Best degree programs for Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners, ranked by enrollment
1 college programs and 87 schools train Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $50,060 median wage, 5,600 U.S. jobs. Federal data.
1 college programs at 87 schools train tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners, graduating 1,542 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Machine Shop Technology/Assistant. The job pays a median of $50,060 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners
Perform precision smoothing, sharpening, polishing, or grinding of metal objects.
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 48.0503 | 1,542 | 100.0% | 87 | $36,566 | $9,429 |
Top 50 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
What tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | $44,170 | 50 | 0.76× | 13 | 468 |
| Georgia | $46,800 | 240 | 1.36× | 15 | 189 |
| Indianalimited | $48,700 | 110 | 0.91× | 1 | 170 |
| Florida | $36,880 | 120 | 0.34× | 9 | 120 |
| Wisconsinmoderate | $51,240 | 110 | 1.03× | 3 | 93 |
| Alabamamoderate | $41,720 | 220 | 2.92× | 3 | 88 |
| North Carolina | $45,790 | 160 | 0.92× | 10 | 64 |
| Missourilimited | $52,540 | 150 | 1.39× | 2 | 52 |
| Michiganmoderate | $43,470 | 260 | 1.63× | 3 | 25 |
| Oregonmoderate | $60,760 | 430 | 6.13× | 3 | 25 |
| Minnesotalimited | $51,990 | 90 | 0.82× | 2 | 23 |
| Coloradomoderate | $33,970 | — | — | 4 | 17 |
| Tennesseelimited | $36,920 | 200 | 1.67× | 2 | 16 |
| Arkansaslimited | $38,410 | 160 | 3.32× | 1 | 13 |
| South Carolinalimited | $50,220 | 80 | 0.96× | 1 | 13 |
| Texaslimited | $46,000 | 530 | 1.04× | 1 | 10 |
| Ohiolimited | $56,690 | 190 | 0.93× | 1 | 7 |
| Oklahomalimited | $45,600 | 60 | 0.93× | 1 | 6 |
| Pennsylvanialimited | $39,550 | 170 | 0.78× | 2 | 6 |
| New Yorklimited | $47,070 | 170 | 0.48× | 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
- Monitor machine operations to determine whether adjustments are necessary, stopping machines when problems occur.
- Inspect, feel, and measure workpieces to ensure that surfaces and dimensions meet specifications.
- Study blueprints or layouts of metal workpieces to determine grinding procedures, and to plan machine setups and operational sequences.
- Select and mount grinding wheels on machines, according to specifications, using hand tools and applying knowledge of abrasives and grinding procedures.
- Compute numbers, widths, and angles of cutting tools, micrometers, scales, and gauges, and adjust tools to produce specified cuts.
- Turn valves to direct flow of coolant against cutting wheels and workpieces during grinding.
- Set up and operate grinding or polishing machines to grind metal workpieces, such as dies, parts, and tools.
- Dress grinding wheels, according to specifications.
Skills
- Critical Thinking3.3
- Monitoring3.0
- Reading Comprehension2.9
- Active Learning2.8
- Active Listening2.8
- Mathematics2.8
- Learning Strategies2.5
- Speaking2.5
Knowledge areas
- Mechanical3.6
- Mathematics3.5
- English Language3.1
- Production and Processing2.9
- Education and Training2.7
- Customer and Personal Service2.7
Abilities
- Arm-Hand Steadiness4.0
- Manual Dexterity3.9
- Finger Dexterity3.9
- Control Precision3.9
- Near Vision3.8
- Problem Sensitivity3.4
Core activities
- Controlling Machines and Processes4.6
- Getting Information4.2
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials4.0
- Handling and Moving Objects3.9
- Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work3.7
- Performing General Physical Activities3.7
Tools and technology
hotmarks an O*NET hot technologyHow to get in
How to become a Tool Grinder
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 1 majors mapped to Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners1 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 48.0503Machine Shop Technology/Assistant
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 a Tool Grinder?+
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 Machine Shop Technology/Assistant, which awarded 1,542 degrees in 2024-25, 100.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Tool Grinder?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 1 programs to this occupation. The largest are Precision Metal Working. Together they graduate about 1,542 people a year.
How much do tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners earn?+
The median is $50,060 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $35,350 at the 10th percentile to $77,170 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 tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners growing?+
BLS projects a -7.8% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 500 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
87 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 tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Grinder, Saw Filer, Tool Grinder, Grinder Operator among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 51-4194.
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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