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Engineering Director Education Requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become an engineering director. Engineering directors usually study electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, or business. 67% of engineering directors hold a bachelor's degree, and 20% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 8,726 real engineering director resumes to see exactly what engineering director education sections show.
The most common colleges for engineering directors are the Pennsylvania State University and the Pennsylvania State University.
There are also many online engineering director courses to help get the education required to be an engineering director.
There are certain engineering director certifications that you should consider. These engineering director certifications include Project Management Professional (PMP) and Certified Scrum Master (CSM).
What education do you need to become an engineering director?
What degree do you need to be an engineering director?
- Bachelor's, 67%
- Master's, 20%
- Associate, 7%
- Doctorate, 3%
- Other Degrees, 3%
What should I major in to become an engineering director?
- Business, 11%
- Computer Science, 10%
- Other Majors, 39%
Most common colleges for engineering directors
| Engineering Director Common College | Percentages |
|---|---|
| Pennsylvania State University | 9.03% |
| Purdue University | 9.03% |
| University of Phoenix | 5.82% |
| University of California - Davis | 5.70% |
| Georgia Institute of Technology | 5.34% |
Best majors for engineering directors
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electrical Engineering | 21.6% |
| 2 | Mechanical Engineering | 18.2% |
| 3 | Business | 11.1% |
| 4 | Computer Science | 10.5% |
| 5 | Engineering | 5.1% |
Best colleges for engineering directors
The best colleges for engineering directors are Columbia University in the City of New York, Carnegie Mellon University, and Northwestern University.
An engineering director with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for engineering directors. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become engineering directors.
1. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Private
In-State Tuition
$15,262
Enrollment
30,079
2. Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, GA • Private
In-State Tuition
$12,424
Enrollment
15,201
3. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$56,225
Enrollment
19,548
4. Cornell University
Ithaca, NY • Private
In-State Tuition
$55,188
Enrollment
15,105
5. Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA • Private
In-State Tuition
$18,454
Enrollment
40,108
6. University of Washington
Seattle, WA • Private
In-State Tuition
$11,207
Enrollment
30,905
7. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-State Tuition
$59,430
Enrollment
8,216
8. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-State Tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
9. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-State Tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
10. California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$9,816
Enrollment
21,047
20 best online courses for engineering directors
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Welcome to “Engineering and Product Design Processes!” In this short course, you will learn how engineering design processes and product design processes are carried out. After the course, you will be familiar with the steps in both design processes. You will also be familiar with the main goal of each design process, as well as their similarities and differences...
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This course discusses how companies create new products that customers want while achieving their financial objectives. Learners begin by defining the product strategies necessary to ensure a company’s long-term growth. Learners then explore the different product development processes used by high-tech businesses today, such as Stage-Gate and Lean/Agile techniques. Learners conclude by illustrating the tools to build the high-performance teams that take the development process from concept...
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Master strategies and tools to more effectively and successfully manage projects.\n\nToday’s professional environment is highly competitive, continuously changing, and difficult to manage. Employees rarely reach positions of leadership without managing one or more projects or a project segment early in their career.\n\nBrought to you by the Rice Center of Engineering Leadership and team behind the engineering management master's program, the goal of this Specialization is to give you the tools...
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Create a 3D platformer and shooter using Unreal Engine 5 Blueprints. Become a game developer!...
12. VPs and Directors of Product Management: Finding Excellence
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13. Requirements Engineering: Software Engineering
Everything you need to know about software requirements: elicitation, analysis, documentation, validation and management...
14. Software Engineering 101: Plan and Execute Better Software.
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15. IT Business Analyst & Project Managers Technical awareness
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16. Manufacturing Guide for Mechanical Product Development
Learn how everyday physical products are manufactured with no prior experience in engineering...
17. Software Project Management - The complete course
Project management in software development in traditional and agile projects...
