How To Become A Gate Guard: What It Is and Career Path

What is a gate guard and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a gate guard. For example, did you know that they make an average of $17.46 an hour? That's $36,326 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 3% and produce 38,000 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreGate GuardUS Average

Salary

2.8

Avg. Salary $36,326

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.6

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.58%

Asian 4.96%

Black or African American 12.08%

Hispanic or Latino 24.59%

Unknown 5.30%

White 51.49%

Gender

female 35.76%

male 64.24%

Age - 43

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 - 43

Stress level

8.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

4.9

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

9.4

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a gate guard

Explore gate guard education requirements

Most common gate guard degrees

High School Diploma

40.7 %

Associate

21.3 %

Bachelor's

19.9 %

Start to develop specific gate guard skills

Skills	Percentages
Customer Service	46.06%
Traffic Flow	26.79%
Vehicle Inspections	12.54%
Property Damage	2.30%
Safety Procedures	1.75%

Complete relevant gate guard training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New gate guards 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 gate guard based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real gate guard resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming a licensed gate guard usually doesn't require a college degree. However, you don't need to pass an exam to become a licensed gate guard in most of states. 30 states require gate guards to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License url
Alabama	-	-	Licensed Personal Security Officer
Maryland	-	-	GUARDS
Alaska	Specific course required	-	Security Guard
Arkansas	Specific course required	State exam required	Private Security Officer (PSO)
California	Specific course required	State exam required	Security Guard Registration

Research gate guard duties and responsibilities

Conduct roving patrol of assign sector whether interior or exterior of perimeter.
Ensure that no prohibit items are brought into the SCIF.
Coordinate and control all incoming maintenance personnel with the SCIF spaces.
Maintain all paperwork necessary while maintaining a level of alertness and responsibility necessary to ensure security of all areas of duty.

Prepare your gate guard resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your gate guard 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 gate guard resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable gate guard resume templates

Build a professional gate guard 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 gate guard resume.