If you pursue a associate degree in precision metal working, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #30 most popular program in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 9 schools in the Middle Atlantic Region to determine which ones were the best for precision metal working students pursuing a associate degree. Combined, these schools handed out 475 associate degrees in precision metal working to qualified students.
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Choosing a Great Precision Metal Working School for Your Associate Degree
The precision metal working associate degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality precision metal working program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:
Quality Overall Is Important
The overall quality of a associate degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
Average Earnings
One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of associate graduates during the early years of their career. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their associate degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.
Other Factors We Consider
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
Major Focus - How many resources a school devotes to precision metal working students as compared to other majors.
Major Demand - How many other precision metal working students want to attend this school to pursue a associate degree.
Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
Student Debt - How much debt precision metal working students go into to obtain their associate degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized precision metal working related body.
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for precision metal working students working on their associate degree.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Precision Metal Working Associate Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region list, to help you choose the best school for you.
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Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology is a great option for students pursuing an associate degree in precision metal working. Located in the city of Lancaster, Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology is a public college with a small student population.
Those precision metal working students who get their associate degree from Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology receive $10,384 more than the typical precision metal working grad.
Pennsylvania College of Technology is one of the best schools in the United States for getting an associate degree in precision metal working. Penn College is a small public college located in the city of Williamsport.
Those precision metal working students who get their associate degree from Pennsylvania College of Technology receive $8,488 more than the typical precision metal working grad.
Alfred State College is a good option for individuals interested in an associate degree in precision metal working. Located in the rural area of Alfred, Alfred State is a public college with a small student population.
Associate students who receive their degree from the precision metal working program make about $42,739 in their early career salary.
Pittsburgh Technical College is a wonderful choice for students pursuing an associate degree in precision metal working. Located in the suburb of Oakdale, Pittsburgh Technical College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Soon after graduation, precision metal working associate recipients usually earn an average of $39,573 at the beginning of their careers.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
The precision metal working associate degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality precision metal working program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:
