Estimating assistant education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become an estimating assistant. Estimating assistants usually study business, construction management, or civil engineering. 47% of estimating assistants hold a bachelor's degree, and 25% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 1,300 real estimating assistant resumes to see exactly what estimating assistant education sections show.

The most common colleges for estimating assistants are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.

There are also many online estimating assistant courses to help get the education required to be an estimating assistant.

There are certain estimating assistant certifications that you should consider. These estimating assistant certifications include Certified Construction Manager (CCM) and Medical Assistant.

What education do you need to become an estimating assistant?

What degree do you need to be an estimating assistant?

The most common degree for estimating assistants is bachelor's degree, with 47% of estimating assistants earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 25% and associate degree degree at 16%.

Bachelor's, 47%

Associate, 25%

High School Diploma, 16%

Master's, 4%

Other Degrees, 8%

What should I major in to become an estimating assistant?

You should major in business to become an estimating assistant. 32% of estimating assistants major in business. Other common majors for an estimating assistant include construction management and civil engineering.

Business, 32%

Construction Management, 10%

Civil Engineering, 8%

Accounting, 6%

Other Majors, 44%

Most common colleges for estimating assistants

Estimating assistants often get their degrees at University of Phoenix, Pennsylvania State University, and Florida International University. Here are the most common colleges for estimating assistants in the US based on their resumes.

Estimating assistant common college	Percentages
University of Phoenix	11.11%
Pennsylvania State University	8.64%
Florida International University	7.41%
California State University - San Bernardino	7.41%
Wentworth Institute of Technology	6.17%

Show more common estimating assistant colleges

Best majors for estimating assistants

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Business	31.9%
2	Construction Management	9.5%
3	Civil Engineering	8.3%
4	Accounting	6.3%
5	General Studies	4.3%

Show more common estimating assistant majors

Best colleges for estimating assistants

The best colleges for estimating assistants are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Stanford University.

An estimating assistant with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for estimating assistants. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become estimating assistants.

1. California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo

San Luis Obispo, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$9,816

Enrollment

21,047

2. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

3. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

4. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

5. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

6. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI • Private

In-state tuition

$15,262

Enrollment

30,079

7. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

8. Pennsylvania State University

University Park, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$18,454

Enrollment

40,108

9. Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Worcester, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$50,530

Enrollment

4,571

10. Lehigh University

Bethlehem, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$52,930

Enrollment

5,030

20 best online courses for estimating assistants

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1. Project Scheduling: Estimate Activity Durations

In this guided project you will learn how estimate the durations of your project activities. You will estimate the duration of your project activities, using techniques such as Expert Judgment, Analogy, and Parametric Estimation. Once you have developed a WBS (see Guided Project: Creating a WBS, for how to create one), and decompose the work packages (lowest elements in the WBS) into the necessary activities (See Guided Project: Creating a Project Network Diagram), you can use the bottom up...

2. Statistical Inference for Estimation in Data Science

This course introduces statistical inference, sampling distributions, and confidence intervals. Students will learn how to define and construct good estimators, method of moments estimation, maximum likelihood estimation, and methods of constructing confidence intervals that will extend to more general settings. This course can be taken for academic credit as part of CU Boulder’s Master of Science in Data Science (MS-DS) degree offered on the Coursera platform. The MS-DS is an interdisciplinary...

3. Construction Cost Estimating and Management

4.6

(642)

Learn the tools used by construction management professionals to ensure their projects finish under budget...

4. Quantity Surveying Building Estimation BBS with Excel & CAD

4.4

(1,052)

Quantity Surveying, Construction Estimation ,Quantity survey ,Cost Estimation ,Civil engineering, Building Estimation...

5. Construction Management

The Construction Management specialization is curated for professionals in the construction and civil engineering industry looking to advance their careers. Through this specialization, students will gain comprehensive industry knowledge along with the latest trends and development within the industry. This 5-course specialization will cover the major facets of construction management including project initiation and planning, scheduling techniques and procedures, cost estimating and control,...

6. Battery State-of-Health (SOH) Estimation

This course can also be taken for academic credit as ECEA 5733, part of CU Boulder’s Master of Science in Electrical Engineering degree. In this course, you will learn how to implement different state-of-health estimation methods and to evaluate their relative merits. By the end of the course, you will be able to: - Identify the primary degradation mechanisms that occur in lithium-ion cells and understand how they work - Execute provided Octave/MATLAB script to estimate total capacity using...

7. Projects Cost Management, Estimating, Budgeting and Control.

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Learn how to estimate costs for any project, how to determine budget and how to use Earned Value Management tools. 3 PDU...

