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Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD

Types of Degrees Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD Majors Are Earning

Those studying Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	22
Associate’s Degree	44
Master’s Degree	42

What Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD Majors Need to Know

Programs in Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Design — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 6.0 / 7.
• Building and Construction — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Engineering and Technology — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.4 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set emphasized by a Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Systems Analysis — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.
• Complex Problem Solving — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.
• Active Learning — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Comprehension — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Visualization — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.
• Near Vision — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Working with Computers	4.8 / 7
Drafting, Laying Out, and Specifying Technical Devices, Parts, and Equipment	4.6 / 7
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards	4.3 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.0 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	3.9 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	3.8 / 7
Thinking Creatively	3.8 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	3.7 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	3.7 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Adobe After Effects	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Autodesk Land Desktop	Computer aided design CAD software	—
Softimage Extreme	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Autodesk Revit Architecture	Computer aided design CAD software	—
Digitizing and photogrammetric software	Optical character reader OCR or scanning software	—
Document management system software	Document management software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Adobe Creative Cloud software	Graphics or photo imaging software	✓
AutoDesSys form Z	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Autodesk Inventor	Computer aided design CAD software	—
C	Development environment software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD graduates include:

• Structural Design Engineer
• Architectural Computer-Aided Design Technician (Architectural CAD Technician)
• CADD Operator (Computer-Aided Design and Drafting Operator)
• CAD Draftsman (Computer-Aided Design Draftsman)
• Building Drafter
• CADD Operator (Computer Aided Drafting and Design Operator)
• Architectural Technologist
• Drafting Technician
• Architecture Designer
• Heating and Ventilating Drafter
• Designer
• CADD Drafter (Computer-Aided Design and Drafting Drafter)
• Geophysical Drafter
• Civil Technician
• BIM Modeler (Building Information Modeling Modeler)

Who Is Earning a Degree in Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly male, with men earning 73.1% of Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	29	26.9%
Men	79	73.1%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	57	52.8%
Asian	5	4.6%
Hispanic or Latino	28	25.9%
Black or African American	7	6.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native	5	4.6%
Race Unknown	2	1.9%
International Students	4	3.7%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD 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	$43,976
4 years	$45,788
5 years	$51,867

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $51,867 — roughly 18% above the 1-year mark.

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

Is a Degree in Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, Civil Drafting & CAD/CADD graduates earn a median of $45,788 four years after completion — roughly 20% 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	CIP Code
Drafting/Design Engineering Technologies/Technicians	15.13
3-D Modeling and Design Technology/Technician	15.1307
Architectural Drafting and Architectural CAD/CADD	15.1303
CAD/CADD Drafting and/or Design Technology/Technician	15.1302
Drafting and Design Technology/Technician, General	15.1301
Drafting/Design Engineering Technologies/Technicians, Other	15.1399
Electrical/Electronics Drafting and Electrical/Electronics CAD/CADD	15.1305
Mechanical Drafting and Mechanical Drafting CAD/CADD	15.1306
Architectural Engineering Technologies/Technicians	15.0101

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.