How To Become A Miner: What It Is and Career Path

What is a miner and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Where do we get coal to fuel our power stations, minerals to make smartphones, gold to make jewelry, and many other precious resources? Hardworking miners are the ones who extract them from the ground. Many people think mining is a thing of the past, but the demand for miners is expected to grow 4% by 2028.

A miner's job is to get resources out of the ground and onto the surface, but the job isn't as simple as just digging holes. Miners need to build structures in order to support tunnel entryways, operate equipment to transport ore, and sometimes even use explosives to clear paths in the rocks quickly.

Most miners do not have a college degree, but that does not mean that the job is easy. Mining requires lots of stamina and physical strength in order to dig in the mines all day. A miner also needs to think quickly and know how to properly use equipment such as explosives because accidents can be deadly.

ScoreMinerUS Average

Salary

3.7

Avg. Salary $46,997

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.5

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 2.49%

Asian 0.65%

Black or African American 4.07%

Hispanic or Latino 12.56%

Unknown 4.08%

White 76.17%

Gender

female 9.38%

male 90.62%

Age - 39

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 - 39

Stress level

8.5

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.1

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.0

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a miner

Explore miner education requirements

Most common miner degrees

High School Diploma

41.2 %

Bachelor's

25.0 %

Associate

14.6 %

Start to develop specific miner skills

Skills	Percentages
Safety Regulations	20.63%
Ground Support	8.03%
MSHA	7.60%
Underground Mine	3.88%
Conveyor Belts	3.85%

Complete relevant miner training and internships

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

Research miner duties and responsibilities

Operate and maintain the concrete plant and manage formulation of shotcrete and concrete batches.
Shovele and work belt frame and rollers, reclaim, out-by, torches, hanging water lines.
Install roof bolts for grind control, pour concrete and assist in steel erection, and use of shotcrete.
Muck with Wagner ST5 LHD.

Prepare your miner resume

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

Choose from 10+ customizable miner resume templates

Build a professional miner 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 miner resume.