Also called: Pro Surfer, Big-Wave Surfer
Competes in surf contests and earns money from sponsors, prize money, and content.
A pro surfer checks swell forecasts at dawn, trains in the water for hours, and films clips for sponsors. Contest season means traveling to Hawaii, Australia, and beyond.
Highly variable; most surfers rely on sponsors, top World Tour surfers earn much more.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
No formal education, about 0 years after high school. Years of training from childhood.
Ways in: Self-taught. Training cost: Under $15k.
Growing faster than average (about 5% over 10 years). BLS projects average growth for athletes overall.
Low risk for 10 years. Wave forecasts help, but fans and sponsors pay to watch a real athlete ride real waves.
Classes: Physical education, Earth science, Video production.
Official data: O*NET occupation 27-2021.
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.