What You Need to Know About Embalmer

Job Description & Duties Prepare bodies for interment in conformity with legal requirements.

Embalmer Responsibilities

• Remove the deceased from place of death and transport to funeral home.
• Assist coroners at death scenes or at autopsies, file police reports, and testify at inquests or in court, if employed by a coroner.
• Conform to laws of health and sanitation and ensure that legal requirements concerning embalming are met.
• Apply cosmetics to impart lifelike appearance to the deceased.
• Arrange funeral home equipment and perform general maintenance.
• Make incisions in arms or thighs and drain blood from circulatory system and replace it with embalming fluid, using pump.

Qualities of an Embalmer

When polled, Embalmers say the following skills are most frequently used in their jobs:

Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Service Orientation: Actively looking for ways to help people.

Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Related Job Titles

• Manager, Embalmer, Funeral Director
• Apprentice Embalmer
• Associate Embalmer/Funeral Director
• Chief Embalmer
• Arterial Embalmer

Are There Job Opportunities for Embalmers?

In 2016, there was an estimated number of 3,700 jobs in the United States for Embalmer. There is little to no growth in job opportunities for Embalmer. Due to new job openings and attrition, there will be an average of 600 job openings in this field each year.

The states with the most job growth for Embalmer are North Carolina, Colorado, and Tennessee. Watch out if you plan on working in Kansas, Kentucky, or Illinois. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.

Average Embalmers Salary

The average yearly salary of an Embalmer ranges between $25,260 and $71,920.

Embalmers who work in New York, Oregon, or Ohio, make the highest salaries.

How much do Embalmers make in different U.S. states?

What Tools & Technology do Embalmers Use?

Although they’re not necessarily needed for all jobs, the following technologies are used by many Embalmers:

• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft Word
• Microsoft Office
• Web browser software
• Corel WordPerfect
• FPA Software MACCS
• HMIS Advantage
• Belmar & Associates Mortware
• Custom Data Systems Sterling Management Software
• Twin Tier Technologies MIMS

Becoming an Embalmer

What kind of Embalmer requirements are there?

What work experience do I need to become an Embalmer?

References:

• Bureau of Labor Statistics
• College Factual
• O*NET Online

Image Credit: Senior Airman Andrew Lee via Public domain

More about our data sources and methodologies.