Best degree programs for Construction and Building Inspectors, ranked by enrollment
1 college programs and 31 schools train Construction and Building Inspectors. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $74,690 median wage, 146,720 U.S. jobs. Federal data.
1 college programs at 31 schools train construction and building inspectors, graduating 334 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Building/Home/Construction Inspection/Inspector. The job pays a median of $74,690 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About construction and building inspectors
Inspect structures using engineering skills to determine structural soundness and compliance with specifications, building codes, and other regulations. Inspections may be general in nature or may be limited to a specific area, such as electrical systems or plumbing.
Fields of study that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.
1 degree programs that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 46.0403 | 334 | 100.0% | 31 | $31,641 | $9,500 |
Top 31 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
What construction and building inspectors earn
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
Top-paying states
Top-paying metro areas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Where the jobs are, state by state
Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.
| State | Median pay | Jobs | Concentration | Schools | Graduates / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | $101,290 | 13,420 | 0.78× | 18 | 133 |
| Arizonalimited | $73,440 | 3,330 | 1.09× | 1 | 43 |
| South Carolinalimited | $58,840 | 2,500 | 1.15× | 1 | 27 |
| Massachusettslimited | $83,200 | 4,290 | 1.25× | 1 | 25 |
| Washingtonlimited | $96,140 | 3,090 | 0.92× | 2 | 23 |
| Georgialimited | $65,980 | 4,510 | 0.98× | 1 | 22 |
| Oregonlimited | $84,510 | 1,780 | 0.96× | 2 | 20 |
| Minnesotalimited | $88,670 | 1,390 | 0.50× | 1 | 18 |
| Illinoislimited | $78,340 | 2,560 | 0.44× | 1 | 13 |
| New Mexicolimited | $65,420 | 800 | 0.97× | 1 | 4 |
| West Virginialimited | $64,000 | 540 | 0.81× | 1 | 4 |
| Ohiolimited | $74,490 | 3,490 | 0.67× | 1 | 2 |
Skills and tools
From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.
What they do day to day
- Approve building plans that meet required specifications.
- Review and interpret plans, blueprints, site layouts, specifications, or construction methods to ensure compliance to legal requirements and safety regulations.
- Issue permits for construction, relocation, demolition, or occupancy.
- Inspect bridges, dams, highways, buildings, wiring, plumbing, electrical circuits, sewers, heating systems, or foundations during and after construction for structural quality, general safety, or conformance to specifications and codes.
- Monitor installation of plumbing, wiring, equipment, or appliances to ensure that installation is performed properly and is in compliance with applicable regulations.
- Inspect and monitor construction sites to ensure adherence to safety standards, building codes, or specifications.
- Confer with owners, violators, or authorities to explain regulations or recommend remedial actions.
- Measure dimensions and verify level, alignment, or elevation of structures or fixtures to ensure compliance to building plans and codes.
Skills
- Reading Comprehension3.9
- Speaking3.8
- Critical Thinking3.8
- Active Listening3.8
- Writing3.4
- Monitoring3.2
- Mathematics3.2
- Active Learning3.1
Knowledge areas
- Building and Construction4.3
- Customer and Personal Service3.9
- Mathematics3.7
- English Language3.7
- Mechanical3.5
- Engineering and Technology3.5
Abilities
- Written Comprehension4.0
- Oral Expression4.0
- Oral Comprehension3.9
- Written Expression3.9
- Inductive Reasoning3.9
- Problem Sensitivity3.9
Core activities
- Getting Information4.4
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials4.3
- Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge4.2
- Communicating with People Outside the Organization4.2
- Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards4.2
- Working with Computers4.1
Tools and technology
hotmarks an O*NET hot technologyHow to get in
How to become a Construction
Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Work experience needed
- 5 years or more
- 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.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 1 majors mapped to Construction and Building Inspectors1 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 46.0403Building/Home/Construction Inspection/Inspector
Related careers
Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.
Common questions
What degree do you need to become a Construction?+
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 Building/Home/Construction Inspection/Inspector, which awarded 334 degrees in 2024-25, 100.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Construction?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 1 programs to this occupation. The largest are Building/Construction Finishing. Together they graduate about 334 people a year.
How much do construction and building inspectors earn?+
The median is $74,690 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $47,140 at the 10th percentile to $114,200 at the 90th. 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 construction and building inspectors growing?+
BLS projects a -0.8% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 14,800 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
31 institutions 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 construction and building inspectors work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Energy Rater, Energy Auditor, Building Official, Energy Consultant, Building Inspector, Construction Inspector among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 47-4011.
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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