Spinewire Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I am in the process on enrolling on a course in the UK that teaches welding. They are a bit picky about who they let onto the course and came to my house and interviewed me, she said she was going to come back on friday and speak to me and give me an aptitude test. This will be maths based, i'm pretty crap at mental arithmetic and i was wondering what sort of things i am likely to be asked. I have not done any real maths for years and when i did physics A level those were not the sort of things you would try to work out in your head. Does anyone have any idea what sort of things i will be asked, she said she will ring me later today so i can ask if it is to be done with or without calculator. If it's without i'm guessing it will be fairly basic stuff. Any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbruce Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I looked on google and there's alot of info there....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Dean Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I would imagine that it would consist of some trig. and working with fractions. When I was in high school....many years ago...I thought I would NEVER use that junk they called math. HA!! just every day and all day, that's all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinewire Posted July 10, 2012 Author Share Posted July 10, 2012 I looked on google and there's alot of info there.......Don't be a smart XXXX it lists every type of possible test there is from basic numerical reasoning to the most advanced stuff you can find. I would imagine that it would consist of some trig. and working with fractions. When I was in high school....many years ago...I thought I would NEVER use that junk they called math. HA!! just every day and all day, that's all.This is what I was guessing, thanks. I better brush up then because I have pretty much forgotten all of it. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCal Dave Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I would think it would consist of some basic geometry in dealing with finding lengths of different shapes. If you watch a Mark Aspery video, he deals with this stuff in estimating lengths. Also, fractions are used all the time in welding. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy k Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 . My first thought would be to just ask the people who will be giving the test what is involved instead of asking a bunch of people that may not be familiar with your countrys tests Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinewire Posted July 10, 2012 Author Share Posted July 10, 2012 I did they just said we are not allowed to discuss it :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HWHII Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 During my career in welding. education has always separated the average from the best, and math seems to be the line in the sand. I would be lost with out my calculator. Here in the states all the written tests I have had to take would let you use one. Most questions were basic technical math, story problems, fractions, geometry, and trig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John McPherson Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 We have had to require basic skills tests in math and english (no phones or calculators allowed) to screen new students to take community college courses. Social promotion means that a high school diploma is now a worthless piece of paper for predicting if someone can actually read, write and cipher at what was a sixth grade level a few decades ago. Remedial courses in those subjects are now our most popular offering. The first few weeks of Welding blueprint reading class are spent teaching fractions and how to read a tape measure. Fabrication class is almost as bad. Budget cuts eliminated hands on shop and science classes in our urban county's high schools. But we have world class ball fields and indoor pools! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Dean Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Preach on John!!! Had a kid, well he's 20yrs old, come to my shop 2 months ago wanting to learn how to run a bead in pipe to pass a welding test. He had just got out of the "Tulsa Welding School" in Tulsa, OK. He could not do it and after watching him weld I doubt that he will ever make a good welder. BUT!! his 'deploma' from the school reads "Billy Bob Smith" Master Welder! We have tested welders here that have welded for years and not be able to pass our test. And it is fairly simple, 6G- 6010 root and hot pass, fill n cap with 7018, 6" sch. 80 cs pipe. Absolutely NO IP in root, 100% X-Ray. Went through over 60 "welders" in less than a month and offered a job to 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ten Hammers Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 What Jeremy said. Reading a tape measure will I think be one of the math needs along with adding and subtracting fractions (or metrics/conversions). I'm guessing they want to know what you know already. What Thomas Dean said. Joint prep, tack, root, grind, cover pass, grind, cap pass. Perhaps grind backside of the root and same game on that side. Pass a bend test then 100% exray. Perhaps mild and stainless. Hard to say what their needs are. What John said. Print reading and math in your head perhaps. Good Luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John McPherson Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I confess that I have no idea exactly what is on a UK school aptitude test, welding or otherwise. I have never taken one of ours, either. But from the results that I see, the threshold is pretty low. All we can do is shorten the learning curve for the trainable ones, and give them the theory and background that they need. I tell our students that a passing grade and two year diploma just makes them worth hiring. A couple years on the job will make them real welders. Our greatest successes are those individuals who come back to school for