Advice for learning enough Solidworks to pass the CSWA and CSWP exams

[dsaun777]

Has anybody here learned SolidWorks by themselves to the degree of being certified? If so what would be the best way to do that? I have free access to SolidWorks through my university but I have not yet taken any courses on it. I used a little bit of Abaqus software for FEA for applied strength of materials course. My main interest is in Solidworks because that is what is being used by the engineers at my work.

 

[jrmichler]

I learned SolidWorks mostly by myself, but with help from coworkers that actually knew how to use it. The hardest part is getting the basic concepts, for which some instruction is very helpful. I suggest getting instruction at least for the basic concepts. Maybe you can persuade some of the engineers to help you get started. There should be online videos that would help. After you get the basics, you can learn more by assuming that there exists a way to do whatever you want, you just need to find out how. A one week class would be the easiest way to get started, but self learning is definitely possible.

 

[FEAnalyst]

SolidWorks is quite user-friendly. To learn how to use it you can follow YouTube tutorials (there are tons of them), Model Mania examples and, most importantly, practice a lot. Try to model stuff that you find in your surroundings. Grabcad models can also serve as a nice reference for learning. And when you decide that it's time to approach the exam, there's also a course offered by Dassault Systemes for each certification level.

 

[john.phillip]

I've learned it entirely by myself, as back in the days there were no tutorials and it was one of the main philosophies of the engineering course: "learning to learn"; and many of my friends in the Mechanical Engineering course did it as well. I was given SolidWorks 98 when it first came out after attending a workshop where they gave away a CD and free license. The software was quite buggy but had a huge potential and it was a novelty at the time, as no proper 3D CAD existed yet. Before that, I was an AutoCAD (MS-DOS) user, also learned it by myself.

SolidWorks 2000 was a lot better than 98 and much more stable, I spent a little over 10 years using SolidWorks daily before I changed jobs and had to learn Autodesk Inventor by myself. I never bothered to get certified in any of the dozens of engineering softwares I learned, as certification is generally aimed at young designers and professionals from other fields that don't inspire confidence, not engineers, in order for them to secure a new job that would normally require a minimum of 2 years experience using the software to ensure they hit the ground running, so the certification would provide confidence to the interviewer that the designer or non-engineer can perform as well as anyone else despite not having the required experience or knowledge.

For engineers, usually the work environment does not rely solely on using the software, or the company already regularly pays for the training, so not being certified should not be a big deal. If you're eager to learn the software by yourself, companies would have no problem hiring, as they're hiring much more for the other knowledge you've got. Also, from your post, you are already working for a company that uses the software, so again I see no point in getting certified. Just grab a few random objects you've got around and a caliper, measure them and try to create 3D models, there's also plenty of tutorials online to help you become more efficient. That was the method I used the first time, and the method I used when I was teaching SolidWorks in the Mechanical Engineering course (I would first give a ~5 minutes introduction to explain the interface and the working logic for sketch, part, assembly and drawings, and then each student would be given a random object and a caliper, as simple as that).

 

[dsaun777]

Hello,
I am trying to learn as much solidworks to be able to pass a CSWA and then a CSWP exam. I have almost no Solidworks experience but worked a little bit in Abaques doing FEA. What route do you think I should take as a mechanical engineering student? Are the tutorials and lessons on the website enough for me to pass the certification exams?
It is not required of me to take a Solidworks course at my university but that is what my work uses.
Thank you.

 

[Lnewqban]

Do you have any mechanical design and drafting experience?
That would help tremendously.
The rest is to learn and practice manipulation of the tools in the software.

Please, see:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=solidworks+essentials+

 

[dsaun777]

Do you have any mechanical design and drafting experience?
That would help tremendously.
The rest is to learn and practice manipulation of the tools in the software.

Please, see:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=solidworks+essentials+

Yes, I have some experience in design using Abaqus but nearly zero experience in Solidworks. I am sorry I forgot I posted something similar a few months ago. I am trying to get to a CSWA level and beyond.

 

[Lnewqban]

Get access to the software, use its help feature, and practice as much as possible.
Confidence and speed will follow.
You will be fine regarding that test.
Best!