CAD
SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings
Learn SOLIDWORKS from scratch: sketch and model parts, build assemblies and produce manufacturing drawings.
SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings is a free, self-paced online course from EDWartens for engineering students and design engineers. It has 14 modules and takes about 34.1 hours, with written notes, a practice task per module, a practical project and a final assessment of 15 questions (pass mark 60%). Learning costs nothing and needs only a free account. The optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion, verifiable by code, is a one-off US$23.99 for you; it is not a vendor credential. Updated 1 November 2026.
- Free
- Beginner
- 34.1 hours
- Self-paced
- Certificate optional
No card, no trial. The course is free for good. Certificate US$23.99, optional.
- Who it is for
- Engineering students and design engineers
- Jobs
- Roles that use this skill: design engineer, CAD technician, draughtsperson and product designer. No course guarantees a job.
- Tools
- SOLIDWORKS (education, student or trial licence). Hardware: none required.
- Updated
After this course you can
By the end you will be able to:
- Sketch fully defined profiles and build parts from them
- Assemble parts with standard and mechanical mates
- Produce drawings with views, dimensions, BOM and exploded views
- Design sheet metal parts with flat patterns
- Use configurations and import or export STEP files
Who it is for, and what you need first
Who it is for
Engineering students and design engineers.
Level: Beginner. Beginner. No CAD experience needed.
What you need
Software: SOLIDWORKS (education, student or trial licence).
Hardware: None required.. What to download, and how.
How this course works
Watch the lessons
Short video lessons, one module at a time, at your own pace.
Read the notes
Open the Reading tab for the written notes and diagrams of the module.
Check yourself
Answer the questions to see what stuck before you move on.
Final assessment
Pass the final once you have been through the modules.
Certificate, if you want oneOptional
Optional, with a page anyone can use to verify it.
What you learn
14 modules in order, at your own pace. 34.1 hours of video lessons, with written notes and a practice task in each module.
- 1Interface, Settings, Units, Planes and Sketch Basics51m
- 2Sketching: Lines, Circles, Arcs, Splines and Relations1h 15m
- 3Extrude, Revolve and Cut1h 19m
- 4Sweep, Loft and Boundary1h 26m
- 5Fillet, Chamfer, Shell, Rib, Draft and Wrap1h 29m
- 6Patterns, Mirror, Hole Wizard and Threads1h 28m
- 7Practice Parts3h 2m
- 8Assemblies and Mates3h 22m
Show the other 6 modules
- 9Drawings, BOM and Exploded Views2h 40m
- 10Sheet Metal and Weldments3h 4m
- 11Advanced: Surfaces, Configurations, Equations and Multi-Body2h 45m
- 12Materials, Mass, Properties, Import, Export and Xpress Tools1h 5m
- 13Capstone: One Product from Part to Drawing2h 44m
- 14Final Assessment
Software you need
What to download, where from, what it costs and how to install it. Every link goes to the maker's own site, never a mirror.
Show what to download (1 tool)
Required
- 01Free online trial
SOLIDWORKS
Dassault Systèmes SOLIDWORKS
- Runs on
- Runs in a web browser on a desktop or tablet for the online trial; the installed student edition needs a Windows PC
- Account
- A free MySolidWorks (3DEXPERIENCE ID) account
The online trial streams SOLIDWORKS Design Premium to your browser with guided lessons. Verified students can get SOLIDWORKS Design Standard free for one year and sign up again while still a student; it covers core 3D CAD, not Simulation, CAM or Electrical.
Steps
- 1.Open the SOLIDWORKS Online Product Trials page and select Try now under SOLIDWORKS Free Trial.
- 2.Sign in or create a MySolidWorks account on a desktop or tablet.
- 3.Launch the trial in your browser and follow the guided part, assembly and drawing lessons.
- 4.Save your files to the trial's home folder and download them before the session ends.
- 5.If you are a student, use the free Design Standard for Students offer for a full installed copy.
- Sessions close after a period of inactivity, so save often.
- Students whose school has the SOLIDWORKS EDU Edition should use that instead: it includes the full Premium suite.
Official download pagesolidworks.comAlternatives
- SOLIDWORKS Design Standard for Students: Free for one year for qualified students, Windows PC required.
- Autodesk Fusion for personal use: Free limited 3D CAD for home, non-commercial use.
Checked against each maker's own page on 27 September 2026. Trial lengths and editions change; the maker's page is the final word.
What you practise
Course project, about 16 hours
Pneumatic bearing-insertion press fixture in SOLIDWORKS: parts, configurations, ISO drawings and a trial-fit record
Design a four-column pneumatic press fixture that presses a 6206 ball bearing into a forged idler-pulley hub. A nest and a press pad form a three-size family from one model, and a sheet-metal guard completes the fixture. You deliver the SOLIDWORKS models, an ISO drawing set, a short design check, one change notice and a trial-fit record.
