Also called: Pattern Maker, Pattern Grader
Creates the paper or digital patterns that clothing is cut from, and scales them up and down into every size.
You take a designer's sketch and build a flat pattern piece by piece on a computer pattern system, figuring out exactly how a curved seam has to be shaped. You cut a test version from cheap muslin, try it on a dress form and adjust. Then you 'grade' it into sizes from XS to 3XL.
Small occupation; pay higher in New York and Los Angeles.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Associate's degree (2-year), about 2 years after high school. Associate degree or certificate in apparel production or patternmaking, or years of on-the-job training.
Ways in: 2-year college, Certification, On-the-job training. Training cost: Under $15k.
Majors to look at: Apparel Production, Fashion Design, Patternmaking (certificate).
Shrinking (about -5% over 10 years). BLS projects decline as patternmaking moves offshore and to software; skilled patternmakers are still hard to find.
Medium risk in 5 years, high in 10. 3D design and AI pattern grading cut manual patternmaking; experienced makers for custom and technical gear remain.
Classes: Sewing or fashion CTE, Geometry, Art.
Official data: O*NET occupation 51-6092.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.