Architectural & Civil Drafters

Also Called:

Architectural Drafter,

Civil Drafter,

Computer-Aided Drafting Designer (CAD Designer),

Draftsman

What they do: Prepare detailed drawings of architectural and structural features of buildings or drawings and topographical relief maps used in civil engineering projects, such as highways, bridges, and public works. Use knowledge of building materials, engineering practices, and mathematics to complete drawings.

Construction icon

Construction

Career Cluster

What do they typically do on the job?

  • Produce drawings, using computer-assisted drafting systems (CAD) or drafting machines, or by hand, using compasses, dividers, protractors, triangles, and other drafting devices.
  • Draft plans and detailed drawings for structures, installations, and construction projects, such as highways, sewage disposal systems, and dikes, working from sketches or notes.
  • Coordinate structural, electrical, and mechanical designs and determine a method of presentation to graphically represent building plans.

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.

Attention to Detail

Dependability

Cautiousness

Achievement Orientation

Interests

Career interests describe the perspectives and interests of people who enjoy the type of work involved in this career.

Discover what your interests are by taking the Interest Profiler Quiz

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Realistic

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Conventional

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Artistic

Abilities

Whether you have received formal training or not, these types of abilities are helpful in this career.

Verbal

  • Communicate by writing

  • Listen and understand what people say

Ideas and Logic

  • Use rules to solve problems

  • Come up with lots of ideas

Math

  • Choose the right type of math to solve a problem

  • Add, subtract, multiply, or divide

Skills

People who want to pursue this career have skills in these areas.

Basic Skills

  • Reading work related information

  • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things

Problem Solving

  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it

People and Technology Systems

  • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it

  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one

Does this sound like something you'd like to do?

1. Do some research

  • Identify how your interests, values, and strengths match this occupation
  • Talk to someone who works in this field or spend a day job shadowing
  • Use the colleges and training directory to explore programs related to this career

2. Plan your next move

  • Talk to your college and career counselor or school admissions staff
  • Visit Idaho Launch
  • Search for available Architectural & Civil Drafters jobs on Idaho Works

Data for NSI career cards comes from the following: Idaho Department of Labor, US Bureau of Labor Statistics, O*NET, MyNextMove, and Career OneStop