Wisconsin·Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Occupations·SOC 49-9043

Best programs to become a maintenance worker in Wisconsin

15 Wisconsin schools offer programs that train maintenance workers, machinery, graduating 384 people a year. The job pays a median of $64,310 in Wisconsin across about 420 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

You do not need a college degree to become a maintenance worker. The field of study that leads most directly to this job in Wisconsin is Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician (IPEDS completions). BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education.

Lubricate machinery, change parts, or perform other routine machinery.

Also calledMaintainerMaintenance WorkerMaintenance MechanicMaintenance Technician (Maintenance Tech)DoperOilerDopemanGreaser
Graduates / yr
384
in Wisconsin
Median pay · Wisconsin
$64,310
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
420
people employed
Schools
15
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
47%
across those schools
Median net price
—
per year, IPEDS

1 program in Wisconsin that leads to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Wisconsin (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Wisconsin page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1
CIP 47.0303In Wisconsin →
384
100.0%
15$51,920$9,786

Top 15 schools in Wisconsin

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 3 of the 15 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1Lakeshore Technical College
Cleveland, WI Public · 1 feeder program
73Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—50%——
2Madison Area Technical College
Madison, WI Public · 1 feeder program
64Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—29%——
3Milwaukee Area Technical College
Milwaukee, WI Public · 1 feeder program
62Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—25%——
4Chippewa Valley Technical College
Eau Claire, WI Public · 1 feeder program
42Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician$49,66750%——
5Gateway Technical College
Kenosha, WI Public · 1 feeder program
30Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—51%——
6Fox Valley Technical College
Appleton, WI Public · 1 feeder program
28Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—65%——
7Waukesha County Technical College
Pewaukee, WI Public · 1 feeder program
26Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—44%——
8Northcentral Technical College
Wausau, WI Public · 1 feeder program
15Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—45%——
9Northwood Technical College
Rice Lake, WI Public · 1 feeder program
15Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician$55,79356%——
10Mid - State Technical College
Wisconsin Rapids, WI Public · 1 feeder program
12Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—52%——
11Blackhawk Technical College
Janesville, WI Public · 1 feeder program
7Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—34%——
12Southwest Wisconsin Technical College
Fennimore, WI Public · 1 feeder program
4Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—66%——
13Moraine Park Technical College
Fond du Lac, WI Public · 1 feeder program
3Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—58%——
14Nicolet Area Technical College
Rhinelander, WI Public · 1 feeder program
2Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician—44%——
15Western Technical College
La Crosse, WI Public · 1 feeder program
1Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician$46,59134%——

All 15 schools in Wisconsin

Every school in Wisconsin with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in Wisconsin that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
Lakeshore Technical CollegeClevelandPublic731
Madison Area Technical CollegeMadisonPublic641
Milwaukee Area Technical CollegeMilwaukeePublic621
Chippewa Valley Technical CollegeEau ClairePublic421
Gateway Technical CollegeKenoshaPublic301
Fox Valley Technical CollegeAppletonPublic281
Waukesha County Technical CollegePewaukeePublic261
Northcentral Technical CollegeWausauPublic151
Northwood Technical CollegeRice LakePublic151
Mid - State Technical CollegeWisconsin RapidsPublic121
Blackhawk Technical CollegeJanesvillePublic71
Southwest Wisconsin Technical CollegeFennimorePublic41
Moraine Park Technical CollegeFond du LacPublic31
Nicolet Area Technical CollegeRhinelanderPublic21
Western Technical CollegeLa CrossePublic11

Fields of study in Wisconsin that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

What maintenance workers, machinery earn in Wisconsin

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Wisconsin
$64,310
Mean annual
$64,160
Jobs in state
420
What the range looks like
10th pct$46,150Median$64,31090th pct$79,740
Versus the national median
+5.7%

U.S. median $60,850. Wisconsin pays above the national figure.

Job concentration
0.37×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in Wisconsin

Madison, WI
$66,470median
50 jobs
Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI
$66,000median
70 jobs
Green Bay, WI
$63,500median
40 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
-2.8%
Decline
Openings per year
4,800
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
-1,600
57,500 → 55,900
Typical entry education
High school diploma or equivalent
Plus long-term on-the-job training

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Maintenance Workers, Machinery page.

How to become a maintenance worker

Typical entry education
High school diploma or equivalent
On-the-job training
Long-term on-the-job training

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Wisconsin

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 1 majors mapped to Maintenance Workers, Machinery1 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 47.0303Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician

Common questions

Answers for people weighing maintenance workers, machinery programs in Wisconsin.

What degree do you need to become a maintenance worker?+

You do not need a college degree to become a maintenance worker. The field of study that leads most directly to this job in Wisconsin is Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician (IPEDS completions). BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education.

Which college majors lead to becoming a maintenance worker?+

The field of study that leads most directly to this job in Wisconsin is Industrial Mechanics and Maintenance Technology/Technician (IPEDS completions). In all, 1 feeder program graduates about 384 people a year in Wisconsin (IPEDS completions).

How much do maintenance workers, machinery earn in Wisconsin?+

The median is $64,310 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 5.7% above the U.S. median of $60,850. 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 maintenance workers, machinery growing?+

BLS projects a -2.8% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 4,800 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Wisconsin?+

15 institutions in Wisconsin reported graduates from at least one of the 1 program 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 maintenance workers, machinery work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Maintainer, Maintenance Worker, Maintenance Mechanic, Maintenance Technician (Maintenance Tech) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 49-9043.

Maintenance Workers, Machinery in other statesKentuckyGeorgiaAlabamaCaliforniaTennesseeIowaIllinoisIndiana

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 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected 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 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, 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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