Precision Metal Working programs in North Carolina
101 schools in North Carolina teach this, at certificate or associate level. 11 of them report what graduates earn two years out; the highest is $72,899 at Cape Fear Community College.
What this work pays in North Carolina
Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers in North Carolina earn a median of $50,590 a year across 11,750 jobs. That is what the occupation pays everyone in it — not what graduates of any one program below earned.
| Also leads to | Median | Jobs in North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| Machinists | $55,230 | 8,330 |
| Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | $43,400 | 3,940 |
| Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators | $50,440 | 3,680 |
| Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | $47,320 | 3,200 |
| Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | $53,330 | 2,950 |
Occupation wages: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.
Schools
| School | Credential | Median debt | Graduate earnings, 2 yrs | Graduates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cape Fear Community College Wilmington | Associate's degree | — | $72,899 (18 grads) | 9 |
| Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College Asheville | Associate's degree | — | $44,189 (12 grads) | 4 |
| Central Piedmont Community College Charlotte | Associate's degree | — | $41,937 (26 grads) | 26 |
| Pitt Community College Winterville | Associate's degree | — | $39,741 (20 grads) | 23 |
| Wayne Community College Goldsboro | Undergraduate certificate | — | $35,416 (12 grads) | 98 |
| Alamance Community College Graham | Associate's degree | — | $32,925 (11 grads) | 14 |
| Cleveland Community College Shelby | Undergraduate certificate | — | $30,771 (19 grads) | 49 |
| Guilford Technical Community College Jamestown | Undergraduate certificate | — | $29,250 (15 grads) | 39 |
| Miller-Motte College-Raleigh Raleigh | Undergraduate certificate | $13,000 | $28,993 (536 grads) | 0 |
| Rockingham Community College Wentworth | Associate's degree | — | $28,236 (15 grads) | 2 |
| Tri-County Community College Murphy | Undergraduate certificate | — | $21,964 (11 grads) | 4 |
| Universal Technical Institute-Mooresville Mooresville | Undergraduate certificate | $9,500 | not published | 71 |
| Alamance Community College Graham | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 57 |
| Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College Asheville | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 23 |
| Aviation Institute of Maintenance-Charlotte Charlotte | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 8 |
| Beaufort County Community College Washington | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 29 |
| Beaufort County Community College Washington | Associate's degree | — | not published | 4 |
| Bladen Community College Dublin | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 37 |
| Bladen Community College Dublin | Associate's degree | — | not published | 7 |
| Blue Ridge Community College Flat Rock | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 51 |
| Blue Ridge Community College Flat Rock | Associate's degree | — | not published | 17 |
| Brunswick Community College Bolivia | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 22 |
| Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute Hudson | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 39 |
| Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute Hudson | Associate's degree | — | not published | 7 |
| Cape Fear Community College Wilmington | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 51 |
| Carteret Community College Morehead City | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 21 |
| Carteret Community College Morehead City | Associate's degree | — | not published | 3 |
| Catawba Valley Community College Hickory | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 52 |
| Catawba Valley Community College Hickory | Associate's degree | — | not published | 15 |
| Central Carolina Community College Sanford | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 38 |
| Central Carolina Community College Sanford | Associate's degree | — | not published | 18 |
| Central Piedmont Community College Charlotte | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 133 |
| Coastal Carolina Community College Jacksonville | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 37 |
| College of the Albemarle Elizabeth City | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 83 |
| Craven Community College New Bern | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 73 |
| Craven Community College New Bern | Associate's degree | — | not published | 15 |
| Davidson-Davie Community College Thomasville | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 131 |
| Davidson-Davie Community College Thomasville | Associate's degree | — | not published | 8 |
| Durham Technical Community College Durham | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 7 |
| Edgecombe Community College Tarboro | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 19 |
| Edgecombe Community College Tarboro | Associate's degree | — | not published | 0 |
| Fayetteville Technical Community College Fayetteville | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 59 |
| Fayetteville Technical Community College Fayetteville | Associate's degree | — | not published | 5 |
| Forsyth Technical Community College Winston-Salem | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 67 |
| Forsyth Technical Community College Winston-Salem | Associate's degree | — | not published | 19 |
| Gaston College Dallas | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 73 |
| Gaston College Dallas | Associate's degree | — | not published | 1 |
