TESDA Welding Courses (SMAW): Levels, Cost, and Where It Pays

TL;DR: TESDA's Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II qualification runs 268 nominal training hours (18 basic + 56 common + 194 core), per the official Training Regulation, and covers welding carbon steel plates and pipes. NC I (268 hrs, plate only) and NC III (120 hrs, alloy steel, all positions, meant to follow NC II) round out the ladder, and TESDA runs the same 268-hour structure for GTAW, GMAW, and FCAW NC II. Training and assessment can be free through TWSP scholarship slots; without one, third-party trackers put welder pay in the Philippines at roughly ₱16,000-₱19,500 a month depending on employer and location.

Welding shows up constantly in searches for TESDA courses because it is one of the few technical-vocational qualifications with a direct, verifiable path to steady local work and overseas deployment. This guide sticks to what TESDA's own Training Regulations actually say: exact training hours for SMAW NC I through III, what the other certified welding processes (GTAW, GMAW, FCAW) add, and what independent salary trackers say welders earn, since TESDA itself does not publish wage data. For the broader course landscape, see our TESDA courses guide and our breakdown of what NC levels actually mean.

What Welding Qualifications Does TESDA Actually Certify?

TESDA certifies four separate arc-welding processes under its Metals and Engineering sector, each with its own Training Regulation: Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW, the classic "stick" welding process), Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW, commonly called TIG), Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW, commonly called MIG), and Flux-Cored Arc Welding (FCAW). SMAW is the only one of the four with qualifications at three NC levels (I, II, and III); GTAW, GMAW, and FCAW are each currently promulgated at NC II only.

All of these qualifications sit under the same core structure: basic competencies (workplace communication, teamwork), common competencies (safety, blueprint reading, tool use, equipment setup), and core competencies (the actual welding skill). What differs between processes is the equipment and technique, not the underlying training framework.

How Many Training Hours Does TESDA Require, by Level and Process?

Training hours are set per qualification in TESDA's official Training Regulations, and they are consistent across three of the four welding processes at NC II.

Source: TESDA's official Training Regulations for each qualification (Section 3.1, Curriculum Design). These are nominal training hours only; they exclude the separate national competency assessment.

Notice that SMAW NC III has far fewer hours than NC I or II. That's not because it's easier — it's because NC III is designed as an add-on qualification for someone who already has plate/pipe welding competency. Its 120 hours focus almost entirely on the harder task (alloy steel, multi-pass, all positions) rather than repeating fundamentals already covered at NC I/II.

Disclaimer: training hours and competency content are set by TESDA's Training Regulations and can be revised. Confirm the current version for your target qualification on tesda.gov.ph before enrolling, since actual program length at a specific training center can run longer than the nominal hours depending on schedule and pacing.

What Do You Actually Learn at Each SMAW Level?

Each SMAW level is defined by material type, weld position, and joint type, per the qualification's official Range of Variables and Evidence Guide.

NC I is the narrowest: flat-to-vertical fillet and groove welds on carbon steel plate, closely supervised. NC II is the level most employers actually ask for, since it adds pipe welding in positions used in structural and piping work. NC III is a specialist add-on: welding alloy steel (not just carbon steel) across every position, which is the skill set that pipeline and pressure-vessel work typically requires.

As TESDA's own SMAW Training Regulations state, both the NC II and NC I qualifications are written to conform "with American Welding Society (AWS) D 1.1 Structural Welding Code; American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) IX Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code; American Petroleum Institute (API) 1104 Code for Gas and Oil Pipeline Facilities; and International Standards Organization (ISO) 9606-1 Qualification of Welders for Steel" — the same international codes that industrial employers and overseas recruiters actually check against.

Can You Take TESDA Welding Training for Free?

Yes, through TESDA's scholarship tracks, most commonly TWSP (Training for Work Scholarship Program), at accredited training providers offering welding qualifications under scholarship. A scholarship slot covers training fees, materials, and the assessment fee, and adds a Training Support Fund allowance of ₱160 per training day, paid in two tranches.

Slot availability for welding specifically depends on your region's budget cycle and which TVIs near you are running welding under scholarship that quarter — it is not guaranteed at every center year-round. Our TESDA scholarship guide covers the full TWSP/PESFA/STEP application process step by step, including required documents.

