Engineering and Drafting Pathway Guide

At a glance

This guide covers a high school engineering and drafting pathway in Michigan, Virginia, North Carolina, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Missouri and Hawaii. It includes pre-engineering courses (often delivered with PLTW Engineering) and drafting and computer-aided design (CAD). It sets out the rules that differ by state. The how-to for staffing, partnerships, approvals, facilities, curriculum and scheduling sits in six implementation toolkits, linked in the launch steps at the end.

What the pathway leads to

No state among the seven licenses drafters or CAD technicians, and professional engineer licensure comes only after a college degree and years of work. Most students in this pathway go on to a college engineering, engineering technology or architecture program. Others go to a two-year drafting or engineering technology program, or straight to work as a CAD drafter or technician. What students can earn in high school is CAD software certifications (Autodesk Certified User and the SOLIDWORKS CSWA-Academic) and, in some cases, college credit. PLTW is a curriculum, not a credential.

The decisions you face

1. Whether to protect or replace core math and science. Engineering is the pathway most likely to be used for academic credit, and its students are the ones most likely to need Algebra II, chemistry and physics for university engineering admission. The academic credit section sets out each state’s rule.
2. Whether to run a state-approved CTE program or local courses. Many schools run PLTW as local electives. Only a state-approved program counts for CTE funding and credential reporting, and in Michigan only a state-approved program can earn MMC academic substitutions.
3. Which curriculum to build on. PLTW Engineering requires paid teacher training for every course. A school-built or other vendor curriculum can work if it covers the state standards.
4. Which credential to aim for. Autodesk Certified User and CSWA-Academic are the credentials state lists use. Each needs a testing arrangement at the school.
5. Who teaches it. The license differs by setting: a CTE certificate for state-approved programs and career centers, and a technology education license in many comprehensive high schools.

Where the states differ most

Items are labeled Confirmed, Confirm with the agency, or Changing. Last checked October 5, 2026.

Jobs and pay

Architectural and civil drafting is the largest of the three occupations and the only one with published data in all seven states, so it is charted. Mechanical drafter jobs are projected to shrink nationally (6.5%) and in five of the six states with data, led by Michigan (8.6%); industrial engineering technician jobs are projected to grow in four states and shrink in Michigan (3.6%) and Missouri (1.1%). Check regional demand with local employers before you decide.

Drafter jobs grow fastest in Arizona and stay flat in Michigan and Hawaii

Projected change in architectural and civil drafter jobs (SOC 17-3011), 2024 to 2034

Show the numbers

State	Projected change, 2024 to 2034
Arizona	+15.2%
North Carolina	+8.5%
Missouri	+4.7%
Virginia	+3.2%
Pennsylvania	+2.8%
Hawaii	+0.5%
Michigan	+0.2%
United States	+4.2%

Architectural and Civil Drafters (SOC 17-3011)

Mechanical Drafters (SOC 17-3013)

Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians (SOC 17-3026)

Wages are from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics state file; jobs and openings are from Projections Central. These figures cover drafter and technician jobs open to graduates of two-year programs; engineering jobs that require a bachelor’s degree are not included.

Credentials students can earn

Drafting has no state license, so a CAD software certification is what tells an employer or college what a student can do. PLTW is a curriculum. Its End-of-Course assessments are PLTW’s own measure, not an industry credential, and Arizona’s 2026-27 list does not include them. If you teach PLTW, add an Autodesk or SOLIDWORKS certification to count credentials.

PLTW adds two recognitions that are not credentials. Several colleges award credit for PLTW End-of-Course scores, college by college. The College Board’s AP + PLTW Student Achievement recognizes a student who completes one AP course, one PLTW course and a third AP or PLTW course, scoring 3 or higher on the AP exam(s) and Proficient or higher on the PLTW assessment(s).

What each state counts

Working with minors

Classroom engineering and CAD work raises no child labor issue. The rules matter only if a work-based placement puts a student on shop equipment, for example in a prototyping or fabrication shop. For the full federal and state rules, a task-by-task decision path and a student-learner agreement template, see Working with Minors in CTE Pathways.

Federal rules

No federal hazardous occupations order covers drafting or design work. In a shop placement, three orders can apply to 16- and 17-year-olds: HO 5 (power-driven woodworking machines), HO 8 (metal forming, punching and shearing machines) and HO 14 (power saws and abrasive cutting discs). Each allows a student-learner exemption with a written agreement, work incidental to training and close supervision. Lifts, cranes and forklifts (HO 7) have no exemption. Confirmed.

State rules

A placement limited to computer design and drafting work falls outside these rules.

Who can teach

The license depends on the setting. A state-approved CTE program or career center needs a CTE license. In many comprehensive high schools, engineering and PLTW courses are taught under a technology education license. Every state has a route for engineers and drafters coming from industry. North Carolina is the only state found that requires the drafting teacher to earn CAD certifications.

The Staffing toolkit covers recruiting, pay and alternatives such as shared staffing.

