How To Become A Private Contractor: What It Is and Career Path

What is a private contractor and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

The average private contractor salary is $45,674. The most common degree is a bachelor's degree degree with an business major. It usually takes more than 10 years of experience to become a private contractor. Private contractors with a OSHA Safety Certificate certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 8% and produce 36,400 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScorePrivate ContractorUS Average

Salary

3.6

Avg. Salary $45,674

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.6

Growth rate 8%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.9

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.11%

Asian 1.46%

Black or African American 5.94%

Hispanic or Latino 19.98%

Unknown 3.91%

White 67.61%

Gender

female 26.33%

male 73.67%

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

8.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.4

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.1

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a private contractor

Explore private contractor education requirements

Most common private contractor degrees

Bachelor's

40.7 %

High School Diploma

20.2 %

Associate

19.4 %

Start to develop specific private contractor skills

Skills	Percentages
Windows	36.15%
Snow Removal	15.62%
RAN	8.03%
Manual Labor	6.26%
Troubleshoot	5.76%

Complete relevant private contractor training and internships

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

Research private contractor duties and responsibilities

Enter and manage data for timberline for JC/AP/AR for multiple companies.
Manage, oversee and troubleshoot production schedules, critical orders and product development.
Utilize QuickBooks to manage company finances, including project invoices, material purchases, and accounts receivable.
Manage and decide all remodel activities.

Prepare your private contractor resume

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

Choose from 10+ customizable private contractor resume templates

Build a professional private contractor 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 private contractor resume.