18. Agile Crash Course: Agile Project Management; Agile Delivery
Agile Project Management Basics (Scrum) & Agile Project Management Essentials (Scrum). Plus Agile Certification (Scrum)...
19. Business Mind - Mastering Business Development
Master in Practice the Product, Sales and Marketing Perspective of Business Development...
20. Project Management: Simple Software Project Management
Project Management for NEW Project Managers - knowledge, tools, techniques, skills, checklists, guidelines, pitfalls...
Top 10 most affordable universities for engineering directors
The most affordable schools for engineering directors are United States Merchant Marine Academy, university of florida, and california state university - long beach.
If the best universities for engineering directors are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for engineering directors.
1. United States Merchant Marine Academy
Kings Point, NY • Private
In-State Tuition
$1,080
Cost of Attendance
6,646
2. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-State Tuition
$6,381
Cost of Attendance
21,034
3. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$6,798
Cost of Attendance
18,306
4. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$7,309
Cost of Attendance
16,714
5. City College of New York of the City University of New York, The
New York, NY • Private
In-State Tuition
$7,140
Cost of Attendance
14,430
6. Florida International University
Miami, FL • Private
In-State Tuition
$6,556
Cost of Attendance
19,434
7. New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
Socorro, NM • Private
In-State Tuition
$7,770
Cost of Attendance
21,244
8. University of South Florida
Tampa, FL • Private
In-State Tuition
$6,410
Cost of Attendance
20,456
9. California State University - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-State Tuition
$6,749
Cost of Attendance
14,823
10. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY • Private
In-State Tuition
$8,306
Cost of Attendance
16,091
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for engineering directors
The hardest universities for engineering directors to get into are Columbia University in the City of New York, Carnegie Mellon University, and Northwestern University.
Some great schools for engineering directors are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for engineering directors based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions Rate
6%
SAT Average
1,512
2. Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions Rate
17%
SAT Average
1,507
3. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions Rate
8%
SAT Average
1,508
4. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions Rate
8%
SAT Average
1,492
5. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions Rate
11%
SAT Average
1,513
6. Cornell University
Ithaca, NY • Private
Admissions Rate
11%
SAT Average
1,471
7. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions Rate
7%
SAT Average
1,545
8. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
Admissions Rate
4%
SAT Average
1,497
9. Washington University in St Louis
Saint Louis, MO • Private
Admissions Rate
15%
SAT Average
1,506
10. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions Rate
5%
SAT Average
1,520
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for engineering directors
The easiest schools for engineering directors to get into are Texas A&M; University - Kingsville, the university of texas permian basin, and the university of texas at el paso.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as an engineering director without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for engineering directors.
1. Texas A&M University - Kingsville
Kingsville, TX • Private
Admissions Rate
89%
SAT Average
1,035
2. The University of Texas Permian Basin
Odessa, TX • Private
Admissions Rate
91%
SAT Average
1,046
3. The University of Texas at El Paso
El Paso, TX • Private
Admissions Rate
100%
SAT Average
1,035
4. Pennsylvania State University - Fayette (The Eberly Campus)
Lemont Furnace, PA • Private
Admissions Rate
80%
SAT Average
1,067
5. Oregon Institute of Technology
Klamath Falls, OR • Private
Admissions Rate
96%
SAT Average
1,139
6. Pennsylvania State University - DuBois
DuBois, PA • Private
Admissions Rate
85%
SAT Average
1,079
7. University of the Incarnate Word
San Antonio, TX • Private
Admissions Rate
88%
SAT Average
1,044
8. Capitol Technology University
Laurel, MD • Private
Admissions Rate
69%
SAT Average
1,070
9. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions Rate
68%
SAT Average
964
10. Saint Martin's University
Lacey, WA • Private
Admissions Rate
96%
SAT Average
1,111
Average engineering director salary by education level
| Engineering Director education level | Engineering Director salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $179,271 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $165,503 |
| Doctorate Degree | $195,832 |
Engineering Director Education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025