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Lighting engineer education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a lighting engineer. Lighting engineers usually study electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, or business. 60% of lighting engineers hold a bachelor's degree, and 20% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 406 real lighting engineer resumes to see exactly what lighting engineer education sections show.
The most common colleges for lighting engineers are the Full Sail University and the Full Sail University.
There are also many online lighting engineer courses to help get the education required to be a lighting engineer.
What education do you need to become a lighting engineer?
What degree do you need to be a lighting engineer?
- Bachelor's, 60%
- Associate, 20%
- High School Diploma, 9%
- Master's, 5%
- Other Degrees, 6%
What should I major in to become a lighting engineer?
Most common colleges for lighting engineers
| Lighting engineer common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| Full Sail University | 15.38% |
| University of South Florida | 7.69% |
| Brigham Young University | 7.69% |
| Florida International University | 7.69% |
| University of Akron | 5.13% |
Best majors for lighting engineers
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electrical Engineering | 19.5% |
| 2 | Mechanical Engineering | 12.1% |
| 3 | Business | 11.4% |
| 4 | Music | 9.4% |
| 5 | Civil Engineering | 6.0% |
Best colleges for lighting engineers
The best colleges for lighting engineers are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and Northeastern University.
A lighting engineer with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for lighting engineers. 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 lighting engineers.
1. Northeastern University
Boston, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,522
Enrollment
13,760
2. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Enrollment
31,503
3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,832
Enrollment
4,550
4. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,354
Enrollment
7,083
5. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$50,420
Enrollment
7,582
6. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$55,695
Enrollment
6,596
7. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Pomona, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,353
Enrollment
24,841
8. Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University
Tallahassee, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,785
Enrollment
7,711
9. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
10. Texas A&M University
College Station, TX • Private
In-state tuition
$11,870
Enrollment
53,194
20 best online courses for lighting engineers
Advertising disclosure
1. Cinematic Lighting
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5. LIGHTING for Film and Television
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6. How to Use Lighting Design to Transform your Home
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10. The Art of Finding Light: Photography for the artist in you
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11. Operating the Audio Mixer, A Beginning Sound Engineer Course
Learn to Mix Live Sound...
12. Learn Arnold - Fundamentals of Shading and Lighting
Become an expert in Shading, Lighting and Rendering with Arnold for Maya, Katana, Cinema4d, Houdini and other 3D render...
13. Facade Lighting Design Techniques
Mastering facade lighting design using Dialux evo and Photoshop software...
14. KATANA Mastering LookDev & Lighting for the VFX industry
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15. Ableton Live 11 Masterclass: Complete Music Production Guide
Complete Guide To: Music Production, Music Mixing, Electronic Music, Sound Design, Audio Engineering / Production...
16. Unity 5: Lighting Fundamentals
This course takes a look and new and existing lighting features in Unity 5 from the perspective of a novice student...
17. Mixing With Ableton Live
Using Ableton Live to Mix Your Tracks and Take Them from Good to Great!...
18. Ultimate Ableton Live 10, COMPLETE: Parts 4, 5, and 6
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19. Set Up A Photography Studio With Equipment - On A Budget
Learn How To Set Up A Photography Studio On Any Budget: Location, Room, Backgrounds, Lighting, Props And More!...
20. Digitally Painting Light and Color: Amateur to Master
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Top 10 most affordable universities for lighting engineers
The most affordable schools for lighting engineers are California State University - Long Beach, university of florida, and california state university - bakersfield.
If the best universities for lighting engineers 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 lighting engineers.
1. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Cost of attendance
18,306
2. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,381
Cost of attendance
21,034
3. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
4. Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,656
Cost of attendance
21,623
5. California State University - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,749
Cost of attendance
14,823
6. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
7. Baruch College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,262
Cost of attendance
14,046
8. Florida International University
Miami, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,556
Cost of attendance
19,434
9. California State University - Fullerton
Fullerton, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,886
Cost of attendance
17,645
10. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Pomona, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,353
Cost of attendance
21,302
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for lighting engineers
The hardest universities for lighting engineers to get into are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and Northeastern University.
Some great schools for lighting engineers 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 lighting engineers 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. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
Admissions rate
4%
SAT average
1,497
2. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
3. Northeastern University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
19%
SAT average
1,466
4. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Admissions rate
10%
SAT average
1,514
5. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
6. Yale University
New Haven, CT • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,517
7. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions rate
5%
SAT average
1,520
8. Princeton University
Princeton, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
5%
SAT average
1,503
9. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
Admissions rate
9%
SAT average
1,516
10. Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions rate
17%
SAT average
1,507
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for lighting engineers
The easiest schools for lighting engineers to get into are Notre Dame de Namur University, kean university, and capitol technology university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a lighting engineer 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 lighting engineers.
1. Notre Dame de Namur University
Belmont, CA • Private
Admissions rate
82%
SAT average
983
2. Kean University
Union, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
86%
SAT average
991
3. Capitol Technology University
Laurel, MD • Private
Admissions rate
69%
SAT average
1,070
4. Oregon Institute of Technology
Klamath Falls, OR • Private
Admissions rate
96%
SAT average
1,139
5. Nyack College
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
999
6. Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi, TX • Private
Admissions rate
87%
SAT average
1,068
7. San Francisco State University
San Francisco, CA • Private
Admissions rate
72%
SAT average
1,054
8. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
9. Sonoma State University
Rohnert Park, CA • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
1,072
10. Wayland Baptist University
Plainview, TX • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
1,003
Average lighting engineer salary by education level
| Lighting engineer education level | Lighting engineer salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $94,544 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $83,096 |
| Doctorate Degree | $105,485 |
Lighting engineer education FAQs
Have more questions? See all answers to common architecture and engineering questions.
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025