Heavy Equipment Maintenance

Types of Degrees Heavy Equipment Maintenance Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Undergraduate Certificate	424
Basic Certificate	260
Associate Degree	229
Bachelor’s Degree	10

What Heavy Equipment Maintenance Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Heavy Equipment Maintenance Technology/Technician Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

Skills for Heavy Equipment Maintenance Technology/Technician Majors

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician:

• Troubleshooting - Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
• Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
• Equipment Maintenance - Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
• Operation Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
• Operation and Control - Controlling operations of equipment or systems.

Abilities for Heavy Equipment Maintenance Technology/Technician Majors

Heavy Equipment Maintenance Technology/Technician majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

• Manual Dexterity - The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
• Control Precision - The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
• Arm-Hand Steadiness - The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Finger Dexterity - The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.

What Can You Do With a Heavy Equipment Maintenance Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanics, Except Engines	8.2%	$51,920
Rail Car Repairers	4.9%	$56,220

Who Is Getting an Associate’s Degree in Heavy Equipment Maintenance?

This major tends to be male dominated. About 96% of recent graduates are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	1
Black or African American	6
Hispanic or Latino	21
White	189
International Students	0
Other Races/Ethnicities	12

How Much Do Heavy Equipment Maintenance Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $53,370 to $56,020 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician. This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Heavy Equipment Maintenance

Some careers associated with heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	1.8%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	38.9%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	49.1%
Some College Courses	5.5%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	4.0%

Online Heavy Equipment Maintenance Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	23	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	28	0
Associate’s Degree	29	0
Bachelor’s Degree	0	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	0	0
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Heavy Equipment Maintenance Worth It?

The median salary for a heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician grad is $53,370 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 34% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $269,400 after 20 years!

Trades Related to Heavy Equipment Maintenance

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to heavy equipment maintenance technology/technician.

Major	Number of Grads
Industrial Mechanics & Maintenance Technology	7,478
Heavy/Industrial Equipment Maintenance Technologies, Other	45

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.