How To Become A Drafting Engineer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a drafting engineer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

A drafting engineer is responsible for designing and preparing technical drawings that are used to build products. They use sophisticated computer programs, such as computer-aided design (CAD) programs, to produce sketches, models and blueprints needed to bring products to life. They typically work on electrical, architectural, and mechanical projects and are also responsible for assessing material requirements.

Drafting engineers work very closely with architects and engineers to be able to efficiently carry out their objectives. They work in different industries like construction, aeronautics, computer hardware, medical equipment, automotives, and technology. Successful drafting engineers have CAD skills, previous experience in the field, engineering skills, analytical skills, creativity, and attention to detail.

Drafting engineers usually work in an office setting. They work 40 hours a week and might work late hours when they have urgent deadlines.

ScoreDrafting EngineerUS Average

Salary

4.0

Avg. Salary $50,871

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.3

Growth rate -3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.16%

Asian 5.73%

Black or African American 3.03%

Hispanic or Latino 13.06%

Unknown 4.14%

White 73.89%

Gender

female 21.97%

male 78.03%

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

5.3

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.2

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.7

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a drafting engineer

Explore drafting engineer education requirements

Most common drafting engineer degrees

Associate

44.9 %

Bachelor's

38.6 %

High School Diploma

5.8 %

Start to develop specific drafting engineer skills

Skills	Percentages
Production Drawings	6.05%
Engineering Drawings	5.77%
Auto CAD	5.27%
As-Built Drawings	5.10%
Shop Drawings	5.01%

Complete relevant drafting engineer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New drafting engineers 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 drafting engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real drafting engineer resumes.

Research drafting engineer duties and responsibilities

Install and test PLC in client own equipment on site - solve some logical and hardware issues to accomplish goal
Add ECO's revision notations.
Issue bill of material (BOM) for assemble parts.
Set up first runs for new parts and troubleshot new part CNC programs.

Prepare your drafting engineer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your drafting engineer 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 drafting engineer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable drafting engineer resume templates

Build a professional drafting engineer 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 drafting engineer resume.

Apply for drafting engineer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a drafting engineer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do drafting engineers rate their job?

5/5

Based on 1 ratings

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Drafting engineer reviews

5.0

A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2019

Pros

comfortable environment

Cons

stressful work. negative response is related in anyway to the job you'll be doing. So if the job is boring and a lot of repetitive tasks are involved and you say you don't like to do something daily they might weed you out. My answer would be, I really can't think of something I dislike doing every single day. Just because they ask the question doesn't mean you have to have a negative answer!