How To Become A Tower Technician: What It Is and Career Path

What is a tower technician and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

The duties of a tower technician revolve around the maintenance, rigging, and installation of equipment located on the top of towers. They are the heart of the wireless infrastructure. They work primarily on telecommunications towers. So, if at any time you feel your phone's signal drop, know that a tower technician is on his/her or her way to rectify the issue.

The general duties of a tower technician include climbing towers to access components, using safety equipment, such as a full-body harness. Moreover, they complete reports related to project status, progress, or other work details, using computer software.

They also perform maintenance and repair work on existing tower equipment, using hands or power tools. In addition, they lift equipment into position, using cranes and rigging tools, and run appropriate power, ground, or coaxial cables.

No formal education is required; however, a high school diploma or a GED may be given preference along with previous experience in a related field. The average hourly salary for the position is $19.38, which amounts to $40,308 annually. The job may have a lot of risks, but if performed correctly, it is highly rewarding.

ScoreTower TechnicianUS Average

Salary

2.9

Avg. Salary $37,471

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.5

Growth rate 8%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.8

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.63%

Asian 6.32%

Black or African American 11.83%

Hispanic or Latino 18.64%

Unknown 4.78%

White 57.81%

Gender

female 3.08%

male 96.92%

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

7.5

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.7

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.5

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a tower technician

Explore tower technician education requirements

Most common tower technician degrees

High School Diploma

41.0 %

Associate

20.4 %

Bachelor's

15.1 %

Start to develop specific tower technician skills

Skills	Percentages
OSHA	16.65%
CPR	14.84%
RF	14.20%
Hand Tools	8.23%
Safety Procedures	4.55%

Complete relevant tower technician training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New tower technicians 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 tower technician based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real tower technician resumes.

Gain additional tower technician certifications

Tower technician 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 tower technician certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for tower technicians include Wind Turbine Technician Certification and Tower Technician Certification.

More About Certifications

Research tower technician duties and responsibilities

Manage and make critical decisions in accordance with regulations for access and scheduling for certain private and federal FAA sites.
Hang and connect antenna's and TMA's.
Install grind rods and cad weld to form grind ring.
Complete several CPR and safety courses.

Prepare your tower technician resume

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

Choose from 10+ customizable tower technician resume templates

Build a professional tower technician 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 tower technician resume.

Apply for tower technician jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a tower technician job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do tower technicians rate their job?

-/5

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Tower technician reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Mar 2021

Pros

New scenes every week. Being up high in my own work with guys I can call faimly. I also enjoys the substantial pay raise from working at a restaurant lol

Cons

Pay isn’t quite what it should be considering out work is extremely dangerous. No room for errors or someone will die. Every year we are required to acquire more and more certifications without a pay raise. As well as the “get it done yesterday mentality”.