AutoCAD Employment
AutoCAD students vary widely in their backgrounds. Some are already in mid-career and are registered architects or engineers looking to pick up new skills. Others are recent college graduates entering the job market with architecture or engineering degrees. These students need AutoCAD as a small part of their job, or maybe even the main part of their job, but are ultimately hired for their engineering or design knowledge and may draft in only the first few years of their career as they learn the ropes.
Another very large group of students, however, are attracted to CAD drafting in and of itself and attend one of the many programs at local community colleges or tech/vocational schools that ultimately lead to a certificate or even a two-year associate’s degree in architectural or engineering drafting. These students intend to enter the workforce as professional AutoCAD drafters, a career track in itself. This can lead to CAD management positions as well as serve as a springboard for a career in engineering or architecture if the students decide to return to school to complete the bachelor’s or master’s degree. Even if they do not, a professional draftsperson is a well-paid professional who is a valuable asset and, as CAD software increases in sophistication, is needed more than ever. So the question is then, how do you get your “foot in the door” and begin and AutoCAD career?
Once you graduate and are ready to look for work, there are a number of things to consider. First of all, decide if you would like to concentrate on architectural, mechanical, electrical, or some other drafting field. Although I moved around a lot in my early days of consulting work, this approach does not work in today’s saturated market. It is easier to succeed if you focus your interests instead of jumping around from company to company and field to field. What you ultimately decide to pursue should be something you are interested in (houses vs. mechanical devices, for example) as well as something you are good at. Generally, while learning AutoCAD in school, you are drawn to one type of work over another; go with your gut feeling.
Then consider your options to actually find work. Two major sets of resources are presented next:
Staffing firms. This is one of the best ways to find a CAD job, though sometimes staffing firms prefer experienced CAD designers, as those command higher salaries and therefore higher commissions and fees for the staffing agencies. These staffing firms can either place you outright with a client (collecting a onetime finder’s fee) or place you on an hourly rate as one of their own workers “on loan” to a client (collecting a premium over your pay). It may or may not matter which route you go, although being hired on directly with benefits may be more desirable, even if the initial salary is lower. Search for staffing firms (also informally called job shops) on the internet in your area. Some well-known, large, nationwide firms include Kelly Staffing, Manpower Technical, and Aerotek.
Job boards. These include Monster.com, Dice.com, and Craigslist.com, among others. Often these sites are populated with postings from staffing firms (see the preceding), but independent companies can be found as well. Simply enter AutoCAD and your city or town into the search engine and listings appear. Of special note is Craigslist.com. You may have already used it for everything from apartment hunting to selling something, and its job boards are excellent and very informal and direct. The only downside is that Craigslist.com is most utilized by residents and companies in large metropolitan centers, and if you live in a small town far from major cities, you may have slim pickings (even if the actual job scene is pretty good).
Other places to look include your school’s employment office and classified newspaper ads (more likely to be online, not in print these days). Also never forget the value of word of mouth and personal contacts. Let everyone know you are looking for AutoCAD work, and just may be someone’s cousin’s friend knows something.