which route??

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hi I am currently working on my associates degree in welding technology at the local community college. going into college I didn't know how massive this industry is. welding is one of my passions. it is definitely the industry I want to be in. I am on the fence about wether or not I should continue my education at a university or going right to work. I want to know I'd the education is really worth the cost or is it more a waste or time and money. I live in southern California. if I go the education route I was told majoring in engineering technology was where I should. does anyone know what major I would need to go for? thank you for any advice
Reply:"work is good to recommend to other people"--------------------------------------------------------------www.becmotors.nlyup, I quit welding.. joined welder anonymous
Reply:Education is never a waste of time or money.  Given the glut of unskilled/ semi skilled workers in southern CA (and most all the rest of the country) I would see a bachelors of science as a minimum but it depends on what you want out of life. If you're serious about welding and want to be in the lucritive side of the business I'd study elelctrical engineering.Syncrowave 300Maxtron 450, S-52E, 30A
Reply:Stay in school num nuts!!  Theirs plenty of time to suck metal dust, and buy burn creme in bulk.
Reply:Originally Posted by wendellEducation is never a waste of time or money.  Given the glut of unskilled/ semi skilled workers in southern CA (and most all the rest of the country) I would see a bachelors of science as a minimum but it depends on what you want out of life. If you're serious about welding and want to be in the lucritive side of the business I'd study elelctrical engineering.
Reply:Originally Posted by usmcruzStay in school num nuts!!  Theirs plenty of time to suck metal dust, and buy burn creme in bulk.
Reply:Well... If you want to build desert trucks at a grown up level you need a degree in mechanical engineering.  If all you want to do is be a foreman than all you need to do is go to work every day for 5-7 years.  Pretty attainable goal.Syncrowave 300Maxtron 450, S-52E, 30A
Reply:Originally Posted by wendellWell... If you want to build desert trucks at a grown up level you need a degree in mechanical engineering.  If all you want to do is be a foreman than all you need to do is go to work every day for 5-7 years.  Pretty attainable goal.
Reply:the sky is the limit you should  also look at metallurgy and welding engineering  here is some info i pulled and stored away from another forum awhile back Earning a Bachelors degree in welding can lead to a variety of career opportunities - espcially if you're good. WE's can also earn a decent living - because they're "in demand." That's partly because welding engineering is a specialized program that's quite costly to operate. Of the schools that offer a BS degree in the field of welding, each has their own strength. Here's a few to research:1. Ferris State University - Big Rapids, MI 2. Ohio State University - Columbus, OH (may not accept transfer students, 4 year program required)3. Weber State University - Ogden, UT4. LeTourneau University - Longview, TX5. PennState University - State College, PAtoo my knowledge there is not a college that offers anything for a BS in welding 4 year in CA since Cal Poly Dropped there programs years backLast edited by WeldorWes; 03-03-2013 at 05:28 AM.Miller Xmt 350Lincoln Ln-25Ahp 200xSmith Gas Mixer AR/HTig is my Kung FuThrowing down dimes and weaving aboutInstagram http://instagram.com/[email protected]
Reply:I am a mechanical engineer.   The reason that I chose that degree is that I figured that it offered me the widest possible range of choices in terms of employment.Obviously a degree in metalurgy or welding would be more closely tied to welding.  Metalurgy would offer you more career choices than welding, which would be pretty specialized.Honestly, any engineering degree or technical degree will set you up for success.   The way I see it, most people simply would flunk out of engineering school, so it is not an option for them.   A lot of the people that could be successful in engineering school don't want to work that hard.    And even some of the people who are willing to work that hard, and could get through engineering school, choose other professions.   So only the few end up with engineering degrees, which means that there is usually not a surplus of engineers, which means that they pay you pretty well and you have a lot of opportunities, by and large. I remember trying to persuade a smart family member to go to engineering school vs. business school.  I dug up the numbers, as I recall it, business school grads make $40,000/yr, and engineering grads $60,000/yr.  But he was not interested. Sometimes they hire engineers as supervisors, figuring that they can move up in the business.  I did that for a while in a steel mill, but ultimately chose to do something else.Good luck,RichardSculptures in copper and other metalshttp://www.fergusonsculpture.comSyncrowave 200 Millermatic 211Readywelder spoolgunHypertherm 600 plasma cutterThermal Arc GMS300 Victor OA torchHomemade Blacksmith propane forge
Reply:Listen to usmcruz and most postings. If you are interested in engineering the classes you will take are pretty much the same for the first two years in all the engineering disciplines. You don't have to make a choice immediately. It is easy enough to change sometime down the line. Electrical engineers probably make the most money of all the disciplines. Haven't run into any welding engineers but I have a feeling they are like nuclear engineers not too much in demand and are extreemly specialized. I always thought mechanical engineering to be interesting.
