How To Become A Combination Operator: What It Is and Career Path

What is a combination operator and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a combination operator. For example, did you know that they make an average of $14.89 an hour? That's $30,962 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 1% and produce 6,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreCombination OperatorUS Average

Salary

2.4

Avg. Salary $30,962

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.8

Growth rate 1%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

8.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.13%

Asian 1.76%

Black or African American 3.86%

Hispanic or Latino 22.41%

Unknown 3.01%

White 67.83%

Gender

female 13.93%

male 86.07%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress level

5.8

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.0

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

2.5

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a combination operator

Explore combination operator education requirements

Most common combination operator degrees

Bachelor's

34.1 %

High School Diploma

29.4 %

Associate

15.3 %

Start to develop specific combination operator skills

Skills	Percentages
Harvest	56.80%
Wheat	22.36%
Mechanical Problems	3.71%
Safety Procedures	3.19%
Farm Equipment	3.19%

Complete relevant combination operator training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New combination operators learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a combination operator based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real combination operator resumes.

Research combination operator duties and responsibilities

Set up and manage GPS equipment for optimum harvesting efficiency.
Operate a combine with and without GPS and to cut wheat, canola, corn, and soybeans.
Operate heavy machinery such as bobcat equipment and also operate and pave asphalt perform demolition work.
Satisfy USDA standards and specifications within the facility.

Prepare your combination operator resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your combination operator resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a combination operator resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable combination operator resume templates

Build a professional combination operator resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your combination operator resume.