Seeking 1-Credit AutoCAD class, Spring or Summer
January 2, 2023 11:58 AM   Subscribe

I am looking for a US-based 1-credit AutoCAD class that I can take online and transfer to an architectural engineering program I am enrolling in. I could take it as a Spring or Summer 2023 class. I would prefer if there was a way for the cost of the computer program to be offset for students just during the class, I don't believe I will need it on my home computer after I get my basic intro.

I would travel to Boston for a 1-week in-person intensive, as long as I receive a transferable credit and actually learn the basics. I am looking into colleges and universities near me but figured I should expand my search to full-online programs as well. For my learning style and schedule, evenings and shorter intensives with specific meetings times are better than drawn-out semesters or 'work at your own pace' programs. I have ADHD so being able to actually connect with the real people I am learning from is important for me to stay on track and get whatever understanding I might need when I inevitably fall behind.
posted by Summers to Education (3 answers total)
 
In today's world, the thing you're looking for in the United States is most likely to be found inside civil engineering programs, but it's very likely any community college with some sort of of technical program that might use 2D drawings (landscaping, landscape architecture, building design, etc) might also have a program, and might easily transfer over to another degree program. If you're only looking for a one credit course, I don't think you need to worry too much about finding an AutoCAD class in a similar program to your own (architecture vs civil engineering, for instance). In one credit hour you won't get beyond the basics anyway. Honestly, I think the biggest challenge will be finding only a one credit hour class. My guess is every class you find will be three credit hours.

If you're transferring credits between ABET accredited engineering program in the United States, there should be no trouble. For a community college, you'd probably have to do a little homework up front, which would usually entail getting a copy of the syllabus and sharing it with your department to see if it transfers over. I don't foresee any trouble in that particular topic.

Speaking to the cost of the software, AutoCAD, and lot of comparable software, provides a student version free of charge, usually only requiring an email address that ends in .edu (speaking from the United States perspective, that is). In my experience, there's no additional checking. This version of the software is usually limited in some small way -- the files it saves cannot be opened by a professional version of the software, for instance, or water marks on drawings, or a limited ability to import other types of files. Here is AutoCAD's version of this, I think. You'll have to make an auto desk account to verify that the 2D software is still available through this program. Many 2D and 3d software companies offer something very similar. I can't think of the school in the United States today that won't give you a .edu email address, and you probably already have one anyway.
posted by AbelMelveny at 1:02 PM on January 2, 2023 [2 favorites]


Is there a nearby community college that offers adult night classes? That's how I took a basic autocad course years ago when I was needing to learn it after years of knowing onlyba totally different cad. It was focused towards the total newb who didn't even know anything about drafting.
posted by mightshould at 1:50 PM on January 2, 2023


Hi, retired AutoCAD instructor here. AbelMelveny's answer above is absolutely correct and what I would have written myself.

Most of the beginning classes I taught were three credit (quarter system, not semesters), so you might have to settle for more class than you want for your prerequisite. Also, you can double or even triple your chance of finding a class by not just looking at engineering schools, but also architecture and machining or Mechanical Engineering Technology programs-- all three disciplines also need those skills, and at the level you are looking for will all teach the same basics.

Finally here is something I wrote here on Metafilter almost ten years ago, knowing these two issues beforehand may be helpful for you, and I suspect it's still true today. Consider it your first lesson in AutoCAD, for free:

"80% or more of the problems you will have as a beginner in any AutoCad-like program (including Draftsight and Rhino) will come down to two things: 1) Always check the command and/or status line to make sure you are not in the middle of a command, which means the computer is waiting for you to do something, and 2) Check your O-Snaps. (Object snaps)."
posted by seasparrow at 7:36 AM on January 3, 2023


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