Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
Production technician education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a production technician. Production technicians usually study business, electrical engineering, or electrical engineering technology. 34% of production technicians hold a bachelor's degree, and 27% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 19,970 real production technician resumes to see exactly what production technician education sections show.
The most common colleges for production technicians are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.
There are also many online production technician courses to help get the education required to be a production technician.
There are certain production technician certifications that you should consider. These production technician certifications include Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) and Forklift Safety and Inspector.
What education do you need to become a production technician?
What degree do you need to be a production technician?
- Bachelor's, 34%
- Associate, 27%
- High School Diploma, 25%
- Diploma, 7%
- Other Degrees, 7%
What should I major in to become a production technician?
- Business, 19%
- General Studies, 7%
- Other Majors, 54%
Most common colleges for production technicians
| Production technician common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of Phoenix | 15.44% |
| DeVry University | 10.04% |
| Jackson State University | 9.90% |
| Middle Tennessee State University | 6.60% |
| Pennsylvania State University | 5.85% |
Best majors for production technicians
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Business | 19.2% |
| 2 | Electrical Engineering | 12.5% |
| 3 | Electrical Engineering Technology | 7.3% |
| 4 | General Studies | 7.1% |
| 5 | Communication | 6.9% |
Best colleges for production technicians
The best colleges for production technicians are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and University of Pennsylvania.
A production technician with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for production technicians. 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 production technicians.
1. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,354
Enrollment
7,083
2. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
3. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
4. Maine Maritime Academy
Castine, ME • Private
In-state tuition
$13,478
Enrollment
979
5. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$56,225
Enrollment
19,548
6. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Enrollment
9,142
7. SUNY at Binghamton
Vestal, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$9,808
Enrollment
13,990
8. Villanova University
Villanova, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$53,308
Enrollment
6,819
9. San Diego State University
San Diego, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,488
Enrollment
30,018
10. Bentley University
Waltham, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$49,880
Enrollment
4,177
20 best online courses for production technicians
Advertising disclosure
1. Product Management Crash Course; IT Product Management
Product Management Essentials & Product Management Fundamentals to kick-start your career in Product Management...
2. Productivity for Mac Users: 10x Your Productivity
Shortcuts and Tools to 10x Your Productivity on Your Mac...
3. The Production Part Approval Process (PPAP)
The 18-step process for ensuring new parts are consistently manufactured and meet their customers' quality expectations...
4. Comprehensive Product management for Product managers
Become a great product manager with comprehensive product management Real world case study with JIRA & Confluence...
5. Great Product Manager: Product Management by a Big Tech's PM
Become a Great Product Manager! Land your dream job with Big Tech's Senior Product Manager...
6. Music Production II - Music Production Workflow - COMPLETE!!
Learn to create a Music Production Workflow, and produce professional quality music within any Music Production DAW!...
7. Product Management A-Z: Excel as a PM & Build great Products
Product Management course (with Live Case Exercises & inputs from PMs @Top Tech cos.)- Build n Grow products & Get Hired...
8. Insightful Customer Interviews for Product Managers
Direct conversations with real customers to gain insight, test product concepts, and drive product success...
9. Productivity Machine: Time Management & Productivity Hacks
Productivity & Time Management Strategies for Goal Setting, Eliminating Distractions, & Building Habits for Success...
10. Product Management: Mastering Product Roadmaps 2023
A complete guide to building a roadmap that works for both your product team and your stakeholders...
11. Mechanical design and Product development process
Learn the basic ideas and concepts behind developing mechanical products related to mechanical engineering...
12. Product Management Fundamentals
Case-based practical course on product management to build strong foundations in product concepts, process & frameworks...
13. Slack: Less email. More productive.
Learn how to use slack to enjoy a simpler and more productive work life...
14. Microsoft Word & Excel 2016/365 Productivity Tips
How to make your workday more productive...
15. The Ultimate Gmail Productivity System For Business
Learn over 20 different strategies and tools to cut your time spent on email in half and massively increase productivity...
16. Product Management Marketing: Dekker's Product Marketing MBA
Be a Product Marketing Manager - Product Management : Product Manager MBA : Product to Market : Product Owner Launch GTM...
17. Double Your Productivity and Get Important Things Done
Productivity Course: Boost Productivity. Get Things Done. Procrastination. Time Management. Productivity Tools...
18. Scrum Product Owner & Scrum Product Owner Certification
Introduction to Agile and Scrum Product Owner Role + Preparation to Product Owner Certification Tests + Mock Exam...
19. Product Management 101
Learn to become a more strategic product manager - and have a greater impact on your company and your products...
20. Computer Literacy & Basic Computer Skills for Productivity
Enhance Productivity With This Basic Computer Course: An Introduction To Computers, Microsoft Windows, & the Apple Mac...
Top 10 most affordable universities for production technicians
The most affordable schools for production technicians are SUNY Farmingdale, california state university - bakersfield, and baruch college of the city university of new york.
If the best universities for production technicians 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 production technicians.
1. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,306
Cost of attendance
16,091
2. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
3. Baruch College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,262
Cost of attendance
14,046
4. California State University - Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,942
Cost of attendance
14,469
5. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York
Brooklyn, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,240
Cost of attendance
13,991
6. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
7. SUNY Polytechnic Institute
Utica, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,238
Cost of attendance
21,567
8. USF Sarasota-Manatee
Sarasota, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,587
Cost of attendance
13,043
9. San Diego State University
San Diego, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,488
Cost of attendance
22,990
10. Clayton State University
Morrow, GA • Private
In-state tuition
$5,419
Cost of attendance
17,697
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for production technicians
The hardest universities for production technicians to get into are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and University of Pennsylvania.
Some great schools for production technicians 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 production technicians 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. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
4. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
22%
SAT average
1,420
5. New York University
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
20%
SAT average
1,419
6. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
13%
SAT average
1,445
7. Villanova University
Villanova, PA • Private
Admissions rate
29%
SAT average
1,407
8. Bentley University
Waltham, MA • Private
Admissions rate
43%
SAT average
1,338
9. SUNY at Binghamton
Vestal, NY • Private
Admissions rate
40%
SAT average
1,376
10. Brandeis University
Waltham, MA • Private
Admissions rate
31%
SAT average
1,398
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for production technicians
The easiest schools for production technicians to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, notre dame de namur university, and holy names university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a production technician 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 production technicians.
1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
2. Notre Dame de Namur University
Belmont, CA • Private
Admissions rate
82%
SAT average
983
3. Holy Names University
Oakland, CA • Private
Admissions rate
70%
SAT average
849
4. Notre Dame College
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
994
5. LIM College
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
83%
SAT average
1,061
6. Nyack College
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
999
7. Life University
Marietta, GA • Private
Admissions rate
94%
SAT average
979
8. D'Youville College
Buffalo, NY • Private
Admissions rate
100%
SAT average
1,072
9. Presentation College
Aberdeen, SD • Private
Admissions rate
97%
SAT average
1,050
10. Oregon Institute of Technology
Klamath Falls, OR • Private
Admissions rate
96%
SAT average
1,139
Average production technician salary by education level
| Production technician education level | Production technician salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $40,435 |
| High School Diploma or Less | $37,364 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $38,773 |
| Some College/ Associate Degree | $39,254 |
Production technician education FAQs
Have more questions? See all answers to common architecture and engineering questions.
Search for production technician jobs
Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025