6" Schedule 80 Coupon from triangle http://www.fischerengr.com/pricing-coupons.htm#PIPE%20COUPONS%20--CARBON%20STEEL $25.10 Each $50.20 Total
Electrodes using a cost of $2.50 Lb a deposition efficiency of .5 (long stub loss) and a volume of approx 4 Cubic inches results in a need of about 2 1/4 Lbs of electrode so there is $5.63

So there is $56.00 ish for materials to weld with.

Electricity cost here is about $.09 per kilowatt hour and unless they are using something other than inverters you will not exceed more than 1 kilowatt per hour OR exceed 1 hour of actual arc time. We will round the total up to $57.00 to account for special "Welding Test Electricity"

The grinding rocks and gas are a little harder to estimate (for cutting straps) but I think we are safe at $20.00. We are now up to $77.00

The almighty documentation is very hard to create and thus requires years of experience. The 6G 6" Sch 80 test with 6010 root and 7018 fill and cap is an unusual animal requiring extensive knowledge of ALL of the variable for performance qualification as indicated in ASME Sec IX. There is a total of 7 variables. All of which require extensive knowledge of the code book. Only available through extensive training and participation in assorted certification programs. I just filled out the sample I attched in 4.5 minutes including the time to create the .pdf. I did not copy a similar WPQ though I could have. I bill from 32 to 65 an hour. At the high end and rounding up to 10 minutes I just made 10.32 or something. We will round it up to 15 putting us at $92.00.

Please understand that due to extreme variations in the economy, wildly varying steel prices, the high cost of power, paying for certifications (ok maybe I didn't pay for mine ALL the time), hours in the bathroom learning big welding words, and other unknown factors, the estimates above are completely un-realistic.

I think the price is high too . The CERT in and of itself is worthless anyway. What you need to know is if your welds met the ASME Boiler And Pressure Vessel Code acceptance criteria for a welder performance qualification. A simple Mech test report or RT report is all you need.

Again, all of the above is only my opinion and is developed based upon my experience only. This experience may be limited or in different industry sectors and vary greatly from that of others.

I though about the same idea...maybe its to make the students
more serious and not bug the instructor all the time.

I remember when I first went to welding school. My instructor
there made us wait until almost finishing the course and then
would let us try mulitiple times to try and pass a test. I luckly
passed vertical and overhead in FCAW and got my first job at the
railroad. I never paid for getting my certs prior to this.

hey,
even this price is insane. have you looked into how much it cost to sent your samples to a shop? I believe Hobart will test them for less, but, don't take my word on this. It doesn't matter what name it says on the certificate from the bend test, it matters how they test them. Look around, and find a name of a company that is familiar with testing according to AWS standards. my best advice is look around