| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Private welding school; in person only, no online courses |
| Campuses | 3 in 2 states: Fargo (main) and Bismarck, ND; New Hope, MN (Minneapolis area) |
| Credentials | Certificate of Completion for every program and course |
| Typical length | 12 or 16 weeks for the Combination Welder programs; 1 to 5 weeks for Skills and specialty courses |
| Accreditation | ACCSC since 1 November 2012, for the two Combination Welder programs only; next review 30 November 2026 |
| State approval | North Dakota Department of Career and Technical Education; Minnesota Office of Higher Education |
| Federal aid | Direct Loans at all campuses; Pell Grants only at Fargo, for Combination Welder II; GI Bill approved |
| 2026-27 cost | $15,100 (Combination Welder I) and $17,900 (Combination Welder II), the same at every campus |
| Founded | 2006, in Fargo, ND |
| Facts checked | October 2026 |
Lynnes Welding Training: a welding-only school in North Dakota and Minnesota
Lynnes Welding Training is a privately owned school that teaches nothing but welding. It opened in Fargo, North Dakota, in 2006 and now has three campuses: Fargo, Bismarck and New Hope, a Minneapolis suburb. The Minnesota campus opened in New Hope in 2024, when the school moved its Ramsey, MN site there.
Its main programs are two full-time certificates, Combination Welder I (12 weeks) and Combination Welder II (16 weeks), taught in the shop with at most 15 students to a class. These two programs are accredited by ACCSC; the shorter one- to five-week Skills and specialty courses are not. Every campus charges the same tuition.
Programs: two accredited certificates and shorter Skills courses
| Program | Credential | Length | Where | ACCSC-accredited | 2026-27 total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combination Welder II | Certificate of Completion | 640 hours, 16 weeks | Fargo, Bismarck (day and evening), New Hope | Yes | $17,900 |
| Combination Welder I | Certificate of Completion | 480 hours, 12 weeks | Fargo, Bismarck, New Hope | Yes | $15,100 |
| Pipe Skills (uphill stick or TIG) | Certificate of Completion | 200 hours, 5 weeks | Ask the school | No | $8,350 |
| GMAW (MIG) Skills | Certificate of Completion | 200 hours, 5 weeks | Ask the school | No | $6,900 |
| GMAW, SMAW or GTAW Skills | Certificate of Completion | 120 hours, 3 weeks each | Ask the school | No | $4,300 |
| Prep-CWI, Aluminum, LEAN Welding 1 | Certificate of Completion | 32 to 40 hours, 1 week | Limited start dates | No | $1,500 to $2,200 tuition |
The school says on its homepage that it is an AWS (American Welding Society) Accredited Test Facility where students can earn up to 12 welder qualifications. Its 2026-27 catalog does not repeat the claim, so check it with the school or AWS if it matters to you. Welding has no state licence exam, so there are no licensing pass rates to report.
What the main programs cover
Combination Welder II
Combination Welder II is the longest program: 640 clock hours over 16 weeks of day classes, ending in a Certificate of Completion. The school lists MIG (GMAW), flux-core (FCAW), TIG (GTAW), stick (SMAW) and pipe welding among the processes taught, and students test to American Welding Society standards, with two weld-test attempts included. Bismarck also runs evening sections; the catalog’s night classes meet 4:00 to 10:00 pm, 30 hours a week, so ask how long an evening section takes. Students must bring a corded 4.5-inch grinder and leather steel-toe boots.
Combination Welder I
Combination Welder I is the 480-hour, 12-week version, also a Certificate of Completion and also covered by the school’s ACCSC accreditation. It is taught at all three campuses. Applicants need a high-school diploma, GED or transcript, which the shorter Skills courses only prefer. At Fargo, Pell Grants cover only Combination Welder II, so Combination Welder I students there, like students at Bismarck and New Hope, rely on Direct Loans, the GI Bill, workforce funding or their own money. The same grinder and boots are required.
