South Dakota·Management Occupations·SOC 11-9021

Best Construction Manager programs in South Dakota, ranked by enrollment

Plan, direct, or coordinate, usually through subordinate supervisory personnel, activities concerned with the construction and maintenance of structures, facilities, and systems.

17 schools in South Dakota run programs that feed this job, graduating 1,008 people a year. The job pays a median of $118,380 in South Dakota across about 1,070 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledConstruction ForemanConstruction ManagerGeneral SuperintendentConstruction SuperintendentSite ManagerSuperintendentConcrete ForemanStreet Supervisor
Graduates / yr
1,008
in South Dakota
Median pay · South Dakota
$118,380
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
1,070
people employed
Schools
17
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
50%
across those schools
Median net price
$22,086
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in South Dakota that lead to this job

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

4 programs in South Dakota that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in South Dakota (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 South Dakota page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1834
82.7%
14$43,506$25,000
278
7.7%
3$72,178$22,750
378
7.7%
2$44,700$24,000
418
1.8%
2$72,249$24,326

Top 17 schools in South Dakota

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 12 of the 17 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1University of South Dakota
Vermillion, SD Public · 1 feeder programs
185Business Administration and Management, General$47,10760%99%
2California Intercontinental University
Sioux Falls, SD Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
183Business Administration and Management, General
3National American University - Rapid City
Rapid City, SD Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs
112Business Administration and Management, General$48,8270%$22,086
4Southeast Technical College
Sioux Falls, SD Public · 2 feeder programs
106Business/Commerce, General$37,38359%
5University of Sioux Falls
Sioux Falls, SD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
106Business Administration and Management, General$44,30163%$19,43983%
6Black Hills State University
Spearfish, SD Public · 2 feeder programs
88Business Administration and Management, General$45,68243%96%
7Dakota State University
Madison, SD Public · 1 feeder programs
41Business Administration and Management, General$44,74851%88%
8South Dakota State University
Brookings, SD Public · 2 feeder programs
33Construction Engineering Technology/Technician$77,94962%98%
9Oglala Lakota College
Kyle, SD Public · 1 feeder programs
32Business Administration and Management, General9%
10Mount Marty University
Yankton, SD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
31Business Administration and Management, General$39,62552%$22,97243%
11Northern State University
Aberdeen, SD Public · 1 feeder programs
22Business Administration and Management, General$43,66749%93%
12Dakota Wesleyan University
Mitchell, SD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
15Business Administration and Management, General48%$17,60873%
13Mitchell Technical College
Mitchell, SD Public · 1 feeder programs
15Business Administration and Management, General76%
14Augustana University
Sioux Falls, SD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
12Business Administration and Management, General$50,51673%$23,01168%
15Western Dakota Technical College
Rapid City, SD Public · 1 feeder programs
10Business Administration and Management, General$24,50354%
16Lake Area Technical College
Watertown, SD Public · 1 feeder programs
9Construction Engineering Technology/Technician$75,25373%
17Sisseton Wahpeton College
Sisseton, SD Public · 1 feeder programs
8Business Administration and Management, General21%

All 17 schools in South Dakota

Every school in South Dakota 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 South Dakota that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
University of South DakotaVermillionPublic1851
California Intercontinental UniversitySioux FallsPrivate for-profit1831
National American University - Rapid CityRapid CityPrivate for-profit1122
Southeast Technical CollegeSioux FallsPublic1062
University of Sioux FallsSioux FallsPrivate not-for-profit1061
Black Hills State UniversitySpearfishPublic882
Dakota State UniversityMadisonPublic411
South Dakota State UniversityBrookingsPublic332
Oglala Lakota CollegeKylePublic321
Mount Marty UniversityYanktonPrivate not-for-profit311
Northern State UniversityAberdeenPublic221
Dakota Wesleyan UniversityMitchellPrivate not-for-profit151
Mitchell Technical CollegeMitchellPublic151
Augustana UniversitySioux FallsPrivate not-for-profit121
Western Dakota Technical CollegeRapid CityPublic101

What construction managers earn in South Dakota

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

Median annual in South Dakota
$118,380
Mean annual
$123,320
Jobs in state
1,070
What the range looks like
10th pct$90,210Median$118,38090th pct$161,440
Versus the national median
+2.9%

U.S. median $114,990. South Dakota pays above the national figure.

Job concentration
0.95×

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

Metro areas in South Dakota

Sioux Falls, SD-MN
$119,490median
430 jobs
Rapid City, SD
$120,560median
240 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+8.7%
Much faster than average
Openings per year
46,800
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
48,100
550,300 → 598,400
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 Construction Managers page.

How to become a Construction Manager

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

Critical ThinkingActive ListeningActive LearningMonitoringReading ComprehensionSpeaking

The same job in other states

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

Related careers in South Dakota

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 8 majors mapped to Construction Managers8 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 15.1001Construction Engineering Technology/Technician
  • 44.0402Public Works Management
  • 52.0101Business/Commerce, General
  • 52.0201Business Administration and Management, General
  • 52.0205Operations Management and Supervision
  • 52.2001Construction Management, General
  • 52.2002Construction Project Management
  • 52.2099Construction Management, Other

Common questions

Answers for people weighing construction managers programs in South Dakota.

What degree do you need to become a Construction Manager?+

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 834 degrees in South Dakota in 2024-25, 82.7% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Construction Manager?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 4 programs to this occupation. The largest are Business Administration, Construction Engineering Technology/Technician, Business/Commerce, Construction Management. Together they graduate about 1,008 people a year in South Dakota.

How much do construction managers earn in South Dakota?+

The median is $118,380 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 2.9% above the U.S. median of $114,990. 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 managers growing?+

BLS projects a +8.7% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, much faster than average, with roughly 46,800 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in South Dakota?+

17 institutions in South Dakota reported graduates from at least one of the 4 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 managers work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Construction Foreman, Construction Manager, General Superintendent, Construction Superintendent among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 11-9021.

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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