Disclaimer: scholarship slot availability, allowance amounts, and program rules can change by TESDA circular. Confirm current terms directly with your Provincial Office or chosen training center before applying.

How Much Does Welding Training and Assessment Cost Without a Scholarship?

We could not verify one consistent, currently published peso figure for either private-TVI welding tuition or the SMAW assessment fee from an official TESDA source. Both amounts are set at the provider or fee-schedule level rather than fixed nationally in a way we could confirm: training fees vary by TVI (equipment access, consumables like electrodes and shielding gas are a real cost driver for welding specifically), and assessment fees follow a TESDA Board-approved schedule that differs by qualification and can be revised by circular.

If cost is a concern, the more reliable path is to ask your shortlisted training center for their current welding course fee in writing, and separately confirm the assessment fee with the accredited assessment center handling your NC level — rather than budgeting off a number found online that may be outdated.

Do You Need Your Own Welding Equipment or PPE?

No. TESDA's Training Regulations require the training center to provide welding machines, positioners, jigs, consumables, and personal protective equipment as part of an accredited program's required tools and facilities. What you typically arrange yourself is a valid ID, basic literacy/numeracy sufficient to read the qualification's entry requirements, and — for scholarship applicants — the standard TESDA scholarship documents (see our TESDA requirements guide for the general enrollment paperwork most qualifications ask for).

How Much Do Welders Actually Earn, Locally and Abroad?

TESDA does not publish welder salary data, so this section relies on third-party job-market trackers rather than a government figure. Indeed's Philippines data, based on 405 salary reports and updated as of July 2026, puts the average welder salary at about ₱16,466 a month nationally, with Manila reporting a higher average around ₱19,996 a month and one large staffing employer listing ₱450,000 a year. Jobstreet's employer-posted salary ranges show welder roles in several NCR cities (Taguig, Las Piñas, Marikina, San Juan, among others) clustering around ₱18,500-₱19,500 a month.

For overseas pay, we were not able to verify a reliable, welder-specific wage figure from an official or clearly sourced third party during this research — broad "skilled worker" wage floors published under Philippine bilateral labor agreements exist for categories like nurses and engineers, but we found no equivalent official figure specifically for welders. If overseas deployment is your goal, treat any salary number you see in a job ad or agency posting as specific to that contract, and verify actual terms through the agency's POEA/DMW-registered contract rather than a generic online estimate.

Disclaimer: salary figures above are third-party estimates based on self-reported and employer-posted data, not TESDA or government statistics. Actual pay varies by employer, region, welding process, and experience.

Choosing a Welding Path: What to Check Before You Enroll

• Start with SMAW NC II if you're new to welding. It's the level most local employers ask for by default, and it's the most widely offered qualification among accredited TVIs.
• Confirm the specific process before enrolling. SMAW, GTAW, GMAW, and FCAW use different equipment and technique; check what your target employer or industry (structural, pipeline, shipbuilding, fabrication) actually requires before committing to one.
• Verify the training center is TESDA-registered before paying anything. See our guide to TESDA-accredited training centers for how to check a provider's status.
• Ask about scholarship slots first. A TWSP-funded welding slot removes both the training fee and the assessment fee from your budget.
• If you're still in senior high school, TVL-track students can be introduced to welding-adjacent competencies before graduating; see our TVL strand guide for how that track connects to TESDA certification.
• Plan for NC III only after NC II, since the alloy-steel, all-position curriculum assumes you can already handle carbon steel plate and pipe work confidently.

Ready to find the right training path? Browse schools or compare technical-vocational programs and reviews across hundreds of Philippine schools on SchoolFinderPH.

Sources

• TESDA — Training Regulations, Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC I
• TESDA — Training Regulations, Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II
• TESDA — Training Regulations, Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC III
• TESDA — Training Regulations, Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW) NC II
• TESDA — Training Regulations, Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW) NC II
• TESDA — Training Regulations, Flux-Cored Arc Welding (FCAW) NC II
• TESDA — Downloadable Training Regulations (full list)
• Indeed Philippines — Welder Salaries
• Jobstreet Philippines — Welder Salary Career Advice
• SchoolFinderPH — TESDA Courses Guide
• SchoolFinderPH — TESDA Scholarships Guide