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Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region

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2023 Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

13 Colleges
$7,135 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$40,874 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Associate Degree School for You

Out of all the majors we analyze each year, drafting and design engineering technology was ranked #154 in the country. In fact 8,964 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. This report analyzed 13 schools in the Southwest Region to see which ones offered the best value associate degree programs for design engineering tech students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.

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

2023 Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for design engineering tech majors pursuing a associate degree.

Top 10 Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Associate Degree Schools

#1

Lee College

Baytown, TX

Our analysis found Lee College to be the best value school for drafting and design engineering technology students who want to pursue a associate degree in the Southwest Region . Located in the city of Baytown, Lee College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Lee College are $4,302 per year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Lee College also is in the top 10% of our Best Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Lee College Report

#2

Tyler Junior College

Tyler, TX

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Tyler Junior College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the medium-sized city of Tyler, Tyler Junior College is a public college with a large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Tyler Junior College are $4,440 a year. After completing their Associate Degree, design engineering tech graduates from Tyler Junior College carry an average student debtload of $15,433.

Read More…

#3

Amarillo College

Amarillo, TX

Out of the 13 schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Amarillo College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Amarillo College is a medium-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Amarillo.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Amarillo College are $4,704 a year.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Amarillo College Report

Out of the 13 schools in the Southwest Region that were part of this year’s ranking, San Jacinto Community College landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the suburb of Pasadena, San Jacinto College is a public college with a very large student population.

San Jacinto College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,040 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at San Jacinto Community College Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Houston Community College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Houston Community College is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Houston.

Houston Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,460 in tuition and fees each year. Design Engineering Tech majors at Houston Community College take out an average of $18,019 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

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#6

Laredo College

Laredo, TX

Laredo College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree drafting and design engineering technology programs. Laredo College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Laredo.

Laredo College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,748 in tuition and fees each year.

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Lamar Institute of Technology ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Located in the city of Beaumont, Lamar Institute of Technology is a public college with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Lamar Institute of Technology are $12,636 per year. The average amount in student loans that design engineering tech majors at Lamar Institute of Technology take out while working on their Associate Degree is $15,855.

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Tarrant County College District ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list. Tarrant County College is a fairly large public school located in the city of Fort Worth.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Tarrant County College are $8,235 per year.

In addition to its great value ranking, Tarrant County College is in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Tarrant County College District

#9

San Juan College

Farmington, NM

With a ranking of #9, San Juan College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their associate degree. Located in the small city of Farmington, SJC is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

SJC undergraduate students pay an average of $4,546 in tuition and fees each year.

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Austin Community College District came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Located in the city of Austin, Austin Community College District is a public school with a very large student population.

Austin Community College District undergraduate students pay an average of $10,590 in tuition and fees each year. While working on their Associate Degree, design engineering tech majors at Austin Community College District accumulate an average of around $15,706 in student debt.

In addition to its great value ranking, Austin Community College District is in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Southwest Region list.

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

Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Colleges by State

Explore the best drafting and design engineering technology schools for a specific state in the Southwest region.

State Degrees Awarded
Texas 397
Arizona 38
Oklahoma 29
New Mexico 15

Drafting & Design Engineering Technology is one of 18 different types of programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Industrial Production Technology 11,906
Electromechanical Engineering Technology 10,593
Environmental Control Technology 8,690
Electronics Engineering Technology 8,592
Engineering-Related Fields 6,736

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 13 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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