Pipe Skills courses
Two 200-hour, five-week Skills courses focus on pipe: Uphill SMAW Pipe (stick) and GTAW Pipe (TIG). Students need the same corded grinder as in the Combination programs. Like all Skills courses they are not accredited by ACCSC, so the school’s accreditation does not cover them. The school does not say which campuses offer each course; North Dakota’s list of authorized private career schools shows them at both North Dakota sites. Confirm the campus and next start date before you apply.
Single-process and specialty courses
Three-week, 120-hour Skills courses teach one process each: GMAW (MIG), SMAW (stick) or GTAW (TIG). A five-week, 200-hour GMAW course goes further with MIG. A high-school diploma is preferred but not required. One-week specialty courses have limited start dates: Prep-CWI (36 hours), Aluminum GMAW and GTAW (40 hours, at least four students) and LEAN Welding 1 (32 hours). None of these courses is accredited.
2026-27 costs and how students pay
Lynnes uses one price list for every campus, with no in-state or out-of-state rates. The totals below come from the 2026-27 catalog, revised 31 December 2025, and include tuition, the shop lab fee and materials. Combination Welder II, for example, is $14,975 in tuition, a $2,400 shop lab fee and $525 in materials and texts.
| 2026-27 total (tuition, shop lab fee, materials) | Amount | Optional safety gear |
|---|---|---|
| Combination Welder II, 640 hours | $17,900 | $750 |
| Combination Welder I, 480 hours | $15,100 | $750 |
| 200-hour pipe Skills course (stick or TIG) | $8,350 | $750 |
| 200-hour GMAW Skills course | $6,900 | $450 or $750 (the catalog gives both) |
| 120-hour Skills course (each) | $4,300 | $750 |
| 80-hour course (2 weeks) | $2,950 | – |
| 40-hour course (1 week) | $1,575 to $2,200 | – |
| Prep-CWI / Aluminum / LEAN Welding 1 (tuition only) | $1,500 / $2,200 / $1,800 | – |
On top of that, students pay a $100 deposit to reserve a seat and buy their own corded 4.5-inch grinder (required for pipe and the Combination programs) and leather steel-toe boots. Two weld-test attempts are included; extra attempts cost more. Unexcused missed hours made up after graduation cost $25 an hour. College Navigator’s federal figures measure cost differently: it lists $17,375 in tuition and fees for the 640-hour program in 2024-25 and an average net price of $21,023 in 2023-24.
Federal aid depends on the campus. According to the catalog, Fargo offers Direct Loans and Pell Grants, with Pell limited to Combination Welder II, while Bismarck and New Hope offer Direct Loans only. The school is approved for the GI Bill and lists WIOA workforce funding in both states, the Bank of North Dakota DEAL One loan and the Minnesota SELF loan. It also lists scholarships, including its own Lynnes Welding Training Scholarship and awards from the American Welding Society, the Mike Rowe Work Ethic scholarship and the Jessi Combs Foundation; ask the school for current amounts.
Admissions, class size and class hours
Applicants must be at least 17 to enroll and 18 by the last day of class. The Combination programs need a high-school diploma, GED or transcript. Everyone needs near vision of Jaeger J2 at 12 inches, the ability to lift 50 pounds and stand for long periods, English at about a sixth-grade level, and a phone or in-person interview. Classes have at most 15 students. The school’s homepage says classes start monthly and run 50 weeks a year.
Class hours are not consistent across the school’s own materials. The 2026-27 catalog gives day classes Monday to Friday from 7:00 am to 3:30 pm (40 hours a week) and night classes from 4:00 to 10:00 pm (30 hours a week). The Fargo and Bismarck campus pages still list 8:00 am to 4:30 pm. Confirm the hours for your campus and start date.
For the Combination programs, the catalog’s refund policy gives a full refund within seven days of the first class, 75% before a quarter of scheduled hours, 50% before half, and nothing after that. Minnesota residents fall under Minnesota’s own refund rules instead.
Accreditation, state approval and results
The Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC) has accredited Lynnes since 1 November 2012, and its next review date is 30 November 2026, according to College Navigator. The accreditation covers Combination Welder I and II at all three campuses; the catalog says the Skills courses are not accredited.
