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

What is a hopper 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 hopper operator. For example, did you know that they make an average of $16.51 an hour? That's $34,345 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -5% and produce -45,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreHopper OperatorUS Average

Salary

2.7

Avg. Salary $34,345

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.5

Growth rate -5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

7.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.88%

Asian 7.86%

Black or African American 10.47%

Hispanic or Latino 22.67%

Unknown 4.33%

White 53.79%

Gender

female 15.09%

male 84.91%

Age - 46

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 - 46

Stress level

5.5

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.8

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.9

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a hopper operator

Explore hopper operator education requirements

Most common hopper operator degrees

High School Diploma

83.3 %

Bachelor's

5.6 %

Certificate

5.6 %

Start to develop specific hopper operator skills

Skills	Percentages
Hopper Cars	100.00%

Complete relevant hopper operator training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New hopper 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 hopper operator based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real hopper operator resumes.

Research hopper operator duties and responsibilities

Manage the master calendar and schedule resources such as communication equipment, weapons, transportation and ammunition forecast and delivery.
Monitor combat missions through satellite and computer global positioning systems in order to prepare accurate reports for unit commanders.
Monitor combat missions through satellite and computer global positioning systems in order to prepare accurate reports for unit commanders.

Prepare your hopper operator resume

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

Build a professional hopper 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 hopper operator resume.