Buying a 1974 Pontiac Catalina put Cotina Howard on the road to a new career.
“I loved the car, but it seemed to have a different issue every month,” Howard said.
The self-described former tomboy loves to fix things, and after getting tired of the run-around at auto maintenance shops, she decided to switch careers.
“I was pretty sure that if I learned how, I could fix a car as well as any man,” she said.
The former administrative assistant and bookkeeper also knew a lot about business, building trust and customer service.
“I knew if I opened an auto maintenance business, I could make sure that people were taken care of,” she said.
Howard enrolled in the automotive technology program at DeKalb Technical College and is scheduled to earn an associate degree next year. She wants skills that will allow her to support her family, make more money and build a business. So when she had the opportunity to learn welding as an elective, Howard jumped at it.
“I wanted to learn welding because I knew it would make me more valuable as an auto technician,” she said. “I could do more maintenance and vehicle-customization work.
“It’s been more difficult than I expected, but the instructors are great, and I’m loving it. There’s a motion and a rhythm to welding. Laying down a beautiful bead that joins metal is an art.”
DeKalb Tech offers several certificates of credit in its welding and joining technology diploma program. Most students in the program earn a diploma within 18 months.
Students learn to apply extreme heat to forge metals into permanent bonds. Welding is used in shipbuilding, manufacturing, auto manufacturing and repair, and in the construction of bridges, power plants and refineries.
“People are drawn to welding because they know they have a skill that not everyone can do. There’s satisfaction in the work,” said Willie Harvey Jr., welding instructor at DeKalb Tech. “There’s also good money and opportunity in this field.”
In his 30 years in welding, Harvey has known graduates who have branched into welding engineering, mathematics, chemistry, welding inspection and teaching. He’s seen welders move up into management or take their skills into new territories, such as working underwater.
“Welders can take their skills anywhere, and if they have a willingness to keep learning, they can take their career as far as they want to go. There’s a demand for skilled welders in this country and even more demand abroad,” he said.
New graduates can make $12 to $13 an hour without experience, working for manufacturers, machine shops, automotive manufacturers, hiring agencies or on construction crews. The pay increases as welders refine their skills.
“A good welder can make six figures easily,” Harvey said.
The program’s classes and labs teach the theory and skills needed for reading blueprints, oxy-fuel cutting, shielded metal arc welding, gas metal arc welding and gas tungsten arc welding.
“We prepare them to enter the industry, and their employers will continue their training. With more certifications, they’ll gain better jobs and pay,” Harvey said.
Welders need patience, manual dexterity, good hand-eye coordination and to be in good physical shape.
The program at DeKalb Tech costs about $3,000. The Technical College System of Georgia has welding technology programs at most of its campuses including Atlanta Tech, Gwinnett Tech, Chattahoochee Tech and Lanier Tech.
For information, call 404-297-9522 or go to www.dekalbtech.edu.
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