Best Cost Estimator programs in Indiana, 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.
49 schools in Indiana run programs that feed this job, graduating 18,813 people a year. The job pays a median of $73,430 in Indiana across about 4,810 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Indiana that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
7 programs in Indiana that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Indiana (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 Indiana page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 52.0201In Indiana → | 10,879 | 57.8% | 43 | $43,506 | $25,000 |
| 2 | CIP 52.0101In Indiana → | 6,069 | 32.3% | 24 | $44,700 | $24,000 |
| 3 | CIP 14.1901In Indiana → | 1,681 | 8.9% | 15 | $70,724 | $24,833 |
| 4 | CIP 14.1801In Indiana → | 118 | 0.6% | 2 | $74,110 | $23,250 |
| 5 | CIP 15.1001In Indiana → | 32 | 0.2% | 2 | $72,178 | $22,750 |
| 6 | CIP 14.3301In Indiana → | 31 | 0.2% | 1 | $75,998 | $25,314 |
| 7 | CIP 14.3601In Indiana → | 3 | 0.0% | 1 | $72,154 | $21,457 |
Top 25 schools in Indiana
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 40 of the 49 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Purdue University Global West Lafayette, IN Public · 2 feeder programs | 4,175 | Business Administration and Management, General | $57,308 | 50% | — | — |
| 2 | Indiana University - Bloomington Bloomington, IN Public · 1 feeder programs | 3,769 | Business/Commerce, General | $71,100 | 80% | — | 78% |
| 3 | Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis, IN Public · 1 feeder programs | 3,352 | Business Administration and Management, General | $38,291 | 40% | — | — |
| 4 | Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN Public · 4 feeder programs | 2,158 | Mechanical Engineering | $80,374 | 83% | — | 50% |
| 5 | University of Southern Indiana Evansville, IN Public · 3 feeder programs | 661 | Business Administration and Management, General | $40,892 | 48% | — | 96% |
| 6 | Indiana University - Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN Public · 2 feeder programs | 624 | Business/Commerce, General | $52,467 | 54% | — | 76% |
| 7 | Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global Marion, IN Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 359 | Business Administration and Management, General | $58,880 | 35% | $18,316 | — |
| 8 | Ball State University Muncie, IN Public · 2 feeder programs | 316 | Business/Commerce, General | $46,550 | 62% | — | 85% |
| 9 | Trine University - Regional/Non - Traditional Campuses Angola, IN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 302 | Business Administration and Management, General | $43,504 | 0% | $21,976 | 40% |
| 10 | University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs | 269 | Mechanical Engineering | $84,999 | 95% | $19,452 | 11% |
| 11 | Indiana University - Southeast New Albany, IN Public · 2 feeder programs | 221 | Business/Commerce, General | $47,862 | 39% | — | 84% |
| 12 | Indiana Institute of Technology Fort Wayne, IN Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 220 | Business/Commerce, General | — | 48% | $20,661 | 70% |
| 13 | Purdue University Fort Wayne Fort Wayne, IN Public · 3 feeder programs | 196 | Business/Commerce, General | $46,950 | 36% | — | 84% |
| 14 | Indiana Institute of Technology - College of Professional Studies Fort Wayne, IN Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 191 | Business Administration and Management, General | $53,894 | 28% | $19,930 | — |
| 15 | Purdue University Northwest Hammond, IN Public · 3 feeder programs | 152 | Business Administration and Management, General | $44,971 | 43% | — | 72% |
| 16 | Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology Terre Haute, IN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 151 | Mechanical Engineering | $78,732 | 78% | $36,775 | 77% |
| 17 | Indiana University - South Bend South Bend, IN Public · 2 feeder programs | 148 | Business/Commerce, General | $48,238 | 40% | — | 84% |
| 18 | Indiana University - Kokomo Kokomo, IN Public · 2 feeder programs | 139 | Business/Commerce, General | $43,858 | 46% | — | 86% |
| 19 | Indiana State University Terre Haute, IN Public · 2 feeder programs | 119 | Business Administration and Management, General | $44,868 | 43% | — | 81% |
| 20 | University of Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 111 | Business Administration and Management, General | $44,216 | 56% | $18,930 | 66% |
| 21 | Indiana University - East Richmond, IN Public · 1 feeder programs | 103 | Business Administration and Management, General | $47,114 | 40% | — | 67% |
| 22 | Trine University Angola, IN Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 88 | Mechanical Engineering | $66,816 | 64% | $22,269 | 85% |
| 23 | Indiana University - Northwest Gary, IN Public · 2 feeder programs | 87 | Business/Commerce, General | $39,957 | 37% | — | 73% |
| 24 | Grace College and Theological Seminary Winona Lake, IN Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 79 | Business Administration and Management, General | $62,251 | 69% | $16,216 | 82% |
| 25 | Oakland City University Oakland City, IN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 69 | Business Administration and Management, General | $49,245 | 66% | $13,791 | 83% |
All 49 schools in Indiana
Every school in Indiana 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.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purdue University Global | West Lafayette | Public | 4,175 | 2 |
| Indiana University - Bloomington | Bloomington | Public | 3,769 | 1 |
| Ivy Tech Community College | Indianapolis | Public | 3,352 | 1 |
| Purdue University - Main Campus | West Lafayette | Public | 2,158 | 4 |
| University of Southern Indiana | Evansville | Public | 661 | 3 |
| Indiana University - Indianapolis | Indianapolis | Public | 624 | 2 |
| Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global | Marion | Private not-for-profit | 359 | 2 |
| Ball State University | Muncie | Public | 316 | 2 |
| Trine University - Regional/Non - Traditional Campuses | Angola | Private not-for-profit | 302 | 1 |
| University of Notre Dame | Notre Dame | Private not-for-profit | 269 | 4 |
| Indiana University - Southeast | New Albany | Public | 221 | 2 |
| Indiana Institute of Technology | Fort Wayne | Private not-for-profit | 220 | 3 |
| Purdue University Fort Wayne | Fort Wayne | Public | 196 | 3 |
| Indiana Institute of Technology - College of Professional Studies | Fort Wayne | Private not-for-profit | 191 | 2 |
| Purdue University Northwest | Hammond | Public | 152 | 3 |
What cost estimators earn in Indiana
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $78,740. Indiana pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in Indiana
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
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
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Indiana
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 Indiana.
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 10,879 degrees in Indiana in 2024-25, 57.8% 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, Materials Engineering, plus 3 more. Together they graduate about 18,813 people a year in Indiana.
How much do cost estimators earn in Indiana?+
The median is $73,430 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 6.7% 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 Indiana?+
49 institutions in Indiana 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 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected 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 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, 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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