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Best Value Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

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2023 Best Value Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

25 Colleges
$7,711 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$39,159 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Precision Metal Working Associate Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 52,308 precision metal working students received a degree or certificate, making the major the #7 most popular in the country.

It's not easy to decide which trade school program to enroll in when you have so many options available. 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 Best Value Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 25 schools in the Plains States Region to see which associate degree programs offered the best value experiences for precision metal working students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for precision metal working majors pursuing a associate degree.

Top 10 Best Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Schools

Our analysis found Southeast Community College Area to be the best value school for precision metal working students who want to pursue a associate degree in the Plains States Region . Located in the large city of Lincoln, Southeast Community College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Southeast Community College are $3,780 per year. Precision Metal Working majors at Southeast Community College take out an average of $12,085 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

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#2

Hennepin Technical College

Brooklyn Park, MN

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Hennepin Technical College is a great value for precision metal working students working on their associate degree. Hennepin Technical College is a small public school located in the large suburb of Brooklyn Park.

Hennepin Technical College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,741 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Precision Metal Working at Hennepin Technical College

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Anoka Technical College is a great value for precision metal working students working on their associate degree. Anoka Technical College is a small public school located in the suburb of Anoka.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Anoka Technical College are $6,075 a year.

Anoka Technical College excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Trade Schools in the Plains States Region list.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend St Cloud Technical and Community College. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. St Cloud Technical and Community College is a small public school located in the city of Saint Cloud.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at St Cloud Technical and Community College are $5,874 a year.

Read full report on Precision Metal Working at St Cloud Technical and Community College

#5

South Central College

North Mankato, MN

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means South Central College is a great value for precision metal working students working on their associate degree. South Central College is a small public school located in the suburb of North Mankato.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at South Central College are $5,966 per year.

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#6

Ridgewater College

Willmar, MN

Ridgewater College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree precision metal working programs. Ridgewater College is a small public school located in the town of Willmar.

Ridgewater College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,914 in tuition and fees each year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Ridgewater College also did well on our Best Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Trade Schools in the Plains States Region list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

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North Dakota State College of Science came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in the town of Wahpeton, North Dakota State College of Science is a public college with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at North Dakota State College of Science are $6,606 per year. The average amount in student loans that precision metal working majors at North Dakota State College of Science take out while working on their Associate Degree is $13,920.

North Dakota State College of Science excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Trade Schools in the Plains States Region list.

Full Precision Metal Working at North Dakota State College of Science Report

#8

Central Community College

Grand Island, NE

Central Community College landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree precision metal working programs. Central Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the small city of Grand Island.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Central Community College are $4,590 per year. On average, precision metal working graduates from Central Community College take out $6,241 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Read full report on Precision Metal Working at Central Community College

Hawkeye Community College ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the city of Waterloo, Hawkeye Community College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

Hawkeye Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $6,524 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Precision Metal Working at Hawkeye Community College Report

Lake Area Technical Institute did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for precision metal working students to get a associate degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the town of Watertown, LATI is a public school with a small student population.

LATI undergraduate students pay an average of $6,718 in tuition and fees each year.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, LATI also did well on our Best Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Trade Schools in the Plains States Region list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

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Best Precision Metal Working Colleges by State

Explore the best precision metal working schools for a specific state in the Plains States region.

State Degrees Awarded
Kansas 1,056
Missouri 604
Minnesota 948
South Dakota 106
Iowa 737
North Dakota 185
Nebraska 453

Precision Metal Working is one of 5 different types of trade school programs to choose from.

Precision Metal Working Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Welding Technology/Welder 42,490
Machine Tool Technology/Machinist 3,285
Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) Machinist Technology/CNC Machinist 2,689
Machine Shop Technology/Assistant 1,921
Tool & Die Technology/Technician 584
Metal Fabricator 430
Ironworking/Ironworker 316
Other Precision Metal Working 314
Sheet Metal Technology/Sheetworking 279

Related Major Annual Graduates
Woodworking 423
Other Precision Production 68
Leatherworking & Upholstery 54
Precision Production Trades 39
Boilermaking 13

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).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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