How To Become A Chief Drafter: What It Is and Career Path

What is a chief drafter and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a chief drafter. For example, did you know that they make an average of $23.21 an hour? That's $48,281 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -3% and produce -6,700 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreChief DrafterUS Average

Salary

3.8

Avg. Salary $48,281

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

4.3

Growth rate -3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.70%

Asian 7.02%

Black or African American 3.09%

Hispanic or Latino 11.66%

Unknown 5.20%

White 72.33%

Gender

female 0.00%

male 100.00%

Age - 45

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 45

Stress level

4.3

Stress level is moderate

7.1 - high

Complexity level

5.9

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.0

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a chief drafter

Explore chief drafter education requirements

Most common chief drafter degrees

Bachelor's

42.9 %

Associate

35.7 %

High School Diploma

14.3 %

Start to develop specific chief drafter skills

Skills	Percentages
Autocad	71.89%
Design Criteria	28.11%

Complete relevant chief drafter training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 4-10 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New chief drafters learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a chief drafter based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real chief drafter resumes.

Research chief drafter duties and responsibilities

Manage the design history of 3D part models, assemblies, and drawings using PDM software.
Develop, organize and maintain AutoCAD standards for designers to use resulting in efficient production and time management.
Update stock plans as necessary according to AMDA standards.

Prepare your chief drafter resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your chief drafter resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a chief drafter resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable chief drafter resume templates

Build a professional chief drafter resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your chief drafter resume.