands on experience first and then go to the books but that's what works best for me.  You'll have to make you own decisions about it.  Good luck to you.