Manufacturing Tech

Types of Degrees Manufacturing Tech Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many manufacturing engineering technology graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Basic Certificate	2,142
Associate Degree	1,202
Bachelor’s Degree	621
Undergraduate Certificate	547
Master’s Degree	101

What Manufacturing Tech Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to manufacturing tech were asked what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. They weighted these areas on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.

Knowledge Areas for Manufacturing Tech Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Skills for Manufacturing Tech Majors

When studying manufacturing tech, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Abilities for Manufacturing Tech Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a manufacturing tech student include the following:

• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

What Can You Do With a Manufacturing Tech Major?

People with a manufacturing tech degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Industrial Engineering Technicians	0.6%	$55,460

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Manufacturing Tech?

This major attracts more men than women. About 90% of the graduates in this field are male.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of manufacturing tech majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	13
Black or African American	48
Hispanic or Latino	70
White	426
International Students	34
Other Races/Ethnicities	30

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Manufacturing Tech, too. About 5.5% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Manufacturing Tech

Some careers associated with manufacturing tech require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to manufacturing tech have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	9.7%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	12.0%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	1.3%
Some College Courses	36.9%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	25.5%
Bachelor’s Degree	14.7%

Online Manufacturing Tech Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	129	1
Certificate (2-4 Years)	8	0
Associate’s Degree	224	3
Bachelor’s Degree	3	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	8	2
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Manufacturing Tech

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to manufacturing tech.

Major	Number of Grads
Industrial Technology	3,908
Other Industrial Production Technologies	1,967
Welding Engineering Technology	326
Plastics & Polymer Engineering Technology	315
Composite Materials Technology	88
Metallurgical Technology	75
Chemical Engineering Technology	49
Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology	10

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
• Image Credit: By ICAPlants under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.