Online Training Courses

Beginning Woodworking

The training courses below are designed for woodworkers new to the craft, especially new employees with little to no woodworking experience, but also cover a lot of information that can be useful even to more experienced woodworkers.

It is recommended that the courses be taken in the order shown below; the only prerequisites are that WCA Overview must be taken before any of the courses and that Wood Theory be taken before Milling and Machining. The courses can be used in a school classroom or to support on the job training when hiring a new employee.

The lessons consist of outside reading from both Understanding Wood by R. Bruce Hoadley, and Modern Cabinetmaking by Patrick A. Molzahn, William D. Umstattd, and Charles W. Davis as well as online reading and video presentations. It is recommended to have both books on hand prior to starting the courses.

After passing each of the courses below, you will have the background knowledge needed to continue your training on higher level tools and techniques and you will be ready to test for the Core credential; the beginning of your credential path.

Note: The short WCA Overview course is a pre-requisite for all other courses…

These courses are not required for new Evaluator training.


Are you an Employer?

Who wants to learn more about how to use the online training for your new employees?  If so, click here. To see a sample lesson from each course, click the button at right.

How to Enroll


  1. Courses are free if you have a WCA Individual Membership and are an employee of a company with a current MANufacturing Membership or a student at a school with a current EDUcation Membership.
  2. If you meet the above requirements, click on the Enroll Now button below and purchase the Online Training pass, which is free.
  3. After you complete the purchase, we will verify your eligibility status as described above and complete the order. You will receive an email indicating the order is complete at which time you are enrolled in all the courses listed below and you can return to this page to begin the training.

        You must be logged in to enroll…

Free

WCA Overview

In this course you'll learn more about what the Woodwork Career Alliance (WCA) does including an explanation of the WCA Skill Standards and the Credentialing process. This course is a pre-requisite for all other online training courses.

Math, Measuring and Layout

In this course, we review number theory and workshop related math, including fractional math, as well as woodworking measuring and layout fundamentals.

Prerequisite: WCA Overview

Wood Theory

Wood is obviously an important material in woodworking; in this course, we'll take a deep dive into wood theory and learn about the properties of wood, wood movement and how to cope with it, lumber measurement and grading, and much more...

Prerequisite: WCA Overview

Milling and Machining

This course will introduce you to basic milling and machining operations, specifically focused on the concept of milling "4 Square" using the Jointer, Planer, and Tablesaw.

Prerequisites: WCA Overview, Wood Theory

Woodworking Fundamentals

Learn woodworking fundamentals including panel products, adhesives, fasteners, abrasives, joinery, cabinet construction, shop drawings and more...

Prerequisite: WCA Overview