How To Become A Meat Cutter Apprentice: What It Is and Career Path

What is a meat cutter apprentice and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

A meat cutter apprenticeship is often a necessary step to secure employment as a meat cutter. Individuals who want to pursue this type of apprenticeship can start looking for programs in butcheries, meat processing plants, or vocational schools that offer meat cutting as one of their programs.

During a meat cutter apprenticeship, one will learn all the fundamentals of meat cutting. An apprentice will work under the supervision of a professional butcher as they perform various tasks, such as weighing meat, preparing the workspace, maintaining butchery equipment, rotating meat products, and the actual cutting of meat.

Like other apprenticeships, one would need to have a high school diploma or GED to become a meat cutter apprentice. Moreover, one must also be physically fit as the job usually entails heavy lifting and standing on one's feet for long periods of time. Apart from that, an aspiring apprentice must also have the manual dexterity required to operate knives and cutting machines safely.

After completion of the program, a meat cutter apprentice can then apply for a meat cutter certification, which can help them increase their chances of job placement as well as increase their earning potential.

ScoreMeat Cutter ApprenticeUS Average

Salary

2.4

Avg. Salary $30,581

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.8

Growth rate -3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.05%

Asian 6.88%

Black or African American 8.15%

Hispanic or Latino 16.03%

Unknown 3.62%

White 64.28%

Gender

female 9.61%

male 90.39%

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

8.8

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.9

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

8.5

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a meat cutter apprentice

Explore meat cutter apprentice education requirements

Most common meat cutter apprentice degrees

High School Diploma

41.8 %

Bachelor's

21.8 %

Associate

21.4 %

Start to develop specific meat cutter apprentice skills

Skills	Percentages
Quality Standards	19.05%
Food Safety	17.23%
Customer Orders	7.05%
Product Knowledge	6.61%
Customer Satisfaction	6.59%

Complete relevant meat cutter apprentice training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New meat cutter apprentices 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 meat cutter apprentice based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real meat cutter apprentice resumes.

Research meat cutter apprentice duties and responsibilities

Assemble, sanitize maintained and used various equipment, including industrial grinders, sharpeners, band saws and wrapping machines.
Stock shelves, bag groceries, assist customers, supervise other employees.
Operate equipment such as grinders, band see, cuber, patty maker and automatic bone scraper.
Maintain cleanliness and organization of work station and surrounding areas.

Prepare your meat cutter apprentice resume

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

Choose from 10+ customizable meat cutter apprentice resume templates

Build a professional meat cutter apprentice 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 meat cutter apprentice resume.