- 7documents in the pack
- 8steps to follow
- 7things to hand in
- 16 hof work, at your pace
- Parts listParts List: Bearing Press Fixture PF-1
- Drawing listDrawing and Document List: Bearing Press Fixture PF-1
- ReportDesign Calculation and Review: Press Fixture PF-1, Rev A Set
- DatasheetEquipment Datasheet: Press Cylinder DSBG-200-100 and Guide Units
- ProcedureModelling and Drawing Standard: SOLIDWORKS Parts, Assemblies, Configurations and Drawings
- Change noticeDesign Change Notice: Press Cylinder Changed from DSBG-160 to DSBG-200
The project is optional practice. The certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.
After the course, your next step
Show what you can do, then keep going in the same field.
A certificate you can verify
Finish the modules and pass the final assessment (15 questions, pass mark 60%) and you can add a certificate with a public verification page. One-off, US$23.99 for you. It is not a vendor credential.
Want a free certificate? Do the matching Free internship: 4 weeks, nothing to buy, with a free certificate of completion.
Project work you can show
Weekly briefs and a work record, online. Pick the internship that fits you. Finish weeks 1 to 4 and the final, then claim a free Internship Completion Certificate with your real dates and study hours, and a QR code anyone can scan to verify it. Training, not employment.
Find an internshipPart of a learning path
Courses in a planned order, so each one builds on the last.
More free courses
Roles that use this skill
- Design engineer
- CAD technician
- Draughtsperson
- Product designer
These are the kinds of roles where the skill is used. We make no promise of a job or an interview.
Plain notes
- Free: the whole course, the notes, the practice tasks, the final assessment and support from practising engineers.
- Paid, and optional: the course certificate, and the Engineer-verified internship (the Free internship costs nothing).
- No job promise: the course teaches a skill. It does not place you in a job.
- Lessons by: CAD CAM Tutorials, SOLIDWORKS AND ANSYS TUTOR, Too Tall Toby, TriMech Group, SolidWorks With Aryan Fallahi, GoEngineer, CAD CAM 23, CAD CAM TUTORIAL BY MAHTABALAM. Independent creators; the lessons stream from their own channels. EDWartens wrote the study plan, notes, practice tasks and assessments.
CAD CAM Tutorials · SOLIDWORKS AND ANSYS TUTOR · Too Tall Toby · TriMech Group · SolidWorks With Aryan Fallahi · GoEngineer · CAD CAM 23 · CAD CAM TUTORIAL BY MAHTABALAM. If you are one of these creators and want a lesson removed or credited differently, write to info@edwartens.com.
Why learn with EDWartens
What you get with this course, and what comes after it.
- Free from the first lesson to the final assessment.
- Video lessons with written notes and a project.
- An optional certificate that anyone can verify online.
- Free internships to keep practising afterwards.
Common questions
SOLIDWORKS or SOLIDWORKS Electrical?
This is the mechanical modeller; SOLIDWORKS Electrical is the schematic tool and has its own course here.
Is SOLIDWORKS free?
Students and makers have low-cost and education options and there is a trial; the course needs nothing beyond the standard package.
Do I need AutoCAD first?
No. SOLIDWORKS sketching is taught from scratch in modules 1 and 2.
Is the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course really free?
Yes. Every module, practice task and assessment. You create an account so your progress is saved and the assessments can be marked. The certificate is the only paid item, and only if you want it.
What certificate do I get, and is it a vendor qualification?
An EDWartens Certificate of Completion, issued when you pass the final assessment, with a verification code anyone can check. It is not a vendor credential and is never described as one.
Who made the video lessons in the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course?
The creators named in the Credits block at the foot of this page, on their own YouTube channels. EDWartens did not make the videos and the creators are not affiliated with EDWartens. What EDWartens wrote is the study plan, the notes, the practice tasks and the assessments.
How long does the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course take?
Plan on about 34 hours in all, including the video lessons, notes and practice tasks. It is self-paced, so you work through the fourteen modules at your own speed.
What topics does the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course cover, module by module?
The SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course has 14 modules. It opens with "Interface, Settings, Units, Planes and Sketch Basics", goes through "Sketching: Lines, Circles, Arcs, Splines and Relations", "Patterns, Mirror, Hole Wizard and Threads", "Drawings, BOM and Exploded Views" and "Capstone: One Product from Part to Drawing" and ends with "Final Assessment". The full list with minutes is under "What you learn" on this page.
What can I do after the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course?
After the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course: Set up SOLIDWORKS and sketch fully defined profiles; Build parts with extrude, revolve, sweep, loft, fillet, shell, rib and patterns; Assemble parts with standard, advanced and mechanical mates. These are the practical outcomes the course is written around, and the final assessment of 15 questions checks them.
What software and hardware do I need for the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course, and does it cost anything?
For the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course, software: SOLIDWORKS (education, student or trial licence). Hardware: none required. The course itself is free.
Is the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course suitable for me, and what level is it?
SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings is rated beginner. Beginner. No CAD experience needed. It is written for engineering students and design engineers, and takes about 34.1 hours at your own pace.
Which jobs use the skills from the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course?
Skills from the SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings course (for example: set up SOLIDWORKS and sketch fully defined profiles) are used in roles such as design engineer, CAD technician, draughtsperson and product designer, and in CAD designer work. The course gives you practical evidence of the skill; it does not promise a job, and employers decide on experience and interview.
Start free today
SOLIDWORKS 3D Modelling, Assemblies and Drawings, at your own pace. Add the certificate only if you want one.