Best degree programs for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators, ranked by enrollment
1 college programs and 50 schools train Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $59,850 median wage, 478,090 U.S. jobs. Federal data.
1 college programs at 50 schools train operating engineers and other construction equipment operators, graduating 1,010 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Construction/Heavy Equipment/Earthmoving Equipment Operation. The job pays a median of $59,850 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About operating engineers and other construction equipment operators
Operate one or several types of power construction equipment, such as motor graders, bulldozers, scrapers, compressors, pumps, derricks, shovels, tractors, or front-end loaders to excavate, move, and grade earth, erect structures, or pour concrete or other hard surface pavement. May repair and maintain equipment in addition to other duties.
Fields of study that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.
1 degree programs that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 49.0202 | 1,010 | 100.0% | 50 | $42,812 | $7,572 |
Top 50 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
What operating engineers and other construction equipment operators earn
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
Top-paying states
Top-paying metro areas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Where the jobs are, state by state
Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.
| State | Median pay | Jobs | Concentration | Schools | Graduates / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | $47,970 | 7,050 | 1.34× | 5 | 100 |
| Louisianalimited | $51,700 | 7,860 | 1.32× | 1 | 84 |
| Indianalimited | $79,580 | 11,520 | 1.17× | 1 | 80 |
| Wisconsinmoderate | $75,280 | 8,140 | 0.90× | 3 | 77 |
| Californiamoderate | $87,160 | 36,020 | 0.64× | 3 | 76 |
| Pennsylvaniamoderate | $60,530 | 22,120 | 1.19× | 3 | 65 |
| Ohio | $64,940 | 16,920 | 0.99× | 5 | 57 |
| Minnesotalimited | $79,130 | 8,590 | 0.95× | 1 | 55 |
| Missourilimited | $60,540 | 10,470 | 1.16× | 1 | 54 |
| Utahlimited | $60,740 | 7,880 | 1.48× | 2 | 53 |
| Mississippimoderate | $47,410 | 4,170 | 1.17× | 3 | 45 |
| New Yorklimited | $80,980 | 14,490 | 0.49× | 1 | 33 |
| South Dakotalimited | $59,500 | 2,050 | 1.46× | 1 | 31 |
| Kentuckylimited | $57,780 | 7,050 | 1.15× | 1 | 29 |
| Arkansaslimited | $44,520 | 5,800 | 1.45× | 2 | 27 |
| Arizonalimited | $60,620 | 13,200 | 1.33× | 1 | 23 |
| Kansaslimited | $51,620 | 7,070 | 1.60× | 2 | 23 |
| Montanamoderate | $61,580 | 3,750 | 2.38× | 3 | 22 |
| Floridamoderate | $49,400 | 27,510 | 0.90× | 4 | 19 |
| North Carolinalimited | $49,310 | 16,580 | 1.09× | 1 | 17 |
| Nebraskalimited | $58,360 | 3,180 | 1.01× | 1 | 14 |
| Mainelimited | $56,140 | 2,210 | 1.12× | 1 | 8 |
| North Dakotalimited | $62,150 | 4,890 | 3.70× | 1 | 7 |
| Iowalimited | $60,330 | 5,530 | 1.15× | 1 | 6 |
| Texaslimited | $50,460 | 55,540 | 1.28× | 1 | 4 |
| Nevadalimited | $71,410 | 5,410 | 1.13× | 1 | 1 |
Skills and tools
From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.
What they do day to day
- Learn and follow safety regulations.
- Take actions to avoid potential hazards or obstructions, such as utility lines, other equipment, other workers, or falling objects.
- Start engines, move throttles, switches, or levers, or depress pedals to operate machines, such as bulldozers, trench excavators, road graders, or backhoes.
- Coordinate machine actions with other activities, positioning or moving loads in response to hand or audio signals from crew members.
- Align machines, cutterheads, or depth gauge makers with reference stakes and guidelines or ground or position equipment, following hand signals of other workers.
- Locate underground services, such as pipes or wires, prior to beginning work.
- Signal operators to guide movement of tractor-drawn machines.
- Repair and maintain equipment, making emergency adjustments or assisting with major repairs as necessary.
Skills
- Monitoring3.1
- Active Listening3.0
- Active Learning2.9
- Critical Thinking2.9
- Reading Comprehension2.9
- Speaking2.9
- Learning Strategies2.1
- Writing2.0
Knowledge areas
- Mechanical3.6
- English Language3.3
- Public Safety and Security3.1
- Mathematics2.8
- Administration and Management2.8
- Customer and Personal Service2.7
Abilities
- Control Precision4.1
- Depth Perception4.0
- Multilimb Coordination3.9
- Near Vision3.9
- Far Vision3.6
- Rate Control3.5
Core activities
- Controlling Machines and Processes4.6
- Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment4.6
- Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings4.6
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems4.5
- Getting Information4.5
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials4.4
Tools and technology
hotmarks an O*NET hot technologyHow to get in
How to become a Operating Engineer
Job zone 2 of 5 · SVP Below 6.0- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 2 majors mapped to Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators1 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 49.0202Construction/Heavy Equipment/Earthmoving Equipment Operation
- 49.0206Mobil Crane Operator/Operation(no graduates reported)
Related careers
Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.
Common questions
What degree do you need to become an Operating Engineer?+
High school diploma or equivalent is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Construction/Heavy Equipment/Earthmoving Equipment Operation, which awarded 1,010 degrees in 2024-25, 100.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming an Operating Engineer?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 1 programs to this occupation. The largest are Ground Transportation. Together they graduate about 1,010 people a year.
How much do operating engineers and other construction equipment operators earn?+
The median is $59,850 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $42,190 at the 10th percentile to $101,090 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for operating engineers and other construction equipment operators growing?+
BLS projects a +3.6% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 41,900 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
50 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 1 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do operating engineers and other construction equipment operators work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Machine Operator, Operating Engineer, Equipment Operator (EO), Heavy Equipment Operator (HEO) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 47-2073.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024-25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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