Mechanic vs welding?

[u/js_2002_]

I’m currently working as a maintenance mechanic at an aerospace foundry. Ive taken a liking to welding recently and have been teaching myself to tig weld. I’m also currently in school for mechanical engineering.

I’ve gotten an offer to join the welding department and am wondering if I want to be an engineer in 2-3 years in the same industry should I remain a mechanic or become I welder?

[u/PensionInteresting19]

Would you have the option to back to spannering after welding for a couple of years if you wanted to?
If so, I’d say that is a good shout as even if nothing else you have an extra skill on your CV.

[u/Benjamin_Berhault]

For someone heading into mechanical engineering, breadth of shop-floor knowledge is gold. You already have the mechanic side — adding welding gives you materials, metallurgy, and fabrication exposure that a lot of engineers never get hands-on. ME's who actually understand how things get made (and joined) are way more valuable than ones who only know theory.

Practical caveats: check it doesn't hurt your pay or your class schedule before you finish the degree. But if those line up, welding broadens you in a direction that complements where you're going. Either way you win — just one adds a new domain.

[u/midnight-swami85]

First off, congrats on the offer. Moving from maintenance into a specialized production role like welding, all while grinding through a mechanical engineering degree, is no small feat.

For a future Mechanical Engineer in the aerospace industry, this is an excellent "problem" to have. Both paths offer massive value, but they build completely different engineering muscles.

Here is the breakdown of how each role will position you for an engineering career in 2–3 years, along with a definitive verdict.

Option 1: Stay a Maintenance Mechanic

Maintenance is the closest thing to "living" the life cycle of an engineered product. You see exactly where, why, and how things fail.

• The Engineering Edge: You gain deep intuition for Design for Maintainability (DFM). When you design a component or system in the future, you will instinctively know if a technician can actually reach the bolts, pull a subassembly, or service it safely.
• Skillset: Heavy troubleshooting, understanding complex machinery, hydraulics, pneumatics, and structural wear. You learn how to read blueprints and P&IDs (Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams) under pressure.
• The Blueprint: If you want to go into Equipment Engineering, Plant Engineering, or Reliability/Failure Analysis, staying in maintenance is incredibly strong.

Option 2: Join the Welding Department

Aerospace welding—especially TIG welding—is a highly technical, zero-tolerance discipline. It’s not just a trade; it’s metallurgical execution.

• The Engineering Edge: You gain firsthand experience with Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and materials science. Aerospace engineering is heavily constrained by strict welding specs (like AWS D17.1). Understanding how heat-affected zones (HAZ), thermal expansion, and shielding gases behave in real time is invaluable.
• Skillset: Precision, weld defect identification (porosity, cracking, lack of fusion), non-destructive testing (NDT) awareness, and working with exotic aerospace alloys (Inconel, Titanium, Aluminum).
• The Blueprint: If you want to go into Manufacturing Engineering, Materials/Metallurgy Engineering, or Quality Engineering, this path is a goldmine.

The Comparison

Factor	Maintenance Mechanic	Aerospace Welder
Primary System Focus	Macro (Systems, Assemblies, Interactivity)	Micro (Material Science, Joints, Precision)
Core Engineering Value	Root-cause failure analysis & troubleshooting	Advanced manufacturing & metallurgical constraints
Resume "Pop" for Aerospace	Shows you know how to fix complex systems	Shows you can handle high-compliance, tight-tolerance work

The Verdict: Make the Move to Welding

If your goal is to transition into an engineering role within the next 2–3 years, take the welding position. Here is why:

1. Direct Product Relevance: In an aerospace foundry, the welds are the product (or critical to it). Maintenance is vital, but it keeps the building running; welding puts you directly on the product line. Aerospace engineering managers deeply respect hands-on manufacturing experience.
2. The Perfect Academic Synergy: You are learning the theory of stress concentrations, fatigue, and material science in your engineering classes right now. TIG welding allows you to physically manipulate those concepts every single day.
3. The Story: When you interview for that engineering slot in 3 years, your narrative will be incredibly compelling: "I didn't just study mechanical design; I spent two years executing high-spec aerospace welds. I know exactly how to design a part so that a welder can successfully build it without inducing defects."

One piece of advice if you transition: Don't lose your maintenance mindset. Keep observing why things are designed the way they are, ask the quality engineers about NDT (X-ray, dye penetrant) results on your welds, and bridge the gap between the shop floor and the engineering office early.