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2025 Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Associate Degree Schools

50 Colleges in the United States
2,955 Associate Degrees
$45,595 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on getting your associate degree in drafting & design engineering technology, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #48 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual reviewed 50 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for associate degree seekers in the field of drafting & design engineering technology. Combined, these schools handed out 2,955 associate degrees in drafting & design engineering technology to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Drafting & Design Engineering Technology School for Your Associate Degree

Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Associate Degree Schools Your choice of drafting & design engineering technology for getting your associate degree school matters. Important measures of a quality design engineering tech program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To account for this we include a college's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a combination of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Early-Career Earnings

Average early-career salary of those graduating with their associate degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. That is, everyone wants their associate degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for drafting & design engineering technology students working on their associate degree.

More Ways to Rank Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Design Engineering Tech Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Associate Degree Schools ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Drafting & Design Engineering Technology in the United States

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing an associate degree in drafting & design engineering technology. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

10 Top Schools for an Associate in Design Engineering Tech

1

Macomb Community College is one of the best schools in the country for getting an associate degree in drafting & design engineering technology. Macomb Community College is a fairly large public college located in the city of Warren.

Students who graduate with their associate from the design engineering tech program report average early career income of $44,701.

More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from Macomb Community College

2
10 Annual Graduates

It's difficult to beat SOWELA Technical Community College if you want to pursue an associate degree in drafting & design engineering technology. Located in the small city of Lake Charles, SOWELA is a public college with a small student population.More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from SOWELA Technical Community College

3
Ivy Tech Community College crest
Ivy Tech Community College
Indianapolis, IN

Every student pursuing a degree in an associate degree in drafting & design engineering technology has to take a look at Ivy Tech Community College. Ivy Tech Community College is a fairly large public college located in the large city of Indianapolis.

Associate students who receive their degree from the design engineering tech program earn an average of $41,467 for their early career.

More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from Ivy Tech Community College

4
Hennepin Technical College crest
Hennepin Technical College
Brooklyn Park, MN

Any student who is interested in an associate degree in drafting & design engineering technology has to check out Hennepin Technical College. Hennepin Technical College is a small public college located in the suburb of Brooklyn Park.

Those drafting & design engineering technology students who get their associate degree from Hennepin Technical College make $3,944 more than the typical design engineering tech student.

More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from Hennepin Technical College

5
Kirkwood Community College crest
Kirkwood Community College
Cedar Rapids, IA
16 Annual Graduates

Kirkwood Community College is a fairly large public college located in the city of Cedar Rapids.More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from Kirkwood Community College

6

UVU is a fairly large public university located in the city of Orem.

Associate recipients from the drafting & design engineering technology program at Utah Valley University make $10,298 more than the standard college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from Utah Valley University

7
Ridgewater College crest
Ridgewater College
Willmar, MN
17 Annual Graduates

Located in the remote town of Willmar, Ridgewater College is a public college with a small student population.More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from Ridgewater College

8
El Centro College crest
El Centro College
Dallas, TX
28 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Dallas, El Centro College is a public college with a fairly large student population.More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from El Centro College

9
47 Annual Graduates
$41,991 Median Starting Salary
$20,934 Median Student Debt

Pittsburgh Technical College is a fairly small private not-for-profit college located in the suburb of Oakdale.

Associate students who receive their degree from the design engineering tech program earn around $41,991 in their early career salary.

More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from Pittsburgh Technical College

10

Located in the city of Austin, Austin Community College District is a public college with a very large student population.

Associate recipients from the drafting & design engineering technology program at Austin Community College District earn $4,989 more than the typical college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a associate in drafting & design engineering technology from Austin Community College District

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for Drafting & Design Engineering Technology students that almost earned our Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Associate Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
11 Southeast Community College Area Lincoln, NE
12 Wichita State University Campus of Applied Sciences and Technology Wichita, KS

Drafting & Design Engineering Technology by Region

View the Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Associate Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

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Drafting & Design Engineering Technology is one of 18 different types of Engineering Technologies programs to choose from.

Design Engineering Tech Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Drafting & Design Technology 1,274
Architectural Drafting & Architectural CAD/CADD 585
CAD/CADD Drafting &/or Design Technology 575
Mechanical Drafting & Mechanical Drafting CAD/CADD 424
Civil Drafting & Civil Engineering CAD/CADD 40
Other Drafting/Design Engineering Technologies 33
Electrical/Electronics Drafting & Electrical/Electronics CAD/CADD 19

Majors Similar to Design Engineering Tech

Related Major Annual Graduates
Electromechanical Engineering Technology 4,153
Industrial Production Technology 3,035
Electronics Engineering Technology 2,907
Mechanical Engineering Technology 1,773
Computer Engineering Technology 1,216
General Engineering Technology 1,195
Environmental Control Technology 1,149
Quality Control Technology 719
Construction Engineering Technology 686
Civil Engineering Technology 658

Notes and References

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