Is CWI exam tutoring available? 2

[drj77872]

I am going to sit for my CWI in the next few months and I want to be 100% sure I pass the first time. Is there tutoring available? If so, where would I contact someone about this service.

 

[gtaw]

There are several companies that offer training and review seminars intended to prepare people for the CWI examinations. The Welding Journal has a few that advertise their training programs. Got to "aws.org", I believe the WJ is available on line.

Best regards - Al

 

[drj77872]

Thanks Al. I appreciate it. I'll go check it out now.

 

[Duwe6]

If you are 'almost ready', take the 5-day seminar that AWS puts on during the week prior to the Saturday testing.

If you are more of a 'field' guy, without having spent a LOT of time in Codes and Specifications, I highly recommend the Hobart Institute at

http://www.welding.org.

They run a 2-week class on the CWI Exam, and then you test there at Hobart. They are set up for 'field guys' and know what their 'blind spots' are and address them in their curriculum. They tend to have a higher 'pass' rate than the AWS seminar does.

 

[drj77872]

That sounds even better. I don't care how much $ I spend as long as I pass the first time. Thanks a lot buddy!

 

[bb29510]

i took the two week class at real educational, inc. the as test is really not that hard, i pass first time,

know your symbols,
know your welding procedures, you know smaw gtaw etc
especially know your metallurgy

part b is not hard, don't over think it, just remember its a code of its own, just for the test part, so don't bring anything into part b that what they give you

the test is not that hard, it just a lot to it

ICC Master Special Inspector, Structural Masonry, Reinforced Concrete, Soils, Structural Bolted Joints, Structural Welding, AWS CWI D1.1

 

[dbernard2012]

Hello, Regarding D1.1. Can you guys make the as fit-up and as detail a little simple to understand? some questions has range,maximum ect,ect.

For eg: for the pre-qualified joint B-L2c-S, what is the range of root face dimensions,as fit- up, permitted for a base metal thickness of 1 inch.

a)3/16
b)1/4 to 5/16
c)1/4 inch maximum
d) Not limited
e)0 to 5/16

 

[dbernard2012]

the answer is (e) according to AWS but how they arrive at that?
can you guys explain?

 

[bb29510]

Chapter four look up the weld detail and the range will be in the tolerance box

ICC Master Special Inspector, Structural Masonry, Reinforced Concrete, Soils, Structural Bolted Joints, Structural Welding, AWS CWI D1.1

 

[gtaw]

Answered in one of your other posts.

Best regards - Al

 

[Lexirains]

There are many online individualized tutoring classes available who start with the basics and complete the course on said date and time. They also provide option for your suitable time and place.

 

[CrNiMo]

DJR & anyone who may stumble upon this thread,

Unless you have money to waste and time to kill, don't take a seminar. It only conditions you to focus on the meat & potatoes. Do your really think they're gonna make it that easy?

1. Due to the massive amount of information in the W.I.T. book only meat and potatoes stuff if covered in the seminar.
(Pages of that book show on a projector screen)
Most questions on the fundamental test, other than weld symbols, will be from the seemingly insignificant minutia between the meat and potatoes. Filler crap used so they end up with a book 1" thick. Be familiar with the filler crap between the meat & potatoes. The quizzes at the ends of the modules....USELESS! Do you really think they're gonna make it that easy?
Buy the W.I.T book yourself and read it a couple of times.
1a. You WILL NOT be supplied with the Z49.1 book, HOWEVER, YOU WILL BE ASKED 3 TO 4 questions on safety.
This info is in Module 1 of the W.I.T. book. Equipment storage, gas bottles and ventilation flow.

FYI, I've been in inspection for 25 years and dealt with many a 3 party guy. If a CWI was to check all that the seminar instructor says you should check......you'd be shot on site. No job would ever get done on time. At the very least you'll be asked not to return. After weld start up all they are concerned with is paperwork being accurate...maybe they witness a hydro.

2. Know the Part B mock spec extremely well! I repeat, know the Part B mock spec extremely well!!
Especially the notes and your hi-low rods. Anything ending in 5,6 & 8. You do a lot of jumping between Appendices. Find info in one App. and then take that info to another App. to find the answer.
TIME IS YOUR ENEMY!! 2 hours goes very quick. Be a pro at traversing the Part B mock spec. The experience I paid for was having plastic and metal samples rudely thrown on our tables and the instructor saying "ok, there ya go!". That was it! No teaching!!! Just, there ya go, figure it out for yourself. AWS seminars SUCK!!! Use Real Ed. I hear they appreciate your money more and do spend a little more time on teaching you how to use the mock spec.

