How To Become A Solar Designer/Installer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a solar designer/installer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a solar designer/installer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $21.64 an hour? That's $45,011 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 27% and produce 4,600 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreSolar Designer/InstallerUS Average

Salary

3.5

Avg. Salary $45,011

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.8

Growth rate 27%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

0.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.53%

Asian 5.79%

Black or African American 15.79%

Hispanic or Latino 36.32%

Unknown 6.32%

White 35.26%

Gender

female 13.17%

male 86.83%

Age - 27

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 - 27

Stress level

6.8

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.7

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.1

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a solar designer/installer

Explore solar designer/installer education requirements

Most common solar designer/installer degrees

Bachelor's

47.8 %

Associate

29.7 %

High School Diploma

13.9 %

Start to develop specific solar designer/installer skills

Skills	Percentages
CAD	13.82%
Customer Service	13.30%
Electrical Systems	10.55%
Design Changes	7.37%
Design Plan	5.86%

Complete relevant solar designer/installer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New solar designer/installers 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 solar designer/installer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real solar designer/installer resumes.

Research solar designer/installer duties and responsibilities

Attain skills to do sheeting, lay shingles, mounting and setting solar panels.
Inspect and pass NEC regulations.
Document and release WHI models in Enovia.
Perform configuration and part management in ENOVIA during all these previous mention activities.

Prepare your solar designer/installer resume

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

Choose from 10+ customizable solar designer/installer resume templates

Build a professional solar designer/installer 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 solar designer/installer resume.