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Major · Engineering

A two-year transfer platform into a four-year engineering BS

Pre-Engineering (CIP 14.0102) is a community-college transfer credential that bundles math, physics, and introductory engineering coursework for transfer into a four-year engineering BS. About 2,176 students complete it across 228 institutions, with bachelor’s graduates — those who completed the four-year transfer — earning $91,424 in the data.

Schools offering
228
Annual completions
2,176
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$83k

About this major

Pre-Engineering (CIP 14.0102) is a two-year community-college credential that bundles the lower-division coursework of a four-year engineering BS for transfer into a target engineering bachelor’s. The CIP definition is explicit: it prepares individuals for admission or transfer to a baccalaureate-level program in any engineering field. Programs award an associate of science that completes calculus I-III, differential equations, university physics with calculus, general chemistry, statics, dynamics, computer programming, and an introductory engineering course or two. The credential is intentionally a transfer platform — not a terminal engineering qualification — and the careers array in the data packet is empty because no BLS occupation tracks pre-engineering students.

The major fits students who want to enter engineering but choose a community-college path for cost, geographic, or academic-readiness reasons. It rewards strong calculus and physics performance — engineering BS programs at most state universities require minimum GPAs in transfer math and physics for admission, and competitive applicants often exceed 3.5 in those courses. Articulation agreements between community colleges and state engineering schools determine how cleanly credits transfer; out-of-system or private-university transfers can lose credits.

One grounded observation about scale and earnings: 2,176 students complete this CIP across 228 institutions, with bachelor’s grads earning $91,424 — a figure that reflects students who completed the full pre-engineering plus four-year engineering BS path. Read that wage as the destination, not the credential. The associate’s figure of $74,167 is harder to interpret cleanly — it likely captures students working in engineering technician or engineering-adjacent roles while completing or deferring the BS. Top producers are state-system community colleges with strong articulation pipelines: Wake Tech CC (118), Mississippi Gulf Coast CC (98), Central Piedmont CC (55), Chandler-Gilbert CC (48), and Tulsa CC (45).

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

No federal crosswalk data available for this major yet.

Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$83k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$74k

Bachelor's

$91k

Who this major is for

Good signs this major fits: you want to enter engineering but choose a community-college path for cost, geographic, or academic-readiness reasons, you’ll commit to high calculus and physics GPAs (3.5+ is the competitive transfer floor at most state engineering schools), and you’ve confirmed articulation agreements with your target four-year program before enrolling. Wake Tech CC’s 118 completions and Mississippi Gulf Coast CC’s 98 reflect strong state-system pipelines. Community-college tuition for the same lower-division content saves significant money relative to four-year private or out-of-state options.

Reasons to pause: this is not a terminal credential. The careers array is empty because no BLS occupation tracks pre-engineering students, and the $74,167 associate’s wage reflects students working in non-engineering or engineering-technician roles while completing or deferring the BS. Engineering BS admission is competitive and prerequisite-GPA-driven — you must hit competitive transfer thresholds in calculus, physics, and chemistry. If you’re unsure about engineering, take calculus and physics with calculus before committing — pre-engineering is a long, math-intensive credential that loses most of its value if you don’t finish the BS. And verify articulation with your target university early; pre-engineering courses that don’t transfer cleanly waste a semester or more.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Pre-Engineering

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Wake Technical Community College Raleigh, NC 118 0 118
Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College Perkinston, MS 98 0 98
Utah Valley University Orem, UT 78 0 78
Central Piedmont Community College Charlotte, NC 55 0 55
Chandler-Gilbert Community College Chandler, AZ 48 0 48
Tulsa Community College Tulsa, OK 45 0 45
Oklahoma City Community College Oklahoma City, OK 44 0 44
Central New Mexico Community College Albuquerque, NM 42 0 42
University of Arkansas-Fort Smith Fort Smith, AR 39 0 39
Henry Ford College Dearborn, MI 35 0 35
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Bioengineering and Biomedical Engineering

8,569 completions/yr

Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering, General

6,386 completions/yr

Engineering, General

5,416 completions/yr

Architectural Engineering

901 completions/yr

Agricultural Engineering

759 completions/yr

Applied Engineering

223 completions/yr

Astronautical Engineering

49 completions/yr

Ceramic Sciences and Engineering

47 completions/yr
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

Is Pre-Engineering an actual engineering degree?
No. The CIP definition is explicit: it prepares individuals for admission or transfer to a baccalaureate-level engineering program. Programs award an associate of science that completes calculus, physics, chemistry, statics, dynamics, and an introductory engineering course or two — the lower-division content of a four-year BS in engineering. The credential does not lead to professional engineering work on its own, and the careers array in the data packet is empty for that reason.
What’s the realistic next step?
Transfer into a four-year engineering bachelor’s — Civil, Mechanical, Electrical, Computer, Chemical, or whichever named track at a target university. Most pre-engineering programs maintain articulation agreements with state-system engineering schools, so the credit transfer is reasonably clean if you stay within the system. Out-of-state or private-university transfers may lose credits, so verify articulation early — sometimes before declaring pre-engineering as your CC track.
What does the $91,424 bachelor’s wage mean?
It reflects students who completed the full pre-engineering plus four-year engineering BS path — and the wage tracks with named engineering majors (Civil, Mechanical, Electrical) rather than pre-engineering itself. Read it as a destination wage for graduates who finished the engineering BS, not an outcome the pre-engineering credential produces alone. The associate’s figure of $74,167 is also misleading — it likely reflects students working as engineering technicians or in engineering-adjacent roles while completing or deferring the BS.
Why pick pre-engineering over starting at a four-year university?
Cost and access. Community-college tuition is dramatically lower than four-year tuition for the same lower-division content, and pre-engineering programs typically run smaller calculus and physics classes with more instructor contact. The trade-off is the transfer process: you must hit competitive transfer GPAs and meet articulation requirements to land in your target engineering BS program. Some students lose a semester or year on credits that don’t map cleanly.
How does this compare to Engineering, General (CIP 14.0101)?
Engineering, General (14.0101, 5,416 completions) is the four-year ABET-track BS that leads to professional engineer (PE) licensure eligibility and counts as a terminal engineering credential. Pre-Engineering (14.0102) is the two-year transfer credential that prepares you for that BS but isn’t a substitute. The wage data overlap reflects the destination, not the credential — the bachelor’s figure of $91,424 represents people who completed an actual four-year engineering BS after the pre-engineering associate’s.
Where are the strongest programs concentrated?
Community colleges with large engineering-transfer pipelines dominate: Wake Tech CC (118), Mississippi Gulf Coast CC (98), Utah Valley University (78, mixed), Central Piedmont CC (55), Chandler-Gilbert CC (48), Tulsa CC (45), Oklahoma City CC (44), Central New Mexico CC (42), University of Arkansas-Fort Smith (39), and Henry Ford College (35). Most are state-system community colleges with articulation agreements into nearby state engineering schools.