What to Expect

Computer skills are very important for drafting technology students. Freehand drawing is rapidly becoming a thing of the past.

Angela Bruner says that she did a little freehand drawing in the first part of her schooling, but new students are going straight to the computer.

Is anything lost lost by not learning how to draw freehand? "Not really," she says. "I don't really enjoy that. It's good to know the fundamentals, but you can learn that on the computer, too."

Bruner says she enjoys the architectural side of drafting, especially 3D modeling.

For Curtis Kramer, drafting was a natural career choice. He studied at Montana State University.

"I like to draw and design things and like to be able to look at the project afterward and see the progress from the paper to the field," he says.

One of the reasons he chose his program was because it accommodated the fact that he had a part-time job while in school.

"I was able to get a job with a civil engineering firm my whole senior year in college, working 20 hours a week. Once I graduated, I was well into the flow of how the company operated," he says.

"This company hired me on full time upon graduation and in turn didn't have to take the time to train me since I had already learned everything while still in school."

How to Prepare

Bruner says that she took some CAD in high school. But it's not necessary to have that background to get into most drafting programs.

"Basic math is definitely necessary," she adds. "Definitely if their school offers a CAD class, take that. Other than that, there's really not that much, just as many drafting classes as possible."

"I would recommend high school students take as many computer classes as possible to prepare for drafting," says Kramer.