How To Become A Lead Quality Control Technician: What It Is and Career Path

What is a lead quality control technician and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

John Irwin EdD

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a lead quality control technician. For example, did you know that they make an average of $46.34 an hour? That's $96,381 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 3% and produce 2,100 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a lead quality control technician?

John Irwin EdD

Chair, Manufacturing and Mechanical Engineering Technology, Professor, Mechanical Engineering Technology, Michigan Technological University

Engineering technology graduates are masters of technology, gaining a broad and deep understanding of the processes, systems, tools, and techniques necessary to construct, modify, operate, and maintain an engineering design. They act as technological integrators, bridging the gap between the skilled trades and engineering fundamentals. This is a great career path for those who enjoy engineering concepts but would rather spend time working with their hands solving specific technical issues than tackling broader, more complex design challenges.

ScoreLead Quality Control TechnicianUS Average

Salary

7.5

Avg. Salary $96,381

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.4

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.8

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.68%

Asian 7.79%

Black or African American 9.40%

Hispanic or Latino 16.56%

Unknown 4.87%

White 60.70%

Gender

female 35.96%

male 64.04%

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

7.4

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.2

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.4

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a lead quality control technician

Explore lead quality control technician education requirements

Most common lead quality control technician degrees

Bachelor's

39.9 %

Associate

32.0 %

High School Diploma

15.8 %

Start to develop specific lead quality control technician skills

Skills	Percentages
Quality Control Procedures	12.52%
Product Quality	9.92%
Lab Equipment	9.57%
Quality Standards	7.64%
Test Procedures	5.07%

Complete relevant lead quality control technician training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New lead quality control technicians 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 lead quality control technician based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real lead quality control technician resumes.

Research lead quality control technician duties and responsibilities

Train test personnel and manage QC test technicians in a fast pace environment.
Operate HPLC, NMR, IR and GC instruments for routine QC chemical testing.
Monitor people, processes, and the respective work area to ensure regulatory (GMP and ISO) compliance.
Help create product documents and logs for FDA.

Get lead quality control technician experience

Generally, it takes 2-4 years to become a lead quality control technician. The most common roles before becoming a lead quality control technician include quality control technician, machine operator team lead and radiologic technician.

Prepare your lead quality control technician resume

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

Choose from 10+ customizable lead quality control technician resume templates

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