| Guilford Technical Community College Jamestown | Associate's degree | — | not published | 9 |
| Halifax Community College Weldon | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 22 |
| Haywood Community College Clyde | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 20 |
| Haywood Community College Clyde | Associate's degree | — | not published | 4 |
| Isothermal Community College Spindale | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 77 |
| Isothermal Community College Spindale | Associate's degree | — | not published | 8 |
| James Sprunt Community College Kenansville | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 21 |
| Johnston Community College Smithfield | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 38 |
| Johnston Community College Smithfield | Associate's degree | — | not published | 13 |
| Lenoir Community College Kinston | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 89 |
| Lenoir Community College Kinston | Associate's degree | — | not published | 5 |
| Martin Community College Williamston | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 27 |
| Martin Community College Williamston | Associate's degree | — | not published | 0 |
| Mayland Community College Spruce Pine | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 26 |
| McDowell Technical Community College Marion | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 32 |
| McDowell Technical Community College Marion | Associate's degree | — | not published | 3 |
| Mitchell Community College Statesville | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 15 |
| Mitchell Community College Statesville | Associate's degree | — | not published | 4 |
| Montgomery Community College Troy | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 12 |
| Nash Community College Rocky Mount | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 14 |
| Nash Community College Rocky Mount | Associate's degree | — | not published | 5 |
| Pamlico Community College Grantsboro | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 12 |
| Pamlico Community College Grantsboro | Associate's degree | — | not published | 2 |
| Piedmont Community College Roxboro | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 41 |
| Pitt Community College Winterville | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 97 |
| Randolph Community College Asheboro | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 99 |
| Randolph Community College Asheboro | Associate's degree | — | not published | 11 |
| Richmond Community College Hamlet | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 47 |
| Roanoke-Chowan Community College Ahoskie | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 22 |
| Robeson Community College Lumberton | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 21 |
| Rockingham Community College Wentworth | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 45 |
| Rowan-Cabarrus Community College Salisbury | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 151 |
| Rowan-Cabarrus Community College Salisbury | Associate's degree | — | not published | 7 |
| Sampson Community College Clinton | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 14 |
| Sampson Community College Clinton | Associate's degree | — | not published | 8 |
| South Piedmont Community College Polkton | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 14 |
| Southeastern Community College Whiteville | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 10 |
| Southeastern Community College Whiteville | Associate's degree | — | not published | 2 |
| Southwestern Community College Sylva | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 32 |
| Southwestern Community College Sylva | Associate's degree | — | not published | 0 |
| Stanly Community College Albemarle | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 6 |
| Stanly Community College Albemarle | Associate's degree | — | not published | 1 |
| Surry Community College Dobson | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 34 |
| Surry Community College Dobson | Associate's degree | — | not published | 9 |
| Tri-County Community College Murphy | Associate's degree | — | not published | 5 |
| Vance-Granville Community College Henderson | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 26 |
| Vance-Granville Community College Henderson | Associate's degree | — | not published | 8 |
| Wake Technical Community College Raleigh | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 100 |
| Wake Technical Community College Raleigh | Associate's degree | — | not published | 18 |
| Wayne Community College Goldsboro | Associate's degree | — | not published | 6 |
| Western Piedmont Community College Morganton | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 14 |
| Western Piedmont Community College Morganton | Associate's degree | — | not published | 1 |
| Wilkes Community College Wilkesboro | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 47 |
| Wilson Community College Wilson | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 19 |
A dash under earnings or debt means the U.S. Department of Education has not published a figure for that program — it withholds any median computed from too few graduates, which covers about four of every five programs. It never means zero, and it says nothing about whether the program is any good. Where a figure is shown, the number of graduates behind it is shown with it.
Email me when these figures change
The U.S. Department of Education publishes new cost, debt and earnings figures once a year, and every number on this page changes at once. One email when that happens for Precision Metal Working — nothing else, and nothing in between.
Program and outcome figures: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, released 2026-06-10.