8. Quantity Surveying Building Estimation,Cad Excel & Planswift

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Quantity Surveying, Quantity Takeoff, BBS In Excel ,Complete Project In Autocad, Project Planning With Primavera P6...

9. Learn Estimating & Cost Control

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Develop a good practical understanding of best practice estimating and cost control on building & construction Projects...

10. Construction Project Scheduling

4.5

(346)

Learn the tools and techniques used by construction management professionals to ensure projects finish on time...

11. Learn Xactimate in less than 4 hours

4.3

(582)

Introduction to Xactimate - Cost Estimation Software for Construction Project...

12. Project Management: Cost & Schedule Monitoring using EVM

4.3

(1,114)

Earned Value Management, Project Management, Cost Control & Monitor, Budget, Schedule & Cost Variance, Performance Index...

13. Mastering Construction/Project Management

4.2

(659)

Mastering Construction-Project Management in less than 10 Hours...

14. Project Management Fundamentals - The Art of Scheduling

4.3

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Learn How To Schedule Like A Pro From A Pro...

15. IT Project Budget & Cost Management

4.4

(290)

Project Management tips to manage a million dollar IT Project budget from start to finish...

16. Master Agile Estimation: Top Techniques for Scrum & Kanban

4.6

(1,619)

Gain the skills to create Scrum & Kanban based agile estimates that work for both your agile team and your stakeholders...

17. HVAC Ductwork Quantity Take off for Quantity Surveyors

4.4

(284)

HVAC, Duct, Take off, Estimation, Quantity Surveying, Length, Area, Weight, SMACNA, POMI, AUTOCAD, Excel, Template, MEP...

18. Payroll Management

4.5

(338)

Use free UK payroll software to perform essential payroll management...

19. The Complete Guide to Construction Management

4.2

(692)

The Most Essential Course for EVERY Construction Project!...

20. Fundamentals of Logistics, Supply Chain & Customer Service

4.5

(3,822)

Learn Logistics, Supply Chain and Customer Service. 3 Courses in 1...

Top 10 most affordable universities for estimating assistants

The most affordable schools for estimating assistants are University of Florida, suny farmingdale, and california state university - long beach.

If the best universities for estimating assistants are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for estimating assistants.

1. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

2. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

3. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

4. Florida International University

Miami, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,556

Cost of attendance

19,434

5. USF Sarasota-Manatee

Sarasota, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,587

Cost of attendance

13,043

6. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

7. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,410

Cost of attendance

20,456

8. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez

Mayaguez, PR • Private

In-state tuition

$4,094

Cost of attendance

14,302

9. New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology

Socorro, NM • Private

In-state tuition

$7,770

Cost of attendance

21,244

10. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for estimating assistants

The hardest universities for estimating assistants to get into are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Stanford University.

Some great schools for estimating assistants are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for estimating assistants based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,508

2. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,492

3. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,497

4. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

5. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

6. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,506

7. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

8. Lehigh University

Bethlehem, PA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,380

9. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI • Private

Admissions rate

23%

SAT average

1,434

10. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for estimating assistants

The easiest schools for estimating assistants to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, pennsylvania state university - fayette (the eberly campus), and pennsylvania state university - worthington scranton.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as an estimating assistant without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for estimating assistants.

1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

2. Pennsylvania State University - Fayette (The Eberly Campus)

Lemont Furnace, PA • Private

Admissions rate

80%

SAT average

1,067

3. Pennsylvania State University - Worthington Scranton

Dunmore, PA • Private

Admissions rate

82%

SAT average

1,056

4. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

5. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

6. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

7. The University of Texas at El Paso

El Paso, TX • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,035

8. University of North Texas at Dallas

Dallas, TX • Private

Admissions rate

83%

SAT average

992

9. Life University

Marietta, GA • Private

Admissions rate

94%

SAT average

979

10. Oregon Institute of Technology

Klamath Falls, OR • Private

Admissions rate

96%

SAT average

1,139

Average estimating assistant salary by education level

According to our data, estimating assistants with a Master's degree earn the highest average salary, at $54,207 annually. Estimating assistants with a Bachelor's degree earn an average annual salary of $50,739.

Estimating assistant education level	Estimating assistant salary
Master's Degree	$54,207
High School Diploma or Less	$46,655
Bachelor's Degree	$50,739
Some College/ Associate Degree	$47,855

Estimating assistant education FAQs

What is the best college for Estimating Assistants?

Have more questions? See all answers to common business and financial questions.

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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