Both North Dakota campuses are on the North Dakota Department of Career and Technical Education’s list of authorized private career schools.
The New Hope campus is licensed as a private career school by the Minnesota Office of Higher Education.
The newest outcome figures the school has posted are from its 2023 ACCSC annual report and cover classes that started in 2021-22, so they are several years old. The school counts graduates who finish within 108% of the program length, and employment as graduates working in the welding field out of those available for work.
| Campus and program (2021-22 starts) | Graduation | Employment in welding |
|---|---|---|
| Fargo, Combination Welder I | 100% (13 starts) | 100% (12 of 12) |
| Fargo, Combination Welder II | 97% (33 starts) | 97% (31 of 32) |
| Bismarck, Combination Welder I | 94% (31 starts) | 96% (27 of 28) |
| Ramsey, MN (now New Hope), Combination Welder I | 100% (8 starts) | 88% (7 of 8) |
The Fargo Combination Welder I page lists 10 on-time graduates but 12 graduates available for employment, so those two numbers do not match. College Navigator gives the Fargo unit a 98% graduation rate for the 2021-22 cohort, 103 welding certificates awarded in 2023-24 and a 0.0% student loan default rate for FY2021.
Before you enroll
- Only the two Combination Welder programs are accredited. The shorter Skills and specialty courses are not, and the school does not say which campuses run each one.
- Pell Grants are available only at Fargo and only for Combination Welder II. At Bismarck and New Hope, federal aid means loans.
- The published graduation and employment rates cover classes that started in 2021-22, and the Minnesota figures come from the old Ramsey site, not New Hope. Ask for newer results.
- ACCSC’s next review of the school is due on 30 November 2026. Ask the school about the outcome if you enroll after that date.
- The AWS Accredited Test Facility status is the school’s own claim from its homepage, and the class hours differ between the catalog and the campus pages. Confirm both before you sign.
Three campuses: what each offers
| Campus | Address | Programs and notes |
|---|---|---|
| Fargo, ND (main) | 2717 3rd Ave North, Fargo, ND 58102 | Combination Welder I and II, Skills and specialty courses; 27 booths; only campus with Pell Grants |
| Bismarck, ND | 4329 Centurion Dr., Unit 9, Bismarck, ND 58504 | Combination Welder I and II (evening Welder II sections), Skills and specialty courses; 15 booths |
| Minneapolis (New Hope), MN | 4000 Winnetka Ave N, Suite 100, New Hope, MN 55427 | Combination Welder I and II and Skills courses; 24 booths; opened 2024 after the move from Ramsey |
The school’s website still has some old Ramsey, MN pages, including a homepage mention of a Ramsey night class. Ramsey is no longer a campus.
Job-search help, but no externship or housing
Training happens in the school’s own shops; there is no externship. The Fargo and Bismarck campus pages offer job-search help after graduation. The school does not offer housing.
Facts checked October 2026.
Programs & Courses
Combination Welder Programs (ACCSC-accredited)
- Combination Welder II (640 hours, 16 weeks, Certificate of Completion)
- Combination Welder I (480 hours, 12 weeks, Certificate of Completion)
Skills Courses (not ACCSC-accredited)
- Uphill SMAW Pipe (Stick) Skills (200 hours, 5 weeks)
- GTAW Pipe (TIG) Skills (200 hours, 5 weeks)
- GMAW (MIG) Skills (200 hours, 5 weeks)
- GMAW, SMAW or GTAW Skills (120 hours, 3 weeks each)
Specialty Courses (1 week)
- Prep-CWI (36 hours)
- Aluminum GMAW & GTAW (40 hours)
- LEAN Welding 1 (32 hours)
Campus Locations
Fargo, ND 2717 3rd Ave North, Fargo, ND 58102
Bismarck, ND 4329 Centurion Dr., Unit 9, Bismarck, ND 58504
Minneapolis (New Hope), MN 4000 Winnetka Ave N, Suite 100, New Hope, MN 55427