Certified Welding Supervisor

Why get certified as a Welding Supervisor (CWS)?

According to a final report on Welding Supervisor Training and Certification, CWS helps reduce welding costs, helps increase productivity and profitability, and helps make a company more competitive by an average of $17,000 per welder per year!

As a Certified Welding Supervisor, your personal rewards can be significant as well. You gain valuable expertise that can expand your career: certification can bring higher pay, better job security and the professional prestige that marks your skills and knowledge as among the industry’s elite.

What makes a Certified Welding Supervisor so effective?

Many supervisors have the potential to improve productivity significantly, but often lack the full knowledge and supportive skills to truly maximize their welding team’s performance..

The AWS Certified Welding Supervisor program is designed to rectify these conditions by:

1. Teaching welding supervisors  how to lead their team to work even more productively and successfully;
2. Sharing the body of knowledge all welding supervisors should know and understand to increase productivity and improve weld quality.

Applications

Initial CWS Exam Application
CWS Re-Exam Application
Renewal Application for CWS 3rd and 6th Year
Recertification Application for CWS 9th Year

Technical Documents

QC13, Specification for the Certification of Welding Supervisors
English

B5.9, Specification for the Qualification of Welding Supervisors
English

General Forms

ADA Disability Accommodations
AWS Bank Information
Certification Duplicate Order Form
Change of Site/Cancellation Form
Employment Verification Form
Exam Security Agreement and General Term of Use Form
Policies and Fees
Price List
Qualifying Work Experience Form

To view the photo ID requirements click here.

Our CWS exam is offered exclusively at Prometric sites across the globe. This means lower travel costs to our candidates.

To sign up for a CWS exam, please download an application. Once you submit your application and are approved, you will receive an email with a special eligibility code and a link to the Prometric site where you can schedule your exam at a place and time convenient for you.

If you're a veteran with G.I. Bill Benefits, and you're looking for a good job, or you want to change jobs, or if you want to move ahead in your present job, licensing or certification may hold the key for you!

Find out more

CWS Body of Knowledge

The period of validity for the AWS CWS credentials is three (3) years. Prior to the end of three years, certificate holders shall renew the certification if they wish to maintain their CWS credentials. Renewal requires written documentation to support evidence of continued activity in the occupational position of welding supervisor. If the certification is allowed to lapse beyond the grace period, renewal is not permitted. A new application for certification shall be submitted, and the educational and examination requirements shall be met.

Please visit the documents tab to access the CWS renewal application.

After two (2) consecutive renewals, a total of nine (9) years of continuous certification, the certificate holder is required to recertify to maintain CWS credentials by meeting the following requirements:

1. Documentation to support evidence of continued activity in the occupational position of welding supervisor shall be provided.
2. The certificate holder shall successfully pass the CWS written examination or be exempt from the exam by demonstrating continued education equivalent to 80 professional development hours (PDH) over the nine (9) year period of certification with 20 PDH being completed in the immediate three (3) year period preceding the nine-year recertification.

Please visit the documents tab to access the CWS recertification application.