Reply:what do you guys think about going through the service to get education andtraining? if I enlist after I get my associates I can go in as a sergeant. any feedback?
Reply:I have a degree in welding engineering technology from Penn. College of Technology.  I've been through a couple of different jobs since I graduated in '02, and there have always been openings when I've looked, provided I was willing to move for most of them.Because you're still so early in your education and experience, I would suggest looking at the manufacturing engineering route.  There are far more job opportunities and it will transition more easily into the supervision side that you've expressed an interest in.  Your welding experience will be a huge asset as well.Look at it this way: there are lots of companies that employ weld engineers because of code compliance issues or to manage process and personnel qualifications, but every one of those companies and thousands more are looking for a manufacturing engineer to help them improve their processes and therefore their bottom line.
Reply:Originally Posted by mstyerI have a degree in welding engineering technology from Penn. College of Technology.  I've been through a couple of different jobs since I graduated in '02, and there have always been openings when I've looked, provided I was willing to move for most of them.Because you're still so early in your education and experience, I would suggest looking at the manufacturing engineering route.  There are far more job opportunities and it will transition more easily into the supervision side that you've expressed an interest in.  Your welding experience will be a huge asset as well.Look at it this way: there are lots of companies that employ weld engineers because of code compliance issues or to manage process and personnel qualifications, but every one of those companies and thousands more are looking for a manufacturing engineer to help them improve their processes and therefore their bottom line.
Reply:Originally Posted by m_martin53what do you guys think about going through the service to get education andtraining? if I enlist after I get my associates I can go in as a sergeant. any feedback?
Reply:[QUOTE=shovelon;2358511]Was not going to comment, but as you pointed out manufacturing engineering, I can tell you what my kid did, and where he got a job. He started out in Community College building transfer credits thinking of majoring in civil engineering. All the while working in my shop as a structural alum weldor. He also moonlighted at Anhueser Busch on the weekends in the Brewhouse as an intern/weekender. He found out that AB sponsored a new wing at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo when they broke the Industrial Technology dept from the engineering college to the Business college. It helped that his best friends mother was the HR director at AB Van Nuys, and was the person to hand over the donation. Her son was accompanying his mom and asked my son to come along. That was the direction he chose and got a recommendation from AB(yes the lady that funded the wing), and transferred over. Marketing skills, business skills, RD, packaging, and engineering were the subject matter. Kind of like a hybrid between manufacturing engineering and  business, but with a bent towards business because it is now in the business college. He graduated last year, and got an offer from Haas Automation designing shipping pallets, and SpaceX, with interviews from Lockheed in logistics(paper pushing). He accepted a position second shift friction stir welding technician team on their brand new vertical friction stir machine building first and second stage rocket barrels, as wells as fuel tanks. The first stage barrel alone is 30 feet tall. Setup and execution are key elements to the process and is well documented as well as inspected. They offered a premium hiring package to him because he was AWS D1.2 certified structural alum, and AWS D17.1 aerospace alum, and understands high strength alum and effects of heat dynamics of welding. His packaging,manufacturing, budgeting, and documentation education helped quite a bit. The new team trained for 2 weeks, then pushed a broom for about a month until the verticle friction stir machine was operational. A lot of chaos and 80 hour weeks ensued until they were able to get some production. His welding skills came in handy fabricating up special clamps and fixtures together. The alum he works with is Aluminum/lithium alloy and readily hot cracks if weld attempt is in the liquid state. Friction stir buries a spinning anvil into the material creating an heated mush of metal that is plannished behind the anvil and the mush recombines to create the weld. The metal never gets hot enough to go into solution, and the alloys don't separate. However thickness is critical. Air pockets, de-lamination,  cracks, and foreign matter are picked up with ultrasound inspection. In that case, my son late last year along with a select team came up with a repair procedure that is saving quite a lot of scrapped barrels. That is one part of his job,  taking on special problem solving projects in a group manner just like he did in college. Bottom line an Industrial Technology degree can be applied to many facets of business and manufacturing, including welding. Most of his college buddies minored in packaging and are working in food processing plants. Many companies hire engineers to be plant managers, supervisors and such, but are very limited in what they can do. Industrial Technology graduates are highly sought after because they bring people skills, and problem solving, and well as business acumen to the plant. My kid chose manufacturing as a minor, with packaging as a second minor. Not one out of his graduating class has not found a job with good pay. Funny how it came full circle and he is welding again(proud dad moment).[/QUOTEStarting salary?Syncrowave 300Maxtron 450, S-52E, 30A
Reply:[quote=wendell;2360211] Originally Posted by shovelonFunny how it came full circle and he is welding again(proud dad moment).[/QUOTEStarting salary?
Reply:fair enough.Syncrowave 300Maxtron 450, S-52E, 30A