advanced training, or retraining from an allied field. I do know that many large companies spend a great deal of time and effort weeding out those with no intellectual curiosity or problem solving ability. For a general knowledge test, the more you know about a wide variety of mechanical devices and practical physics, the better. The next phase of paper testing is then geared to your specific field, like machining, or welding. In the US, NCCER has standardized tests for all sorts of construction jobs. For a generator and turbine manufacturer, the actual 6G GTAW carbon steel pipe welding test that I proctored as a CWI was Phase 5 of their pre-employment testing. Less than 10% of the original hiring pool made it to that stage. Only then did the company use their own welding engineers and QA folks to do internal welder testing on exotic metals. They say its lonely at the top. The flip side to that is crowded at the bottom. Set yourself apart from the crowd by going past the minimum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Well it depends on the large company; when I was working on the assembly line I applied for the companies EETech program and got the highest score they had ever had on the entrance exam I was told; but did not get in the program as they added your years in the union to your score for the final choice. So I paid for the classes myself and was amused to see the fellow the company was paying for having great difficulties with the math aspects. Having been through Calc 5 in college that part was the easy part! I never got the EETech though as I was hired by Bell Labs and they wanted me to get a regular CIS degree to go with my BS in geology/geophysics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinewire Posted July 14, 2012 Author Share Posted July 14, 2012 Well it was the most mind numbing test I have seen, it was mainly there to check for a pulse. It had some questions regarding welding at the back to gauge how much I all ready knew, which is not much. Anyway thanks for the help, although everything I revised didn't come up it was all good and I'm now on the course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ten Hammers Posted July 14, 2012 Share Posted July 14, 2012 " it was mainly there to check for a pulse." Perhaps this tells you something. The school indeed must know if their applicants have the sense to answer basic knowledge questions. Welding is more than just mating metal. The " I care " factor must come into play. Peoples lives depend on welding (and I am not speaking of your livelihood in the trade after training ). Wasting time training people that don't care in the first place would be a problem. Aptitude. Ethic. Glad you got the test over and hope you do well in the course. Here we might say " break a leg ". Learning to live in the puddle can be a bit frustrating but so can learning the right forging temperature for different materials in different environments. Carry on my friend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Turley Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 Just don't be like the kid I heard about who was working in a harpsichord shop. The foreman hollered for a specific measurement, and the kid yelled from the other side of the shop, "Sixteen and uh, and uh, two bumps past the big bump in the middle!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinewire Posted July 18, 2012 Author Share Posted July 18, 2012 As someone who is more of a mm kind of guy being forced into inches fills me with unhappy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Turley Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 This aptitude business reminds me of a plumber who told me that a guy needed to know three things to be a plumber. I bit; I said, "What are they?" He responeded, "Sxxx flows downhill. Payday's on Friday. Don't bite your fingernails." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BM454 Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 The Boilermakers give a test called Common Arc. It's a heavy walled tube on the 6G position. It's 5/8 thick and 2.75 OD. Tig root and 7018 cap. When you take the test you have 4 hours to take it. They give you a hand brush and file. No power tools of any kind. No more than 3/32 push through on the root and about the same on the cap. I have to say it's a tough test. Very few pass. I passed it but, spent many hours learning how. Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bam Bam 1 Posted September 8, 2012 Share Posted September 8, 2012 Just like ALL skilled trades. proper teaching hours under the hood and miles of welding.Yes scott common arc is not for the light hearted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbillysmith Posted September 12, 2012 Share Posted September 12, 2012 The Boilermakers give a test called Common Arc. It's a heavy walled tube on the 6G position. It's 5/8 thick and 2.75 OD. Tig root and 7018 cap. When you take the test you have 4 hours to take it. They give you a hand brush and file. No power tools of any kind. No more than 3/32 push through on the root and about the same on the cap. I have to say it's a tough test. Very few pass. I passed it but, spent many hours learning how. Scott 4 hours to run a 2-1/2 xxx-heavy pipe?? Plenty of time, especially with a GTAW root.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigred Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 All the best welders in the world must live here :P A couple of the jobs on my CV have been as was a welding instructor for a North Sea Oil company and a leading hand on a power station pipe crew and, at least in my experience"Thomas Dean" has it about right. Around 10% of WELDERS (not rod burners), can get through a 5 or 6 G pipe test whether with a full pen stick root or tig root and most of those are usually just off the back of similar work. Real welders know that to stay at the top of the tree you have to be doing it every day - that fine touch goes relatively quickly between contracts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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