Electrical and Electronics Drafters
Prepare wiring diagrams, circuit board assembly diagrams, and layout drawings used for the manufacture, installation, or repair of electrical equipment.
Also called: Computer-Aided Design Operator · Designer · Drafter · Drafting Technician (Drafting Tech) · Electrical Designer · Electrical Drafter
Median pay (national)
$73,720
$48,680–$110,180 (10th–90th)
Employed (US)
20,020
BLS OEWS, May 2024
Outlook 2024–34
-5.6%
~1,700 openings/yr
Typical entry
Associate's degree
What the numbers say
Refit analysis ·Pay for electrical and electronics drafters shows a broad range: the top 10% earn $110,180 versus $48,680 at the bottom 10% — 2.3x. The median of $73,720 leaves roughly 49% of headroom to the 90th percentile, which is where seniority, specialization, and the skills below tend to pay off.
Refit analysis ·Employment is projected to change -5.6% from 2024 to 2034 — a projected decline, against +3% across all occupations. Even so, BLS projects about 1,700 openings a year, mostly to replace workers who retire or change careers.
Refit analysis ·Where you work moves the number a lot. Across the 44 states with released data, New Hampshire pays the most for this role (median $101,680, +38% vs the national median), while Puerto Rico sits lowest at $35,090 — a 190% spread for the same job title.
Refit analysis ·O*NET rates Active Listening, Writing, Critical Thinking as the highest-importance skills here — so a resume aimed at this role should lead with evidence of those, not a generic skills list. On the tools side, O*NET flags Autodesk AutoCAD, Autodesk Navisworks, Autodesk Revit, Bentley MicroStation as in-demand technologies for this role.
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Top skills employers ask for
Ranked by O*NET importance for this occupation.
- Active Listening
- Writing
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
- Active Learning
- Monitoring
- Mathematics
- Learning Strategies
- Science
What they actually do
Core O*NET tasks for this role.
- Confer with engineering staff and other personnel to resolve problems.
- Study work order requests to determine type of service, such as lighting or power, demanded by installation.
- Draft working drawings, wiring diagrams, wiring connection specifications, or cross-sections of underground cables, as required for instructions to installation crew.
- Measure factors that affect installation and arrangement of equipment, such as distances to be spanned by wire and cable.
- Design electrical systems, such as lighting systems.
- Assemble documentation packages and produce drawing sets to be checked by an engineer or an architect.
- Review completed construction drawings and cost estimates for accuracy and conformity to standards and regulations.
- Explain drawings to production or construction teams and provide adjustments, as necessary.
- Draw master sketches to scale showing relation of proposed installations to existing facilities and exact specifications and dimensions.
- Reproduce working drawings on copy machines or trace drawings in ink.
Tools & technology
- Autodesk AutoCAD
- Autodesk Navisworks
- Autodesk Revit
- Bentley MicroStation
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Office software
- Microsoft Outlook
- NavisWorks Jetstream
- Adobe Illustrator
- C
- C++
- Dassault Systemes SolidWorks
- Linux
- Microsoft Visio
- Perl
- Python
Knowledge areas
- Design
- Engineering and Technology
- Computers and Electronics
- English Language
- Mathematics
- Administrative
- Education and Training
- Public Safety and Security