There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a sheet metal operator. For example, did you know that they make an average of $12.9 an hour? That's $26,836 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 8% and produce 11,400 job opportunities across the U.S.
There are certain skills that many sheet metal operators have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed math skills, computer skills and dexterity.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be a sheet metal operator, we found that a lot of resumes listed 24.7% of sheet metal operators included inspect parts, while 19.8% of resumes included cnc, and 14.0% of resumes included drill press. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the sheet metal operator job title. But what industry to start with? Most sheet metal operators actually find jobs in the manufacturing and technology industries.
If you're interested in becoming a sheet metal operator, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 12.0% of sheet metal operators have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 0.0% of sheet metal operators have master's degrees. Even though some sheet metal operators have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a sheet metal operator. When we researched the most common majors for a sheet metal operator, we found that they most commonly earn high school diploma degrees or associate degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on sheet metal operator resumes include bachelor's degree degrees or diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a sheet metal operator. In fact, many sheet metal operator jobs require experience in a role such as machine operator. Meanwhile, many sheet metal operators also have previous career experience in roles such as forklift operator or sheet metal mechanic.
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As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a sheet metal operator can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as welder, progress to a title such as foreman and then eventually end up with the title plant manager.
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Use Zippia's Salary Calculator to see how your pay matches up.
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 24.7% of sheet metal operators listed inspect parts on their resume, but soft skills such as math skills and computer skills are important as well.