Academic calendar
Principles of Metal Fabrication 4 runs Nov 13, 2025 – Aug 20, 2026. Calendar aliases that share a date range are grouped together, with every source term still shown.
- Principles of Metal Fabrication 4Relevant now
Campus language
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Showing 22 of 22 terms
A
- Arc flash
- A painful eye condition caused by exposure to UV light from welding without proper protection.
- AWS
- American Welding Society; the primary professional organization and student chapter on campus.
B
- Bead
- The row of filler metal deposited during a welding pass.
- Bird's nest
- A common student frustration referring to tangled wire inside a MIG welder.
C
- CHS
- Collegiate Housing Services, the off-campus apartment coordinator used by students since there are no on-campus dorms.
F
- Fab
- Common shorthand for both the school itself and the craft of metal fabrication.
- Fab Fam
- The collective term for the student and alumni community.
- Flash
- Welder's flash; a painful eye condition caused by exposure to UV light from welding arcs.
- FMA
- Fabricators & Manufacturers Association; an industry org that provides resources and networking for fabrication students.
- Food Truck
- The primary source of hot lunch for students, which typically visits the parking lot during the main break.
H
- Hood
- A welding helmet; students often use 'hood down' to signal they are starting a weld.
- Hood down
- A phrase meaning a student is focused and busy welding; 'hood' refers to the welding helmet.
M
- MIG
- Metal Inert Gas welding; one of the primary processes taught in the Fundamentals program.
S
- Stacking dimes
- A term used by students to describe high-quality TIG welds that look like a row of overlapping coins.
T
- Tack
- A small, temporary weld used to hold workpieces in alignment before the final weld is made.
- The Breakroom
- The central area where students eat lunch, as there is no formal cafeteria service.
- The Fab
- Common shorthand for The Fab School itself.
- The Hood
- A student's welding helmet, often customized with stickers or paint.
- The Lunch Truck
- Mobile food vendors that regularly visit the industrial park where the school is located.
- TIG
- Tungsten Inert Gas welding; the precision welding process students master for high-end fabrication.
V
- VA
- Veterans Affairs; refers to the office or benefits used by the high percentage of veteran students at the school.
- Victoria Gardens
- The nearby open-air shopping center frequently used by students for off-campus lunch options.
Places and practicalities
Buildings, logistics, and other local references drawn from the approved campus snapshot.
- Clocking in
- The mandatory process of recording hours; students must complete a specific number of clock hours to graduate.
- Job Placement
- The dedicated service helping students transition into the fabrication industry upon completion.
- M-Th
- The standard school week; classes are typically held Monday through Thursday, leaving Fridays open for work or extra shop time.
- PPE
- Personal Protective Equipment; the strictly enforced dress code including safety glasses, leather boots, and long pants.
- Steel Toes
- Shorthand for the mandatory safety footwear (steel or composite toe) required to enter the shop floor.
- The Booth
- Individual welding stations within the shop where students perform their practical assignments.
- The Catalog
- The official student handbook that dictates all academic policies, grading scales, and graduation requirements.
- The Classroom
- The lecture-based areas used for theory, safety briefings, and mathematics instruction.
- The Design Lab
- The specialized area for digital design, 3D printing, and scanning technology.
- The Front Office
- The administrative area for admissions, financial aid, and student services.
- The Lab
- The dedicated space for computer-aided design (CAD) and technical theory classes.
- The Shop
- The main 33,000 square foot hands-on fabrication floor where most instruction takes place.
- The Tool Kit
- The required set of professional-grade tools students must purchase or possess to participate in the program.
- The Tool List
- The specific set of professional-grade tools every student is required to own and bring to class.
- Uniform
- The required professional work attire (typically school-branded work shirts) that must be worn daily.
Quick answers
Useful facts students can verify from the guide above.
- What academic term is relevant now?
- Principles of Metal Fabrication 4 runs Nov 13, 2025 – Aug 20, 2026.
- How much campus context is included?
- 22 approved campus terms and 15 local details are included in full.
- Are all approved campus terms included?
- Yes. The complete approved glossary is available in the scrollable, searchable campus-language section.
- Where does this guide come from?
- Calendar dates, campus terms, and local details come from DormWay's approved campus reference library.