Are you interested in welding? And you are confused about whether it is the right career path for you? Then you will find your answer here. Welding is done to cut or combine metals by applying heat. There are a lot of people who want to start their careers by learning different skills.
If you go for a degree, then it will cost you a lot of money, and it will take at least 4-years to complete the degree. Though academic degree and learning welding are not the same thing, sometimes they come in a comparison. However, this is not actually the case for learning welding, read below to know the benefits.
If you are wondering how to start a career in welding, then the first step is to get the training. You can learn welding at any reliable welding training institute and it will take quite less time for you to complete the whole procedure.
Some institutes take 3-6 months or 1-year for the training. Plus, you don’t need to spend much money to learn how to weld. So, it is quite beneficial for those who want to start their career in a short time.
And if there is someone who is a welder in your home, you can easily get training from them and start working. You don’t need to have a certificate to start your career as a welder, all you need is the right amount of welding skill.
Money is quite an important factor and people always want to pursue such careers, where they feel they can earn more. If you are thinking that welders don’t earn enough money, then you are absolutely wrong.
You need to have a good amount of patience when you start welding as a career, as beginners might get paid less. Some entry-level workers earn $30,000-$40,000 in a year. But when you acquire enough experience and enter into a good industry as a worker, you will be paid well.
Most of the people who have great experience in welding and works in a good industry earn $50,000-$140,000 in a year.
And the people who have welding business also earn a good amount of money. There are a lot of work opportunities for welders with a good pay level, so welders have a lot of options to earn money.
Travel the World
If you ask should I become a welder, then the answer will be yes, as welders can travel the world. The demand for skilled welders is not only high in your country, but is also high in other countries too.
If you have excellent welding skill, then the chances for you to travel to another country for working becomes high.
Welding is done the same way in all countries. So, you can work in different countries and experience different cultures too. Plus, there are also chances to get a permanent job in abroad.
Self-owned Business
When you have enough experience in the welding field, then you can open your own welding business. It will be a beneficial option for you to earn more money. A small welding business will be enough in the beginning, and when you earn a good amount of money from it, you can expand the business.
This will also create work opportunities for other welders, and with this business, you can start your life as an entrepreneur.
Earn Extra-money
Suppose you have completed a project and there is no work in hand, or you are on a long vacation. In that free time, you can work as a part-time welder for any other industry or local production company. Plus, you can create your own products and sell them to earn some more money.
So the scope for welders to earn money is huge.
A Sense of Accomplishment
Apart from earning a good amount of money, welding will make you realize that you can manufacture anything. When you work for hours to create or to install things, and when finally it is done, you will feel accomplished. It feels great to build a variety of useful things for different purposes.
Use Skills in Day-to-Day Life
While working in the workshop, you can learn other useful skills too, which will be beneficial for your day-to-day life. You can help your friends in their projects or can create something for your home.
These skills will benefit a lot to improve yourself as a manufacturer. It will be fun and enjoyable to use these practical skills in daily life.
An Enjoyable Work
Welding is not that hard as it seems to be. Once you learn to weld, it will be easy and fun to do it. To change a metal into a nice looking and highly-useful material will bring a lot of satisfaction to you.
Moreover, if you are a highly-skilled and excellent welder with good work ethics, then any company would love to work with you.
Do you feel connected to welding already? You can check out these books I highly recommend for beginners, plus, they are Best Sellers!
- Welding Fundamentals by William A. Bowditch, Kevin E. Bowditch & Mark A. Bowditch
- Welding For Dummies by Steven Robert Farnsworth
- Welding Symbols Quick Card by Builder’s Book Inc. (Author, Editor), Arch. Rotimi Fafowora (Illustrator)
What are the Career Opportunities in Welding?
Welders have numerous job opportunities in different fields as they are needed everywhere. They can find a good job in these fields:
- Engineering.
- Inspection.
- Education.
- Robotics.
- Sales.
- Project Management.
Coming to the travel job opportunities, then welders have a great scope there too. Some of them are:
1. Ship Manufacture and Repair
Ship manufacturing industries are always in a need of skilled welders for building and repair work. They hire skillful welders as “independent contractors” to manufacture anything from aircraft carriers to specialty research vessels.
The time period of the work depends on the length of the project. It takes weeks or a few months for a project to be completed.