Instructor certifications worth funding

• PLTW Core Training. Required to access and teach each PLTW course. Engineering Core Training costs $2,400 per course, about 40 hours over 5 days in person, with online options. Budget it for every course each teacher will teach. Confirmed; Confirm with PLTW: school participation fees.
• Autodesk Certified User and CSWA-Academic. Required for North Carolina drafting teachers (74070) and useful anywhere so the teacher can prepare students for the same exams.
• Testing site status. A Certiport Authorized Testing Center for ACU and SOLIDWORKS Academic Certification Provider status for CSWA are school-level arrangements, not teacher credentials. Assign a staff member to set them up.

Program, curriculum and lab

An engineering or drafting program needs state CTE program approval like any other pathway. No second agency approves it. The Approvals toolkit lists each state’s process and deadlines.

Program codes by state

Where the pathway runs as local courses

In Michigan, Pennsylvania and Missouri, many schools offer PLTW or CAD as local electives outside a state-approved program. These courses do not count for state CTE added-cost funding, CTE credential reporting or, in Michigan, the MMC academic substitutions. In Arizona, PLTW taught outside the 15.0000 sequence does not count for CTED or A-F credential credit (Confirm with the agency). To formalize:

1. Apply for state program approval under the matching code (Michigan 15.0000, 15.1301 or 15.1306; Pennsylvania Chapter 339 approval; Missouri the career education program application).
2. Staff the program with a CTE-licensed teacher (see Who can teach).
3. Set up the credential test and report results through the state system (CTEIS in Michigan, NOCTI in Pennsylvania, the IRC lists in Missouri).

North Carolina, Virginia and Hawaii run statewide course catalogs, so local offerings normally use the state course codes already.

The lab

An engineering and drafting lab is mostly computers and software: workstations that can run CAD software, plus Autodesk and SOLIDWORKS education licenses (license terms were not checked). A prototyping shop with saws or metal-forming machines adds machine guarding and ventilation needs; the Facilities toolkit covers those. Funding options:

• Perkins V pays for equipment, hardware and software, not construction.
• Michigan Section 61v CTE Expansion Grant: the FY2026-27 budget shows $0 and adds a $40 million Section 21b dual enrollment line. Changing.
• Pennsylvania Supplemental Equipment Grant (items of $3,000 or more) and the CTE Competitive Equipment Grant (up to $85,000 in 2025-26 for districts with eight or more approved CTE programs and CTCs, equipment only; the local match was waived for 2025-26).
• Missouri Enhancement Grant reimburses equipment at 75% for DESE-approved programs in high-demand occupations.
• Virginia CTE Equipment Grant ($37,500 awards) and North Carolina PRC 014 program support funds.
• Arizona CTED funds and the CTE State Priority Grant for approved programs.

Curriculum

PLTW Engineering supplies a full sequence: Engineering Essentials, Introduction to Engineering Design, Principles of Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Civil Engineering and Architecture, Computer Integrated Manufacturing, Computer Science Principles, Digital Electronics, Environmental Sustainability, Advanced Manufacturing (new for 2026-27, grades 10 to 12) and a Capstone. No state program among the seven was found to require it; North Carolina also offers non-PLTW engineering and drafting courses, and Arizona’s Engineering program description does not mention it. Whatever you choose, check it against the state program standards and build in the hours students need for ACU or CSWA (about 150 hours of software use). The Curriculum toolkit has a review rubric.

Credit after high school

College credit

PLTW credit is college by college. Students may share PLTW End-of-Course scores with PLTW’s higher education partners, and some (for example, RIT) award transcripted credit. Check the colleges your students attend.

Academic credit

In every state, a credit substitution that meets the high school diploma can still leave a student short for public university admission. Academic credit for CTE is a local decision in most of these states; the table shows what state law allows and what it does to admission.

Michigan. The Algebra II and third-science routes apply only to a department-approved CTE program, taught by an appropriately certificated CTE teacher and completed in full. A local PLTW elective does not qualify. Credit can be earned by integration (shown on the transcript) or by waiver (not shown). Under the Personal Curriculum route (MCL 380.1278b(5)(g)(iii)), the student must cover the same content as the Algebra II benchmarks and still take a math course in the final year. MDE’s guidance does not address college admission. Where your program lacks a documented map from engineering competencies to the Algebra II or science standards, use the S4IS CTE Crosswalk prototype (Product A) as interim guidance while you build the local crosswalk. For an engineering-bound student, use the third-science route and keep Algebra II, chemistry and physics as courses.

Arizona. ABOR 2-105 is new this year and replaces Policies 2-120 and 2-121. An embedded science credit from Engineering does not count as an ABOR lab science. ASU states that CTE courses cannot meet the lab science requirement, so the student still needs three lab sciences from chemistry, physics, earth science and biology (Confirmed). An embedded 4th math counts as quantitative methods only if the course has Algebra II as a prerequisite and the universities accept it. Replacing Algebra II with a CTE course creates a math deficiency. A CTE course can meet the separate Fine Arts or CTE competency.

North Carolina. Older advising charts list PLTW courses (former TP codes) as math options. For 2026-27, CE10 and CE11 are computer science courses and cannot count as math. Drafting I and II can count as graduation math, but a UNC-bound student still needs a fourth math beyond NC Math 3 from the approved list.

