Best Schools for Construction Trades in 2026

8 schools ranked by TSW Score · Updated 2026

These are the top schools offering Construction Trades, ranked by TradeSchoolOutlook Score. The score combines graduate earnings, AI automation resilience, job market demand, and return on tuition investment. The average Construction Trades graduate earns $38,399/yr across 8 schools.

Programs Ranked
8
Avg Earnings
$38,399/yr
Avg TSW Score
48/100
AI-Proof Rating
Resilient
40% task exposure

All Construction Trades Programs Ranked

Click any row for full AI scenario analysis, earnings projections, and career path breakdown.

# School TSW Score Earnings ROI
1 Honolulu Community College
Honolulu, HI · Construction Trades
76
70–78
$86,741/yr 166.1x
2 Great Oaks Career Campuses
Cincinnati, OH · Construction Trades
51
45–53
$39,297/yr
3 Perry Technical Institute
Yakima, WA · Construction Trades
51
45–53
$39,366/yr
4 Charter College
Anchorage, AK · Construction Trades
51
46–53
$52,820/yr 10.9x
5 Summit Academy Opportunities Industrialization Center
Minneapolis, MN · Construction Trades
44
38–45
$28,440/yr
6 Apex Technical School
Long Island City, NY · Construction Trades
40
34–42
$23,562/yr
7 Onondaga Cortland Madison BOCES
Liverpool, NY · Construction Trades
40
35–42
$24,129/yr
8 Lake Land College
Mattoon, IL · Construction Trades
35
32–37
$12,838/yr 29.0x

Methodology

Programs are ranked by TradeSchoolOutlook Score, which combines four equally weighted factors: graduate earnings (Year 1 after graduation), AI automation resilience (based on OpenAI and academic research), job market size (BLS annual openings), and earnings-to-tuition multiple (projected earnings vs. program tuition).

Earnings data comes from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, which reports actual median earnings of graduates — not self-reported surveys.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best school for Construction Trades?
Based on our TradeSchoolOutlook Score, Honolulu Community College ranks #1 for Construction Trades with a score of 76/100 and graduate earnings of $86,741/yr.
How much do Construction Trades graduates earn?
Across 8 schools, Construction Trades graduates earn an average of $38,399/yr in their first year. The highest-earning program reports $86,741/yr.
Is Construction Trades an AI-proof career?
Construction Trades has an average AI task exposure of 40%, rated "Resilient". This trade is resilient to AI disruption — most tasks require physical presence and human judgment.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024–2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Last updated 2025.