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2023 Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools

326 Colleges

Finding the Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Basic Certificate School for You

In 2020-2021, 8,819 people earned a degree or certificate in drafting and design engineering technology, making the major the #20 most popular in the United States.

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.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Trade College Search has created its Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 326 schools in the United States to see which basic certificate programs were the most popular for trade school students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Drafting & Design Engineering Technology program at each school on the list.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Basic Certificate Colleges.

#1

Olympic College

Bremerton, WA

Our 2023 rankings named Olympic College the most popular school in the United States for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their basic certificate. Located in the small city of Bremerton, OC is a public college with a small student population.

Women make up 22% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Olympic College Report

#2

Front Range Community College

Westminster, CO

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Front Range Community College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools list. Located in the suburb of Westminster, FRCC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 26% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Front Range Community College Report

#3

Valencia College

Orlando, FL

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Valencia College is a great place for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their basic certificate. Valencia College is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Orlando.

Women make up 26% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Valencia College Report

#4

Ivy Tech Community College

Indianapolis, IN

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Ivy Tech Community College is a great place for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their basic certificate. Located in the city of Indianapolis, Ivy Tech Community College is a public school with a very large student population.

Women make up 23% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

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#5

Lee College

Baytown, TX

The in-demand basic certificate programs at Lee College helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular drafting and design engineering technology schools in the United States. Lee College is a medium-sized public school located in the small city of Baytown.

About 26% of the students majoring in design engineering tech at the school are women while 74% are male.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Lee College Report

With a ranking of #6, Austin Community College District did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their basic certificate. Austin Community College District is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Austin.

Women make up 34% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

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Portland Community College ranked #7 on this year’s Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools list. Located in the large city of Portland, Portland Community College is a public college with a very large student population.

Women make up 27% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Portland Community College Report

#8

Pikes Peak Community College

Colorado Springs, CO

Pikes Peak Community College ranked #8 on this year’s Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools list. Located in the suburb of Colorado Springs, PPCC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Of the 65 students majoring in design engineering tech at PPCC, 58% are male and 42% are female.

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With a ranking of #9, Chattahoochee Technical College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their basic certificate. Chattahoochee Technical College is a moderately-sized public school located in the large suburb of Marietta.

Women make up 16% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

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

West Kentucky Community and Technical College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools ranking. Located in the remote town of Paducah, West Kentucky Community and Technical College is a public college with a small student population.

About 68% of the students majoring in design engineering tech at the school are women while 32% are male.

Read More…

#11

Del Mar College

Corpus Christi, TX

Del Mar College landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular basic certificate drafting and design engineering technology programs. Located in the city of Corpus Christi, DMC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 27% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Del Mar College Report

Southern Union State Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for drafting and design engineering technology students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #12 on the list. Southern Union State Community College is a small public school located in the rural area of Wadley.

About 9% of the students majoring in design engineering tech at the school are women while 91% are male.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Southern Union State Community College Report

Hazard Community and Technical College came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools ranking. Located in the remote town of Hazard, Hazard Community and Technical College is a public school with a small student population.

Women make up 12% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Read More…

#14

Miami Dade College

Miami, FL

Miami Dade College ranked #14 on this year’s Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools list. MDC is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Miami.

Women make up 71% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Miami Dade College Report

#15

Hennepin Technical College

Brooklyn Park, MN

With a ranking of #15, Hennepin Technical College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their basic certificate. Located in the large suburb of Brooklyn Park, Hennepin Technical College is a public college with a small student population.

About 10% of the students majoring in design engineering tech at the school are women while 90% are male.

Read More…

#16

Trident Technical College

Charleston, SC

Trident Technical College ranked #16 on this year’s Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools list. Located in the city of Charleston, Trident Technical College is a public college with a large student population.

Of the 49 students majoring in design engineering tech at Trident Technical College, 73% are male and 27% are female.

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#17

South Texas College

McAllen, TX

South Texas College ranked #17 on this year’s Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools list. South Texas College is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of McAllen.

Of the 48 students majoring in design engineering tech at South Texas College, 67% are male and 33% are female.