We all know how to read words on the printed page, at least I hope so. The tools aren't hard to figure out. They gloss over how to use them. But, no time is spent on actually teaching a person how to use the Part B mock spec. and that is criminal because there is an art to it. For someone with extensive NDE experience, they are very familiar with and comfortable with being bounced around and enduring the wild goose chase created by the authors (volunteer committee members/soccor moms) of codes and specs.
A lot depends on the test takers test taking personality and disposition also, in respect to panic and brain freeze.
Know this mock spec better than your wife and kids and you should be fine. Read the instructions on the first page that precedes any chart or table.

3. If you are taking the test to API 1104 (for the code portion) read the 2 Appendices A & B at the end of the book several times. Be very familiar with them. Why? They read like a regular text book. Run on paragraphs absent of section breaks denoted by large, bold face font titles like the rest of the book. The answer to the question you will be asked is buried in and amongst all this run on info. So you don't have to start reading at the beginning every time until you come to the answer (and usually by then you've forgotten what the question even was), being familiar with them will help you remember where in all that script the info you're looking for is.

Recap:
1. Fundamental portion: Be familiar with "filler material" in W.I.T. book and weld symbols.
2. Code portion: Be familiar with the contents. Tab section and tables.
3. Practical: Become very comfortable with Appendix hopping.
4. I was told by the seminar instructor that the plastic samples have manufacturing flaws but AWS didn't feel the need to remove them from circulation. Specifically, the samples with porosity have what looks like cracks and/or tails coming out of them. THEY ARE NOT CRACKS OR TAILS!!! They ARE the manufacturing flaws. DO NOT include them when you measure. On measure the ROUND HOLE(S). The proctor of the exam may or may not remember to inform you of this prior to taking the Part B exam.

Save your money and good luck.

CrNiMo

 

[gtaw]

It sounds like you learned something by attending the seminar. I failed to read anything about whether you passed or failed the examination.

The seminar is a "review" of the materials you can expect to see on the examination. After all, one of the prerequisites for taking the examination is "experience" working to a code.

What you have described is akin to someone complaining that a 40-hour PE review course failed to provide the learning experience of a four year engineering program.

Best regards - Al

 

[cwichad]

The part b inspection part the measurement answers will alway end with 1/16, 1/8, 3/16 or 1/4. It will never end in 32nd's 64th's ect. Aws d1.1 only recognizes discontinuities in 1/16th increments because anything under 1/16th is not counted.

Remember that! 16th's, 8th's or 1/4th's.

Also do yourself a favor and go to Hobart's2 week cwi course! It's worth every penny. They have a 60% pass rate and the teachers are good! The aws programs I have herd bad story's of getting a crappy teacher.

I took the aws seminar first and I only missed the code book part by 3 questions. It was very hard, I know people with master's degree's did not pass. It is truly a hard test. Anyone who says its easy is one of then crazy very good test taking people with a awesome level of comprehension and memory.

So after I got my results, I said screw retesting, and I went to the hobart cwi 2 week course like I should of the first time and I only had to take the D1.1 code book test so I had a lot less stress on me and I passed that time. I would highly recommend them and aws is starting to offer a Pre CWI training course, that wouldn't even be a bad deal.

You know its bad when the AWS teacher says he has been teaching the cwi 1 week course for 10 years and in 2012/13 he noticed the test was redone and Said he was very upset that AWS seemed to start making the test to really make you fail. He says this test is designed to make you fail and second guess yourself. Which is why he was angry with them because all the money you spend to do it they are kinda stealing it from you..

What I noticed is most the questions are like this, out of the 5 answers 4 are about 75-99% correct.....the fifth one the correct answer is 100% so make sure you really read the questions, 4 answers are so close to the actual answer it is deceiving.

Go hobart.

 

[bb29510]

i took the real education class, they claim 90% passing with retakes free. yes the course is all about passing the test and not much on job related, but i can't say enough about real education, inc. what i stumped on, was the metallurgy , welding symbols wasn't that hard, know you procedure, and if you do take the d1.1, every keyword of every question can be located in the d1.1 index. Eat your dessert first, get enough correct question to pass the test and then go back and answer the hard ones

part b will be difficult but just remember to forget whats in d1.1 at this time and just answer what in part b. its the same book they give you weeks a head of time.

ICC Master Special Inspector, Structural Masonry, Reinforced Concrete, Soils, Structural Bolted Joints, Structural Welding, AWS CWI D1.1