As with any career, the eventual outcome you want from your welding job is to be able to earn enough money to support yourself. That being said, there is also something to wanting to be able to do more than simply support yourself, but to live comfortably, and even have the freedom to treat yourself to a few splurges when you want to. You only live once, right?! So what can you do to ensure that you will be able to land the best paying welding jobs? The answer comes down to a few key factors, and if you put in the time and effort to acquire them, you’ll be well on your way to earning the most from your welding career.
It can’t be stressed enough, but practice is essential. The old adage of practice makes perfect may be cliched but it’s true. Whenever you are learning anything, from riding a bike, driving a car, or practicing brain surgery, in order to be the best man (or woman!) for any welding job, you have to have had enough hours under your belt. You need to put in the time at the grind, honing your craft, and being able to work with virtually every imaginable material you may encounter on the job. You will have to complete an apprenticeship after you’ve earned your degree, but it is really up to you to make the very most of it. Think of yourself as a sponge, and then soak up as much information, advice, and know-how from not only your own mentor, but every other welder around you. Note what NOT to do, and then decide what you need to do right and then practice it. When you are first starting out, you might be tempted with an enticing offer that may promise you great wages but won’t stretch you very much and you won’t be learning much on the job. Instead of taking that welding job, you would be much better off long term if you instead picked a welding job that perhaps didn’t pay as much, but you’d be out on the floor much more and working on techniques you may not have mastered yet. So the moral of this short spiel is to think of yourself as a work in progress and continually strive to test your own capabilities and challenge yourself. You may fail at times, in fact that’s a good thing as it shows you are willing to undertake tough obstacles, but keep trying and eventually you will succeed.
Secondly, even though it may not be required, get that welding certification test passed! It may just be a piece of paper, but it represents much more to any potential employer. It’s the nature of the beast; just like a high SAT score may not make you superiorly smarter than others in your class, but it does well to get you into a top college. And just like the SAT’s, what’s on the Welding Certification test isn’t necessarily everything you will be used to, or even need to be able to do your welding job. So you should talk to a supervisor of the test shop and find out exactly what you should be studying. Find out as much as you can about the test, and then study and practice up, pore over the details and take some practice tests. Then on the big day you will be prepared to ace it, and then go on to earn more at your welding job.
Finally, don’t be afraid to say what you’ve accomplished in your welding career. Employers want to know that they are hiring the very best, and you need to show them it is you. You don’t have to come off sounding like an arrogant person, but make concrete statements in regards to your accomplishments. You can’t argue with facts, so if you were able to keep impressive acceptance rates years on end, say so. Polish up your resume, and that can do much of the talking for you. Have confidence when going into any welding job interview, look them in the eye and let them know why they need you. A lot can be done by simply showing professionalism.
Keeping all of these things in mind, you will no doubt be well on your way to earning more from your welding career. Even if you’ve been at it a while and think it’s too late, you haven’t missed the boat. Work on anything you don’t know inside and out in your respective welding job field and master it. Showing determination is always something employers want to see.