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#18

El Centro College

Dallas, TX

El Centro College ranked #18 on this year’s Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools list. El Centro College is a fairly large public school located in the city of Dallas.

Women make up 37% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

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City Colleges of Chicago - Harold Washington College landed the #19 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular basic certificate drafting and design engineering technology programs. Located in the large city of Chicago, Harold Washington College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

Women make up 40% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at City Colleges of Chicago - Harold Washington College Report

Seminole State College of Florida did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for drafting and design engineering technology students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #20 on the list. Located in the small city of Sanford, Seminole State is a public school with a large student population.

Of the 42 students majoring in design engineering tech at Seminole State, 40% are male and 60% are female.

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Eastern Florida State College came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools ranking. EFSC is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Cocoa.

About 37% of the students majoring in design engineering tech at the school are women while 63% are male.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Eastern Florida State College

#22

The Fab School

Rancho Cucamonga, CA

The Fab School did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for drafting and design engineering technology students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #22 on the list. The Fab School is a small private for-profit school located in the suburb of Rancho Cucamonga.

Women make up 3% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at The Fab School

Bluegrass Community and Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for drafting and design engineering technology students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #22 on the list. Located in the large city of Lexington, Bluegrass Community and Technical College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

Women make up 5% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Read More…

With a ranking of #24, Red Rocks Community College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their basic certificate. Located in the midsize city of Lakewood, Red Rocks Community College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Women make up 38% of the design engineering tech majors at the school.

Read More…

#24

North Seattle College

Seattle, WA

North Seattle College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular places for drafting and design engineering technology students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #24 on the list. Located in the city of Seattle, North Seattle is a public college with a small student population.

About 32% of the students majoring in design engineering tech at the school are women while 68% are male.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at North Seattle College

#26

Glendale Community College

Glendale, AZ
#33

Butte College

Oroville, CA
#34

Delgado Community College

New Orleans, LA
#34

Gwinnett Technical College

Lawrenceville, GA
#38

Pima Community College

Tucson, AZ
#38

Sierra College

Rocklin, CA
#41

Central Community College

Grand Island, NE
#42

Santa Ana College

Santa Ana, CA
#45

Lanier Technical College

Oakwood, GA
#45

Ventura College

Ventura, CA

Additional Noteworthy Schools

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

Rank College Location
51 Lake Washington Institute of Technology Kirkland, WA
52 College of the Mainland Texas City, TX
53 Chippewa Valley Technical College Eau Claire, WI
53 South Georgia Technical College Americus, GA
53 Cleveland State Community College Cleveland, TN
56 Illinois Valley Community College Oglesby, IL
56 Orangeburg Calhoun Technical College Orangeburg, SC
56 Anoka Technical College Anoka, MN
56 Florida State College at Jacksonville Jacksonville, FL
60 Bakersfield College Bakersfield, CA
60 Everett Community College Everett, WA
60 College of Lake County Grayslake, IL
60 Collin County Community College District McKinney, TX
60 Mt. San Antonio College Walnut, CA
65 Northeast Community College Norfolk, NE
65 Atlanta Technical College Atlanta, GA
65 Triton College River Grove, IL
65 Big Sandy Community and Technical College Prestonsburg, KY
65 St Petersburg College Clearwater, FL
65 MiraCosta College Oceanside, CA

Drafting & Design Engineering Technology by Region

View the Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Basic Certificate Trade Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
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 4,140
CAD/CADD Drafting &/or Design Technology 2,233
Architectural Drafting & Architectural CAD/CADD 1,141
Mechanical Drafting & Mechanical Drafting CAD/CADD 1,082
Civil Drafting & Civil Engineering CAD/CADD 86
Other Drafting/Design Engineering Technologies 70
Electrical/Electronics Drafting & Electrical/Electronics CAD/CADD 49
3-D Modeling and Design Technology 18

Majors Similar to Design Engineering Tech

Related Major Annual Graduates
Industrial Production Technology 11,466
Electromechanical Engineering Technology 10,550
Environmental Control Technology 8,601
Electronics Engineering Technology 8,553
Mechanical Engineering Technology 5,909

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • 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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