Georgia·Business and Financial Operations Occupations·SOC 13-1051

Best Cost Estimator programs in Georgia, ranked by enrollment

Prepare cost estimates for product manufacturing, construction projects, or services to aid management in bidding on or determining price of product or service.

84 schools in Georgia run programs that feed this job, graduating 11,761 people a year. The job pays a median of $76,800 in Georgia across about 6,010 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledEstimatorCost AnalystCost EstimatorConstruction EstimatorAnalystCost EngineerJob EstimatorService Writer
Graduates / yr
11,761
in Georgia
Median pay · Georgia
$76,800
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
6,010
people employed
Schools
84
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
41%
across those schools
Median net price
$22,172
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Georgia that lead to this job

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

7 programs in Georgia that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Georgia (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 Georgia page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1
CIP 52.0201In Georgia
8,138
69.2%
80$43,506$25,000
2
CIP 52.0101In Georgia
1,829
15.6%
20$44,700$24,000
3
CIP 14.1901In Georgia
1,336
11.4%
5$70,724$24,833
4
CIP 14.3301In Georgia
160
1.4%
2$75,998$25,314
5
CIP 15.1001In Georgia
124
1.1%
1$72,178$22,750
6
CIP 14.1801In Georgia
114
1.0%
1$74,110$23,250
7
CIP 14.3601In Georgia
60
0.5%
3$72,154$21,457

Top 25 schools in Georgia

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 53 of the 84 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus
Atlanta, GA Public · 4 feeder programs
1,332Mechanical Engineering$78,86294%14%
2Kennesaw State University
Kennesaw, GA Public · 4 feeder programs
989Business Administration and Management, General$52,76652%69%
3University of Georgia
Athens, GA Public · 3 feeder programs
762Business Administration and Management, General$56,63090%38%
4Strayer University - Georgia
Chamblee, GA Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs
672Business/Commerce, General$55,43121%$18,224
5Georgia Southern University
Statesboro, GA Public · 5 feeder programs
625Business Administration and Management, General$48,37455%88%
6Georgia State University
Atlanta, GA Public · 2 feeder programs
431Business/Commerce, General53%55%
7Georgia Gwinnett College
Lawrenceville, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
314Business/Commerce, General$39,70021%95%
8Mercer University
Macon, GA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs
302Business Administration and Management, General70%$22,64169%
9Chattahoochee Technical College
Marietta, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
291Business Administration and Management, General$38,85738%
10Central Georgia Technical College
Warner Robins, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
284Business Administration and Management, General47%
11Georgia Military College
Milledgeville, GA Public · 2 feeder programs
262Business/Commerce, General38%
12Georgia Northwestern Technical College
Rome, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
246Business Administration and Management, General$36,83943%
13University of North Georgia
Dahlonega, GA Public · 2 feeder programs
206Business Administration and Management, General$47,44437%68%
14Southern Crescent Technical College
Griffin, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
200Business Administration and Management, General58%
15University of West Georgia
Carrollton, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
198Business Administration and Management, General$44,39243%52%
16Valdosta State University
Valdosta, GA Public · 2 feeder programs
194Business Administration and Management, General$41,37742%72%
17Morehouse College
Atlanta, GA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
191Business Administration and Management, General$55,56759%$36,43144%
18American InterContinental University - Atlanta
Atlanta, GA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
176Business Administration and Management, General$43,52821%$17,531
19Clayton State University
Morrow, GA Public · 2 feeder programs
171Business Administration and Management, General$46,72140%68%
20Clark Atlanta University
Atlanta, GA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
170Business Administration and Management, General$30,51849%$36,71764%
21Middle Georgia State University
Macon, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
165Business Administration and Management, General$49,05225%100%
22Gwinnett Technical College
Lawrenceville, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
155Business Administration and Management, General$35,16232%
23Lanier Technical College
Gainesville, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
148Business Administration and Management, General34%
24South University - Savannah Online
Savannah, GA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
139Business Administration and Management, General$43,7737%$28,691
25Georgia Southwestern State University
Americus, GA Public · 1 feeder programs
138Business Administration and Management, General$49,76541%75%

All 84 schools in Georgia

Every school in Georgia 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 Georgia that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
Georgia Institute of Technology - Main CampusAtlantaPublic1,3324
Kennesaw State UniversityKennesawPublic9894
University of GeorgiaAthensPublic7623
Strayer University - GeorgiaChambleePrivate for-profit6722
Georgia Southern UniversityStatesboroPublic6255
Georgia State UniversityAtlantaPublic4312
Georgia Gwinnett CollegeLawrencevillePublic3141
Mercer UniversityMaconPrivate not-for-profit3023
Chattahoochee Technical CollegeMariettaPublic2911
Central Georgia Technical CollegeWarner RobinsPublic2841
Georgia Military CollegeMilledgevillePublic2622
Georgia Northwestern Technical CollegeRomePublic2461
University of North GeorgiaDahlonegaPublic2062
Southern Crescent Technical CollegeGriffinPublic2001
University of West GeorgiaCarrolltonPublic1981

What cost estimators earn in Georgia

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

Median annual in Georgia
$76,800
Mean annual
$81,220
Jobs in state
6,010
What the range looks like
10th pct$46,600Median$76,80090th pct$128,420
Versus the national median
-2.5%

U.S. median $78,740. Georgia pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
0.85×

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

Metro areas in Georgia

Athens-Clarke County, GA
$81,540median
110 jobs
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA
$82,870median
3,740 jobs
Gainesville, GA
$71,960median
110 jobs
Warner Robins, GA
$76,160median
80 jobs
Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC
$68,550median
340 jobs
Macon-Bibb County, GA
$71,480median
90 jobs
Savannah, GA
$68,120median
240 jobs
Dalton, GA
$74,840median
70 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
-4.2%
Decline
Openings per year
16,900
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
-9,300
221,400 → 212,100
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree
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 Cost Estimators page.

How to become a Cost Estimator

Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree
On-the-job training
Moderate-term on-the-job training

Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Top skills

Reading ComprehensionMathematicsSpeakingActive ListeningCritical ThinkingWriting

The same job in other states

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

Related careers in Georgia

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 7 majors mapped to Cost Estimators7 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 14.1801Materials Engineering
  • 14.1901Mechanical Engineering
  • 14.3301Construction Engineering
  • 14.3601Manufacturing Engineering
  • 15.1001Construction Engineering Technology/Technician
  • 52.0101Business/Commerce, General
  • 52.0201Business Administration and Management, General

Common questions

Answers for people weighing cost estimators programs in Georgia.

What degree do you need to become a Cost Estimator?+

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Business Administration and Management, General, which awarded 8,138 degrees in Georgia in 2024-25, 69.2% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Cost Estimator?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 7 programs to this occupation. The largest are Business Administration, Business/Commerce, Mechanical Engineering, Construction Engineering, plus 3 more. Together they graduate about 11,761 people a year in Georgia.

How much do cost estimators earn in Georgia?+

The median is $76,800 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 2.5% below the U.S. median of $78,740. 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 cost estimators growing?+

BLS projects a -4.2% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 16,900 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

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

84 institutions in Georgia reported graduates from at least one of the 7 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 cost estimators work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Estimator, Cost Analyst, Cost Estimator, Construction Estimator among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 13-1051.

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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