How To Become A Staff Sergeant: What It Is and Career Path

What is a staff sergeant and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

A staff sergeant is an army officer ranking above a sergeant. He/She or she is responsible for commanding a squad of around 10 soldiers. You become a staff sergeant if you are promoted from a lower rank of enlisted army personnel.

A staff sergeant is a non-commissioned officer, which means if you get promoted, your primary duties will revolve around supporting the work of commissioned officer corps and supervising enlisted soldiers. Other than that, you will have to develop, maintain, and use your potential as a soldier, according to Army regulations.

You can also obtain specialty skills and work in areas such as water treatment, medicine, technical engineering, avionics system repairs, and many others. Your payment will increase along with the number of years you spend on duty, starting from $29,840.40 a year, complete with generous bonuses and allowances.

ScoreStaff SergeantUS Average

Salary

3.2

Avg. Salary $41,479

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

10.0

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.37%

Asian 1.79%

Black or African American 10.25%

Hispanic or Latino 15.91%

Unknown 3.94%

White 66.74%

Gender

female 13.87%

male 86.13%

Age - 47

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 - 47

Stress level

10.0

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.6

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a staff sergeant

Explore staff sergeant education requirements

Most common staff sergeant degrees

Bachelor's

47.6 %

Associate

30.9 %

High School Diploma

11.7 %

Start to develop specific staff sergeant skills

Skills	Percentages
Combat	11.65%
Logistical Support	7.70%
Emergency Situations	7.02%
Platoon	5.56%
NCO	5.43%

Complete relevant staff sergeant training and internships

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

Gain additional staff sergeant certifications

Staff sergeant certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific staff sergeant certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for staff sergeants include Certified Law Enforcement Analysts (CLEA) and Security 5 Certification.

More About Certifications

Research staff sergeant duties and responsibilities

Manage training for CBRN response operations including detection and decontamination equipment.
Facilitate meetings and submit weekly reports, briefings and PowerPoint slides.
Use varies Microsoft programs to create reports, memorandums, newsletters, PowerPoint presentations, spreadsheets and email.
Study activities relating to narcotics, money laundering, gangs, terrorism, or other national security threats.

Prepare your staff sergeant resume

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

Choose from 10+ customizable staff sergeant resume templates

Build a professional staff sergeant 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 staff sergeant resume.