How To Become A Marine Diesel Mechanic: What It Is and Career Path

What is a marine diesel mechanic 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 marine diesel mechanic. For example, did you know that they make an average of $22.07 an hour? That's $45,908 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 4% and produce 12,600 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreMarine Diesel MechanicUS Average

Salary

3.6

Avg. Salary $45,908

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.3

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.07%

Asian 2.50%

Black or African American 9.30%

Hispanic or Latino 14.43%

Unknown 5.03%

White 67.67%

Gender

female 6.67%

male 93.33%

Age - 42

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 - 42

Stress level

6.3

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

5.8

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.3

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a marine diesel mechanic

Explore marine diesel mechanic education requirements

Most common marine diesel mechanic degrees

High School Diploma

40.0 %

Associate

28.6 %

Bachelor's

22.9 %

Start to develop specific marine diesel mechanic skills

Skills	Percentages
Routine Maintenance	38.37%
Hand Tools	22.83%
Diesel Engines	12.96%
Level Mechanics	9.75%
Electrical Systems	4.72%

Complete relevant marine diesel mechanic training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New marine diesel mechanics 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 marine diesel mechanic based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real marine diesel mechanic resumes.

Research marine diesel mechanic duties and responsibilities

Document repairs, modifications and inspections in accordance with FAA requirements on both paper and in an automate maintenance information database.
Ensure high levels of quality assurance (QA) with timely yet orderly job completion.
Perform complete overhauls on transmissions, steering units, repair or remove and replace in diesel trucks and marine environments.

Prepare your marine diesel mechanic resume

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

Choose from 10+ customizable marine diesel mechanic resume templates

Build a professional marine diesel mechanic 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 marine diesel mechanic resume.