Operates huge machines that hammer steel and concrete piles deep into the ground to hold up bridges and buildings.
You line up a 60-foot steel pile, and the rig pounds it into the riverbed until it hits solid rock. You track every blow count to prove it will hold.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Apprenticeship, about 4 years after high school. Operating engineers apprenticeship (3-4 years, paid).
Ways in: Apprenticeship, On-the-job training. Training cost: Get paid while you train.
Majors to look at: Operating Engineers (apprenticeship).
Growing about average. Small specialty with steady infrastructure work.
Low risk for 10 years. Machine guidance helps hit marks, but running heavy rigs on busy, messy sites stays human.
Classes: Construction CTE, Welding CTE, Algebra.
Official data: O*NET occupation 47-2072.
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.