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Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools

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2023 Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools

122 Colleges
$43,409 Avg Salary
$18,123 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology School for You

Drafting & Design Engineering Technology is the #20 most popular major in the country with 8,822 degrees and certificates awarded in 2021-2022.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which trade school program is right for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

The Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools ranking is one of many tools that Trade College Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 122 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for trade school students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Schools in the United States

The colleges and universities below are the best for design engineering tech majors pursuing a .

Top 15% Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Schools

Our analysis found Porter and Chester Institute of Stratford to be the best school for drafting & design engineering technology students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. Located in the city of Bridgeport, Porter and Chester Institute is a private for-profit school with a small student population.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Trine University-Regional/Non-Traditional Campuses. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools list. Trine is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Angola.

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#3

Central Michigan University

Mount Pleasant, MI

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Central Michigan University. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools list. Central Michigan is a large public school located in the town of Mount Pleasant.

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#4

Ridgewater College

Willmar, MN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Ridgewater College. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools list. Located in the remote town of Willmar, Ridgewater College is a public school with a small student population.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Ridgewater College Report

Out of the 122 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Dunwoody College of Technology landed the # 5 spot on the list. Dunwoody College of Technology is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Minneapolis.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Dunwoody College of Technology Report

Waukesha County Technical College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best drafting & design engineering technology programs. WCTC is a medium-sized public school located in the large suburb of Pewaukee.

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Western Michigan University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools ranking. WMU is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Kalamazoo.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Western Michigan University

Alpena Community College landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best drafting & design engineering technology programs. Alpena Community College is a small public school located in the rural area of Alpena.

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#9

Trine University

Angola, IN

With a ranking of #9, Trine University did quite well on this year’s best schools for drafting & design engineering technology students. Trine is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Angola.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Trine University Report

#10

Portland Community College

Portland, OR

Portland Community College landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best drafting & design engineering technology programs. Portland Community College is a large public school located in the city of Portland.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Portland Community College

#11

Lee College

Baytown, TX

Lee College landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best drafting & design engineering technology programs. Lee College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Baytown.

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Madison Area Technical College came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools ranking. Madison College is a large public school located in the large city of Madison.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Madison Area Technical College Report

#13

Valencia College

Orlando, FL

Valencia College ranked #13 on this year’s Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools list. Valencia College is a very large public school located in the large city of Orlando.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Valencia College Report

#14

Olympic College

Bremerton, WA

Olympic College ranked #14 on this year’s Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools list. Located in the small city of Bremerton, OC is a public school with a small student population.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Olympic College

Lamar Institute of Technology ranked #15 on this year’s Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools list. Lamar Institute of Technology is a small public school located in the medium-sized city of Beaumont.

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With a ranking of #16, Rochester Institute of Technology did quite well on this year’s best schools for drafting & design engineering technology students. Located in the suburb of Rochester, RIT is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

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With a ranking of #17, Chippewa Valley Technical College did quite well on this year’s best schools for drafting & design engineering technology students. CVTC is a medium-sized public school located in the small city of Eau Claire.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Chippewa Valley Technical College

Utah Valley University ranked #18 on this year’s Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools list. UVU is a fairly large public school located in the city of Orem.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Utah Valley University

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools award.

Rank College Location
19 Ferris State University Big Rapids, MI
20 Baton Rouge Community College Baton Rouge, LA
21 Northeast Community College Norfolk, NE
22 Western Iowa Tech Community College Sioux City, IA
23 Southeast Technical College Sioux Falls, SD
24 Alexandria Technical & Community College Alexandria, MN

Drafting & Design Engineering Technology by Region

View the Best Drafting & Design Engineering Trade 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

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

Design Engineering Tech Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
General Drafting & Design Technology 4,028
CAD/CADD Drafting &/or Design Technology 2,179
Architectural Drafting & Architectural CAD/CADD 1,318
Mechanical Drafting & Mechanical Drafting CAD/CADD 1,058
Civil Drafting & Civil Engineering CAD/CADD 104
Other Drafting/Design Engineering Technologies 72
Electrical/Electronics Drafting & Electrical/Electronics CAD/CADD 47

Majors Similar to Design Engineering Tech

Related Major Annual Graduates
Industrial Production Technology 11,288
Electromechanical Engineering Technology 10,780
Environmental Control Technology 9,376
Electronics Engineering Technology 8,347
Engineering-Related Fields 6,553

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Pixabay.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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