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Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region

103 Colleges
$52,266 Avg Salary
$24,894 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology School for You

Out of all the majors we analyze each year, drafting & design engineering technology was ranked #20 in the country. In fact 8,822 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2021-2022.

There are so many trade school programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Trade College Search has developed this Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This report analyzed 103 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which ones were the most popular programs 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 Colleges.

#1

Ivy Tech Community College

Indianapolis, IN

Our analysis found Ivy Tech Community College to be the most popular school for drafting & design engineering technology students who want to pursue a degree in the Great Lakes Region . Ivy Tech Community College is a fairly large public school located in the city of Indianapolis.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Ivy Tech Community College Report

#2

Oakland Community College

Auburn Hills, MI

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Oakland Community College. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the large suburb of Auburn Hills, Oakland Community College is a public school with a large student population.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Oakland Community College Report

The excellent programs at Northcentral Technical College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best drafting & design engineering technology schools in the Great Lakes Region . North Central Technical College is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Wausau.

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

#4

Trine University

Angola, IN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Trine University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the distant town of Angola, Trine is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend City Colleges of Chicago - Harold Washington College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Harold Washington College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Chicago.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at City Colleges of Chicago - Harold Washington College

Elgin Community College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular drafting & design engineering technology programs. ECC is a moderately-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Elgin.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Elgin Community College Report

Fox Valley Technical College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. FVTC is a large public school located in the medium-sized suburb of Appleton.

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#8

Grand Rapids Community College

Grand Rapids, MI

Grand Rapids Community College landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular drafting & design engineering technology programs. Located in the city of Grand Rapids, Grand Rapids Community College is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Grand Rapids Community College Report

With a ranking of #9, Chippewa Valley Technical College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for drafting & design engineering technology students. Located in the city of Eau Claire, CVTC is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Chippewa Valley Technical College Report

William Rainey Harper College ranked #10 on this year’s Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Harper College is a large public school located in the suburb of Palatine.

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Macomb Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for drafting & design engineering technology students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Warren, Macomb Community College is a public college with a large student population.

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

Columbus State Community College landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular drafting & design engineering technology programs. Located in the city of Columbus, Columbus State is a public college with a very large student population.

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With a ranking of #13, Waukesha County Technical College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for drafting & design engineering technology students. Located in the large suburb of Pewaukee, WCTC is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

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

#14

Lakeshore Technical College

Cleveland, WI

Lakeshore Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for drafting & design engineering technology students. It came in at #14 on the list. Located in the rural area of Cleveland, LTC is a public college with a small student population.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Lakeshore Technical College Report

Illinois Valley Community College landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular drafting & design engineering technology programs. IVCC is a small public school located in the rural area of Oglesby.

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#15

College of DuPage

Glen Ellyn, IL

College of DuPage came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Drafting & Design Engineering Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. COD is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Glen Ellyn.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at College of DuPage

Honorable Mentions

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 Trade Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.

Rank College Location
17 Moraine Park Technical College Fond du Lac, WI
17 Henry Ford College Dearborn, MI
17 Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN
20 Kent State University at Tuscarawas New Philadelphia, OH

Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Colleges by State

Explore the best drafting & design engineering technology colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 255
Indiana 315
Wisconsin 246
Ohio 148
Illinois 339

One of 18 majors within the trade school area of study, drafting & design engineering technology has other similar majors worth exploring.

Design Engineering Tech Focus Areas

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

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.

  • 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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