2. Industrial Shutdown
There are a lot of industries for industrial shutdown welders to work, they are power generation, oil and gas refineries, and industrial production plants. The welders working in industrial shutdowns travel from one place to another to help the industrial plants to operate without any trouble.
They spend a lot of time traveling for work. But if they work for six months, then they have the opportunity to take a break in the other six months.
3. Motor Sports
Do you like cars and love building them? Then as a welder, you will get the opportunity to work with NASCAR racing teams to construct and repair cars. Cars and motor-bikes are made of metal and requires to be custom made.
The racing team hires welders to travel with them wherever they go, as welders are always needed in repairing or to make some custom-made equipment.
4. Military Personnel
Contract companies hire welders to do some military welding jobs. They help to repair military equipment and weapons and in building infrastructure. Plus, they also repair tanks, built pipelines, and perform other welding works. Even though it is quite dangerous to work in such a field, but the payment is quite well.
5. On-Board Ship Repair and Maintenance
Many welders live in a cruise ship for repair and maintenance purposes, while the ship travels to different countries. They are required to repair several equipment or replace the pipes, while the ship is at sea. Living on a cruise means you get the chance to travel to different countries every week.
Moreover, they get to stay there for free without any charge with free meals and other facilities.
6. Underwater Welding
Underwater welding is a high-skilled job, where you need to perform repairing, fitting, or cutting work at the bottom of oceans. It is a high demanded job around the globe as it is specialized fieldwork. Underwater welder’s salary is quite excellent too, because of the risks involved in the job.
You have to travel from one site to another, too often. To be an underwater welder, you need extra training to dive under the water.
7. Pipelines
The demand for welders in the natural gas company, water, and electric utilities, and oil and gasoline companies are high, as they are required to repair or install pipes in different places. Welders have to travel a lot, especially in remote places to perform their job as long as the project requires.
Working in a pipeline industry can be physically challenging and sometimes hazardous too for the welders, but they are also paid well for doing the job.
What Are the Negative Sides of Welding?
We have discussed the good sides of choosing welding as a career, but now let’s take a look at the negative sides.
Hazardous Job
Is welding a good job? The answer is yes and no. Even though welding has high job opportunities, it is a dangerous and hazardous job. Most of the welders face injuries, like burns, cuts, shocks, etc, while working on-site. They have to breathe toxic gases and fumes that may create respiratory problems.
The welders are exposed to Ultraviolet-radiation and metal fumes, which may cause them harm. The danger level has reduced from before but still, you need to work carefully and handle the powerful devices well.
Physically Demanding
Life of a welder is not as fun as it seems to be. Building useful pieces is satisfying, but for that, you need to have good physical strength. It is not like office jobs where you can sit on the desk and work the whole day.
Welders are required to perform with high attention and sometimes they also carry heavy equipment and metals to transport them from one place to another for welding. Most of the time they have to be in kneel position to weld the metals.
So if you want to be a welder, then you have to be physically ready to do the job.
Requires Patience
Welding is fun and challenging, but not for all. It takes a lot of time for the newbies to learn the skills and techniques of welding. So you should have a lot of patience and persistence at the beginning of the learning period.
Once you learn how to weld perfectly with good speed and technique, then it will become easy to perform it. Plus, completing a project sometimes takes a lot of time. So you should have enough patience while working on a project.
Working for Long Hours
Many welders work in different shifts, depending on the industry they work for. Their work shift might be in the morning, night, or even on weekends. They work for 8 to 12 hours and sometimes they work overtime when it is required. So you don’t get much time to spend with your family.
The welders who travel to different countries for work also have to stay away from their family most of the time, say for a month or maybe for a year.
Uncomfortable Environment
Welding is not a comfortable job for many as they have to work outside most of the time under the hot sun or on a freezing cold day. Some have to work in a small space with no proper ventilation system.
If you choose the career of a welder, then you have to be ready to face and work in such environments. But if you cannot work in these situations, then welding is not for you.
Wrap Up
Welding is a unique job that is quite enjoyable and risky too. This has innumerable job opportunities and will give you the scope to earn a lot of money if you do your job professionally. I hope this article has answered all the questions you had in your mind, especially this question ‘is welding a good career choice’, and helped you to make a decision. There are some cons of welding, which also should be taken into consideration before choosing this as a career.