Virginia. Engineering and drafting do not replace math or science. Principles of Technology I and II are the CTE route to a physics credit, taken after Algebra I and two other lab sciences.

A rule that protects college eligibility

1. Keep Algebra II, chemistry and physics as academic courses for any student who may apply to a university engineering program.
2. Use engineering credit only for a fourth math or an added science, and only where state law allows it.
3. Get written confirmation from the target university system (or the specific engineering college) before awarding any other substitution, and tell families in writing what the substitution does to admission.

Launch steps

Work through these steps in order; several can run at the same time. The launch guide covers the shared steps for every pathway.

Review status and sources

Last checked October 5, 2026. An independent check on October 5, 2026 tested 16 claims against official sources and corrected 3. Resolved October 5, 2026: the North Carolina articulation question and the Michigan Tech agreement terms. These items are open for reviewers:

1. North Carolina (NC DPI CTE). Math option flags for IV23 and CE13 to CE18; credentials for the PLTW (CE) courses; which license DPI requires for CE courses; the current math options chart for 2024-25 entrants.
2. Arizona (ADE CTE). Whether Engineering 15.0000 has a State Board-approved embedded math or science crosswalk; which high school courses the ABOR universities accept as quantitative methods or lab science; the drafting CIP code conflict; current R7-2-612 text.
3. Virginia (VDOE CTE). Final status of the 2025 Board approved-course list; engineering course codes; whether drafting falls under the Technology Education or Trade and Industrial endorsement; the current credential list.
4. Michigan (MDE Office of Career and Technical Education). What the IX, TX and TE endorsements cover and the experience hours for 15.0000 and 15.1301; terms of the NMU and Oakland 15.0000 agreements and the Mott 15.1306 renewal after November 1, 2026; the CTEIS credential list.
5. Pennsylvania (PDE). Current text of 24 P.S. 1-121 and any recent changes to the Keystone pathways; whether Digital Electronics counts as IT under 24 P.S. 16-1605; the credential list for 15.1301; Penn State College of Engineering entrance rules.
6. Missouri (DESE). Course codes for PLTW and engineering; whether ACU, CSWA or PLTW assessments are on the November 2025 IRC lists; which certificate PLTW teachers need; the graduation handbook’s local substitution options.
7. Hawaii (HIDOE CTE and HTSB). Course codes in the authorized course list and whether Architectural Design is being retired statewide; credentials; DCAPS links; degree and work experience rules for the new CTE license field; UH College of Engineering requirements.
8. National. CSWA-Academic cost (Dassault); ADDA Certified Drafter eligibility; Autodesk Associate age rules; PLTW school participation fees.

Sources

Jobs and pay

• BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (state file) and Projections Central

Credentials and curriculum

• PLTW Engineering, PLTW Core Training, PLTW student opportunities
• College Board, AP + PLTW Student Achievement
• Certiport, Autodesk certifications, Certiport candidate policy, Autodesk certification overview
• SOLIDWORKS academic certification
• ADE CTE Credentials List 2026-27
• NC CTE CMS: IC61, IV22, CT10
• DESE TSA and IRC lists
• CTEIS credential search

Working with minors

• Michigan R 408.6206 and 408.6208, MCL 409.118; A.R.S. 23-231 and 23-235; PA DLI child labor prohibitions; Code of Virginia Title 40.1 Ch. 5; HAR 12-25 (see Working with Minors in CTE Pathways for links)

Instructors

• MDE CIP Program Endorsements for CTE Instruction
• 8VAC20-23-270 and 8VAC20-23-280
• NC DPI CTE Licensure Manual 2025
• ADE Engineering program description and R7-2-612
• 22 Pa. Code 49.142 and PDE STEM and Computer Science FAQ
• DESE, Become a Certified Career Education Teacher
• HTSB New Business Item 24-24

Programs

• MDE Cluster and CIP list, December 2025
• NC DPI CTE Course Inventory 2026-27 and NC PLTW Engineering pathway
• ADE Engineering and ADE Construction Science Technologies
• DESE Project Lead The Way
• Hawaii Career Pathways, Architectural Design and Engineering Technology

Academic and college credit

• MCL 380.1278a, MCL 380.1278b, MDE, Leveraging CTE to Support the MMC, UM-Dearborn admission, MTU Engineering Technology agreement
• MDE STEM cluster agreements, Mott CADD statewide agreement, NCCCS High School to Community College Articulation (edited March 2026)
• 8VAC20-132-51 and VDOE Approved Courses (2025)
• DPI 2026-27 computer science graduation courses, UNC Policy 700.1.1, DPI Mathematics Graduation Requirements
• ADE embedded academic credit, ABOR Policy 2-105, ASU course approval, PLTW IED, ASU competency requirements
• Penn State Senate Policy 05-81, 22 Pa. Code 4.24, PDE SOAR
• RSMo 170.018, Mizzou freshman admission, MDHEWD recommended coursework, Missouri S&T PLTW credit
• UH Mānoa first-year admission