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

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

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

17 Colleges
$7,531 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$40,874 Avg Salary

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

Drafting & Design Engineering Technology is the #154 most popular major in the country with 8,964 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

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 Plains States Region ranking. This report analyzed 17 schools in the Plains States 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.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

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

Check out the design engineering tech associate degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 10 Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Associate Degree Schools

#1

Ridgewater College

Willmar, MN

Our 2023 rankings named Ridgewater College the best value school in the Plains States Region for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their associate degree. Located in the town of Willmar, Ridgewater College is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Ridgewater College are $5,914 a year.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Ridgewater College Report

Out of the 17 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Northeast Community College landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the remote town of Norfolk, Northeast is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Northeast are $5,010 a year. Design Engineering Tech majors at Northeast take out an average of $9,356 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

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Out of the 17 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Western Iowa Tech Community College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the small city of Sioux City, Western Iowa Tech Community College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Western Iowa Tech Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,826 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Western Iowa Tech Community College Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southeast Community College Area. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Southeast Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Lincoln.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Southeast Community College are $3,780 per year. After completing their Associate Degree, design engineering tech graduates from Southeast Community College carry an average student debtload of $18,797.

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#5

Hennepin Technical College

Brooklyn Park, MN

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Hennepin Technical College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the suburb of Brooklyn Park, Hennepin Technical College is a public college with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Hennepin Technical College are $5,741 per year. The average amount in student loans that design engineering tech majors at Hennepin Technical College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $26,496.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Hennepin Technical College Report

With a ranking of #6, Alexandria Technical & Community 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 town of Alexandria, ATCC is a public school with a small student population.

ATCC undergraduate students pay an average of $5,910 in tuition and fees each year. Design Engineering Tech majors at ATCC take out an average of $11,508 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, ATCC also is in the top 15% of our Best Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking.

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St Cloud Technical and Community College landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree drafting and design engineering technology programs. Located in the small city of Saint Cloud, St Cloud Technical and Community College is a public school with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at St Cloud Technical and Community College are $5,874 per year. While working on their Associate Degree, design engineering tech majors at St Cloud Technical and Community College accumulate an average of around $15,778 in student debt.

St Cloud Technical and Community College excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list.

Read full report on Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at St Cloud Technical and Community College

With a ranking of #8, Anoka Technical 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 large suburb of Anoka, Anoka Technical College is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Anoka Technical College are $6,075 a year. On average, design engineering tech graduates from Anoka Technical College take out $17,128 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

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

Dakota County Technical College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree drafting and design engineering technology programs. DCTC is a small public school located in the rural area of Rosemount.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at DCTC are $6,208 a year. While working on their Associate Degree, design engineering tech majors at DCTC accumulate an average of around $20,577 in student debt.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Dakota County Technical College Report

#10

Southeast Technical College

Sioux Falls, SD

With a ranking of #10, Southeast Technical College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for drafting and design engineering technology students working on their associate degree. Southeast Tech is a small public school located in the rural area of Sioux Falls.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Southeast Tech are $7,650 a year.

Southeast Tech excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Drafting & Design Engineering Associate Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list.

Full Drafting & Design Engineering Technology at Southeast Technical College Report

Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Colleges by State

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

State Degrees Awarded
Missouri 73
Minnesota 191
Kansas 64
Iowa 40
Nebraska 56
South Dakota 19

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

Majors Similar to Design Engineering Tech

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 17 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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