How To Become A Train Conductor: What It Is and Career Path

What is a train conductor 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 train conductor. For example, did you know that they make an average of $28.11 an hour? That's $58,474 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 4% and produce 3,100 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreTrain ConductorUS Average

Salary

4.6

Avg. Salary $58,474

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.5

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.9

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.91%

Asian 2.04%

Black or African American 8.74%

Hispanic or Latino 11.72%

Unknown 4.83%

White 71.76%

Gender

female 16.42%

male 83.58%

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

8.5

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

4.5

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

2.7

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a train conductor

Explore train conductor education requirements

Most common train conductor degrees

Bachelor's

35.2 %

High School Diploma

29.0 %

Associate

20.4 %

Start to develop specific train conductor skills

Skills	Percentages
Switches	17.51%
Rail Cars	15.60%
FRA	12.94%
Safety Procedures	10.78%
Ladders	10.05%

Complete relevant train conductor training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New train conductors 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 train conductor based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real train conductor resumes.

Research train conductor duties and responsibilities

Provide excellent leadership by training new conductors in railroad rules and regulations, while simultaneously managing the train yard.
Operate track switches, couple cars and work on freight trains in yard operations and on the road with heavy travel.
Conform to FRA rules during train movement and transportation.
Require attention to detail in train consist and hazmat placements.

Prepare your train conductor resume

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

Choose from 10+ customizable train conductor resume templates

Build a professional train conductor 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 train conductor resume.