California·Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Occupations·SOC 49-2096

Best Electronic Equipment Installer programs in California, ranked by enrollment

Install, diagnose, or repair communications, sound, security, or navigation equipment in motor.

82 schools in California run programs that feed this job, graduating 6,847 people a year. The job pays a median of $48,500 in California across about 960 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledCar Audio InstallerCar Stereo InstallerAutomotive TechnicianMobile Electronics Installation SpecialistWirerInstallerGenerator ManGenerator Worker
Graduates / yr
6,847
in California
Median pay · California
$48,500
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
960
people employed
Schools
82
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
43%
across those schools
Median net price
$27,767
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in California that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

1 programs in California that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in California (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own California page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
16,847
100.0%
82$37,089$11,790

Top 25 schools in California

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 15 of the 82 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1Universal Technical Institute of California Inc
Rancho Cucamonga, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
588Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$39,45872%$24,830
2Universal Technical Institute - Southern California
Long Beach, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
476Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$39,45863%$26,553
3Universal Technical Institute of Northern California Inc
Sacramento, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
437Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$40,21365%$27,890
4Cypress College
Cypress, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
258Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician37%
5Los Angeles Trade Technical College
Los Angeles, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
241Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician35%
6College of the Sequoias
Visalia, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
202Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician39%
7De Anza College
Cupertino, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
201Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician68%
8Cerritos College
Norwalk, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
196Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician31%
9Cosumnes River College
Sacramento, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
188Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician40%
10UEI College - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
184Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$22,32968%$29,687
11Santa Ana College
Santa Ana, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
172Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$36,38031%
12Pasadena City College
Pasadena, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
171Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician48%
13Oxnard College
Oxnard, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
167Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician34%
14UEI College - Chula Vista
Chula Vista, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
160Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$30,63671%$28,465
15Long Beach City College
Long Beach, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
136Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician30%
16Merced College
Merced, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
125Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician36%
17Riverside City College
Riverside, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
113Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician37%
18Chabot College
Hayward, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
111Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician47%
19UEI College - Gardena
Gardena, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
111Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$27,55060%$28,919
20UEI College - Garden Grove
Garden Grove, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
109Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$30,63663%$26,221
21Rio Hondo College
Whittier, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
108Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician25%
22East Los Angeles College
Monterey Park, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
107Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician37%
23UEI College - Oceanside
Oceanside, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
106Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$30,63669%$26,941
24UEI College - West Covina
West Covina, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
102Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician$30,63667%$27,767
25San Joaquin Delta College
Stockton, CA Public · 1 feeder programs
98Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician35%

All 82 schools in California

Every school in California with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in California that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
Universal Technical Institute of California IncRancho CucamongaPrivate for-profit5881
Universal Technical Institute - Southern CaliforniaLong BeachPrivate for-profit4761
Universal Technical Institute of Northern California IncSacramentoPrivate for-profit4371
Cypress CollegeCypressPublic2581
Los Angeles Trade Technical CollegeLos AngelesPublic2411
College of the SequoiasVisaliaPublic2021
De Anza CollegeCupertinoPublic2011
Cerritos CollegeNorwalkPublic1961
Cosumnes River CollegeSacramentoPublic1881
UEI College - BakersfieldBakersfieldPrivate for-profit1841
Santa Ana CollegeSanta AnaPublic1721
Pasadena City CollegePasadenaPublic1711
Oxnard CollegeOxnardPublic1671
UEI College - Chula VistaChula VistaPrivate for-profit1601
Long Beach City CollegeLong BeachPublic1361

What electronic equipment installers and repairers, motor vehicles earn in California

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in California
$48,500
Mean annual
$54,800
Jobs in state
960
What the range looks like
10th pct$34,320Median$48,50090th pct$88,330
Versus the national median
+0.2%

U.S. median $48,420. California pays above the national figure.

Job concentration
0.96×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in California

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
$62,680median
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
$57,310median
150 jobs
Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA
$45,760median
130 jobs
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
$45,820median
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA
$44,110median
200 jobs
Fresno, CA
$43,140median
30 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
-13.6%
Decline
Openings per year
600
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
-1,400
10,300 → 8,900
Typical entry education
High school diploma or equivalent
Plus moderate-term on-the-job training

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Electronic Equipment Installers and Repairers, Motor Vehicles page.

How to become a Electronic Equipment Installer

Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0
Typical entry education
High school diploma or equivalent
On-the-job training
Moderate-term on-the-job training

Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.

Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.

Top skills

Critical ThinkingActive ListeningReading ComprehensionSpeakingWritingMonitoring

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in California

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 1 majors mapped to Electronic Equipment Installers and Repairers, Motor Vehicles1 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 47.0604Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician

Common questions

Answers for people weighing electronic equipment installers and repairers, motor vehicles programs in California.

What degree do you need to become an Electronic Equipment Installer?+

High school diploma or equivalent is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician, which awarded 6,847 degrees in California in 2024-25, 100.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming an Electronic Equipment Installer?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 1 programs to this occupation. The largest are Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians. Together they graduate about 6,847 people a year in California.

How much do electronic equipment installers and repairers, motor vehicles earn in California?+

The median is $48,500 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 0.2% above the U.S. median of $48,420. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for electronic equipment installers and repairers, motor vehicles growing?+

BLS projects a -13.6% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 600 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in California?+

82 institutions in California reported graduates from at least one of the 1 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do electronic equipment installers and repairers, motor vehicles work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Car Audio Installer, Car Stereo Installer, Automotive Technician, Mobile Electronics Installation Specialist among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 49-2096.

Electronic Equipment Installers and Repairers, Motor Vehicles in other statesTexasArizonaIllinoisColoradoGeorgiaNorth CarolinaFloridaKentucky

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

  • BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

    May 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.

  • IPEDS Completions

    2024-25 (provisional)

    Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.

  • College Scorecard, Field of Study

    2020-21 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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