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

What is a grid 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 grid operator. For example, did you know that they make an average of $20.51 an hour? That's $42,658 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -7% and produce -8,600 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreGrid OperatorUS Average

Salary

3.3

Avg. Salary $42,658

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.1

Growth rate -7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.42%

Asian 19.37%

Black or African American 8.38%

Hispanic or Latino 16.55%

Unknown 2.54%

White 52.75%

Gender

female 30.30%

male 69.70%

Age - 51

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 - 51

Stress level

6.1

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.6

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.4

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a grid operator

Explore grid operator education requirements

Most common grid operator degrees

High School Diploma

35.7 %

Bachelor's

28.6 %

Associate

21.4 %

Start to develop specific grid operator skills

Skills	Percentages
EMS	35.85%
NERC	34.98%
Interchange	29.17%

Complete relevant grid operator training and internships

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

Research grid operator duties and responsibilities

Manage AGC system outage using frequency and neighboring balancing authority assistance to maintain system balance and stability.
Manage the master calendar and schedule resources such as communication equipment, weapons, transportation and ammunition forecast and delivery.
Operate in compliance with NERC mandates and OSHA regulations.
Submit pacificorp transmission outages and notify neighboring ba and top's as per nerc standard transmission planning.

Prepare your grid operator resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your grid 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 grid 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 grid operator resume templates

Build a professional grid 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 grid operator resume.