Headquartered in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Penn Foster Career School offers training in AutoCAD, a software application that Autodesk, Inc. manufactures and sells for 2D and 3D drafting and design. PFCS's CAD program consists of Instruction Sets, each of which contain between two to seven subjects. These include Sketching, Lettering, and Lines; Geometric Construction; Pictoral Drawings and Harnessing AutoCAD. Two of the 10 Instruction Sets are offered online only. Students receive a Drafting with AutoCAD Career Diploma upon graduation.
At the Pittsburgh Technical Institute -- named after its Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania location -- students can get an Associate of Science in Computer Aided Drafting degree. Pittsburgh's CAD program is split into two concentrations. Students can choose training as architectural drafters: people who make technical drawings for construction projects. The other specialization is for aspiring mechanical drafters, who are responsible for preparing blueprints for machinery and mechanical devices. The two-year program includes a 3-month industry internship.
The CAD diploma program at the Louisville, Kentucky-based Sullivan College of Technology & Design in Louisville, Kentucky, serves aspiring architectural and mechanical drafters, as well as civil drafters. The latter group prepares drawings for civil engineering projects that produce structures such as bridges, highways and sewage systems. CAD students at Sullivan need 106 credits to complete the program. Courses include Construction Surveying & Layout, BIM Applications and Electrical Power Distribution.
With 14 campuses spread out in California, Georgia, Colorado, Illinois, Texas and Virginia, Westwood College offers an associate degree in architectural drafting under its School of Design. Course subjects in the Westwood CAD program include residential construction, CAD Portfolio Review, residential architectural design, commercial construction and digital walkthrough and visualization. Like PTI, Westwood's CAD program takes two years to complete.