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Other Environmental Control

Types of Degrees Other Environmental Control Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Other Environmental Control may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	2
Associate’s Degree	62
Bachelor’s Degree	8
Master’s Degree	53

What Other Environmental Control Majors Need to Know

Programs in Other Environmental Control emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Other Environmental Control graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Other Environmental Control emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Engineering and Technology — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Mathematics — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• Physics — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set emphasized by a Other Environmental Control program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Quality Control Analysis — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 3.4 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.
• Operations Monitoring — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.1 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Other Environmental Control careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Near Vision — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Problem Sensitivity — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Other Environmental Control graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials	4.5 / 7
Getting Information	4.3 / 7
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards	4.3 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.2 / 7
Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings	4.2 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.1 / 7
Working with Computers	4.1 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.0 / 7
Processing Information	4.0 / 7
Controlling Machines and Processes	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Other Environmental Control professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
National Instruments LabVIEW	Development environment software	—
SAP software	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
Autodesk AutoCAD	Computer aided design CAD software	—
Database software	Data base user interface and query software	—
Image processing software	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Facebook	Web page creation and editing software	—
ZEMAX Optical Design Program	Computer aided design CAD software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Other Environmental Control graduates include:

• Test Technician (Test Tech)
• Laser Specialist
• Fiber Optics Assembler
• Strain Technician (Strain Tech)
• Optical Manufacturing Technician (Optical Manufacturing Tech)
• Medical Laser Technician (Medical Laser Tech)
• Optics Test Technician (Optics Test Tech)
• Mobile Laser Technician (Mobile Laser Tech)
• Splicing Technician (Splicing Tech)
• Fiber Optics Specialist
• Surgical Laser Technician (Surgical Laser Tech)
• Fiber Optics Splicer
• Photonics Technician (Photonics Tech)
• Mobile Technician (Mobile Tech)
• Laser Operator

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Other Environmental Control graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
High school diploma or equivalent	47.2%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	25.4%
Bachelor’s degree	9.2%
Postsecondary certificate	6.9%
Some college courses	6.8%
Master’s degree	2.3%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	2.2%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Other Environmental Control?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly male, with men earning 81.6% of Other Environmental Control degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	23	18.4%
Men	102	81.6%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Other Environmental Control graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	103	82.4%
Asian	1	0.8%
Hispanic or Latino	7	5.6%
Black or African American	6	4.8%
Two or More Races	4	3.2%
Race Unknown	2	1.6%
International Students	2	1.6%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Other Environmental Control Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of Other Environmental Control graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. These numbers tend to grow steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$36,113
4 years	$40,833
5 years	$45,594

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $45,594 — roughly 26% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Other Environmental Control Programs

Distance learning is tracked by IPEDS for Other Environmental Control. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	3	1

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Other Environmental Control Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, Other Environmental Control graduates earn a median of $40,833 four years after completion — roughly 7% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Environmental Control Technologies/Technicians	10,798
Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering Technology/Technician	9,397
Architectural Engineering Technologies/Technicians	1,557
Biomedical Technology/Technician	1,460
Computer Engineering Technology/Technician	1,215
Water Quality and Wastewater Treatment Management and Recycling Technology/Technician	905
Computer Engineering Technologies/Technicians, Other	492
Computer Software Technology/Technician	278
Environmental/Environmental Engineering Technology/Technician	241
Hazardous Materials Management and Waste Technology/Technician	130
Applied Engineering Technologies/Technicians	113
Composite Materials Technology/Technician	108

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.