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Major · Precision Production

Fabricate and modify metal parts for any industry that needs them — a broad machining associate's with diverse downstream jobs

Machine Shop Technology/Assistant trains students in the general-purpose machining skills used to fabricate, modify, and repair metal parts. About 126 associate degrees are awarded annually across 46 colleges. The direct destination is Machinists (SOC 51-4041) at a $56,150 median wage with eight related metalworking occupations available across the training.

Schools offering
46
Annual completions
126
Typical degree level
Associate's
Median earnings (5yr)
$57k

About this major

Machine Shop Technology/Assistant is a general-purpose machining program — designed as an entry credential into shops that fabricate and modify metal parts for other manufacturing, repair, or design activities. The curriculum covers the full set of fundamentals: blueprint and drawing interpretation, precision measurement with micrometers and indicators, manual lathe and mill operation, surface and cylindrical grinding, drilling and boring, basic CNC operation, and the shop math and materials science that underlie all of it. Welding fundamentals and quality-control practices round out most programs, and substantial shop time is the backbone — students build a portfolio of parts cut to tolerance as the practical output of the degree.

The footprint is moderate: 126 associate degrees awarded annually across 46 colleges. Top producers include Ivy Tech Community College (Indiana) and Kentucky Community and Technical College System campuses (Gateway, Maysville, Elizabethtown, Bluegrass). Five-year median earnings for graduates sit near the precision-production concentration average of $56,917.

Career destinations are unusually broad for a precision-production major. The primary destination is Machinists (SOC 51-4041) at a $56,150 median wage with 0% projected growth — flat but stable, with strong replacement demand from retiring workers. The packet lists 7 additional related occupations spanning multiple-machine tool setters ($46,060), CNC tool operators ($49,970), grinding-machine operators ($45,190), structural metal fabricators ($49,900), heat-treating-equipment operators ($47,450), and tool grinders ($48,970). That breadth is the point: the Machine Shop Technology graduate is built to be hireable across the machining workflow, and early career typically involves rotating through several of these roles before specializing.

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.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Machinists $56k 0.0% High school diploma or equivalent
Computer numerically controlled tool operators $50k -10.7% High school diploma or equivalent
Multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic $46k -0.5% High school diploma or equivalent
Grinding, lapping, polishing, and buffing machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic $45k -12.0% High school diploma or equivalent
Structural metal fabricators and fitters $50k -16.3% High school diploma or equivalent
Metal workers and plastic workers, all other $43k -9.5% High school diploma or equivalent
Heat treating equipment setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic $47k -12.8% High school diploma or equivalent
Tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners $49k -7.8% High school diploma or equivalent
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

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

Median 5-year earnings

$57k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if you want a broad, portable machining credential rather than a specialist one, if you enjoy working to tolerances and find precision measurement satisfying, if you want optionality across a range of manufacturing shops, and if you are willing to invest a few years on the shop floor before specializing in CNC programming, tool and die, or another premium niche. The breadth of the major — 8 listed career destinations — is explicitly the value proposition.

Think twice if you already know your target specialty — a dedicated CNC Machinist major (CIP 48.0510) or Tool and Die major (CIP 48.0507) will get you there faster than the broader Machine Shop program. Think twice also if wage growth is the single most important factor: the primary destination (Machinists at $56,150, 0% growth) is flat, and the machine-tending destinations (-10% to -16% growth) face automation pressure. The upgrade paths are real (CNC programming at $65,670 and +12.8% growth; tool-and-die at $63,180) but require deliberate skill-building beyond the associate's itself.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Machine Shop Technology/Assistant

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

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis, IN 31 0 31
Gateway Community and Technical College Florence, KY 11 0 11
Maysville Community and Technical College Maysville, KY 11 0 11
Elizabethtown Community and Technical College Elizabethtown, KY 9 0 9
Bluegrass Community and Technical College Lexington, KY 8 0 8
Houston Community College Houston, TX 8 0 8
Pikes Peak State College Colorado Springs, CO 5 0 5
Central Piedmont Community College Charlotte, NC 5 0 5
Chemeketa Community College Salem, OR 5 0 5
Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College Bowling Green, KY 4 0 4
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Welding Technology/Welder

3,669 completions/yr

Machine Tool Technology/Machinist

713 completions/yr

Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) Machinist Technology/CNC Machinist

262 completions/yr

Tool and Die Technology/Technician

182 completions/yr

Sheet Metal Technology/Sheetworking

96 completions/yr

Metal Fabricator

72 completions/yr

Ironworking/Ironworker

37 completions/yr

Precision Metal Working, Other

33 completions/yr
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do machine shop technology majors actually study?
The curriculum covers the general-purpose machining skills used in metalworking shops: reading engineering drawings, precision measurement, manual lathe and mill operation, grinding, drilling, and basic CNC. Programs add shop math, materials science, welding fundamentals, quality control, and safety. Students spend substantial time in the shop working to drawings and tolerances, and most programs require a portfolio of completed parts as a capstone.
How does this differ from Machine Tool Technology or the CNC Machinist major?
Machine Tool Technology/Machinist (CIP 48.0501, 713 annual completions) is the larger and slightly more advanced traditional machining credential. CNC Machinist Technology (CIP 48.0510, 262 completions) is the specialized computer-controlled machining track. Machine Shop Technology/Assistant (126 completions, 46 colleges) sits closest to a general-purpose entry credential — broader than CNC, narrower than the full Machine Tool major. In practice all three produce machinists, and employers hire across the trio based on the specific shop's mix of manual, CNC, and fabrication work.
What jobs do machine shop majors land?
The primary destination is Machinists (SOC 51-4041) at a $56,150 median wage with 0% projected growth — flat but stable. The packet lists 7 other related metalworking occupations as destinations, from multiple-machine tool setters ($46,060) and CNC tool operators ($49,970) to grinding-machine operators ($45,190) and structural metal fabricators ($49,900). The breadth of destinations reflects the program's general-purpose design: graduates move into whichever niche the hiring shops need.
How's the job outlook for machine shop graduates?
Signals are mixed. Machinists (the primary occupation) show 0% projected growth — flat, with steady replacement demand from retirements. Related destinations are softer: CNC tool operators at -10.7%, grinding-machine operators at -12%, structural metal fabricators at -16.3%. The pattern reflects automation consolidating routine machine-tending work. Graduates who move toward CNC programming (SOC 51-9162 at +12.8%) or toward skilled-machinist specialties out-perform the raw occupational averages.
Is there a path to better wages from this starting point?
Yes — the packet shows the clear trajectory in the related destinations and in the broader CIP family. CNC programmer roles (SOC 51-9162, $65,670 median, +12.8% growth) are the strongest upgrade path from machinist-level work for graduates who invest in CAD/CAM fluency. Tool and die makers (SOC 51-4111, $63,180 median) are another premium specialty. Many graduates use the associate's as an entry credential, gain 3-5 years of shop experience, and layer on CNC programming or specialty skills to climb out of the flat-wage operator tier.