Career
Power plant operators
Run the power plants that generate electricity.
$102,040
Median pay
-5.1%
Job growth, 2025–35
2,300
Openings a year
High school diploma or equivalent
Typical education
None required
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Control generator output to match the phase, frequency, or voltage of electricity supplied to panels.
- Take regulatory action, based on readings from charts, meters and gauges, at established intervals.
- Control power generating equipment, including boilers, turbines, generators, or reactors, using control boards or semi-automatic equipment.
- Start or stop generators, auxiliary pumping equipment, turbines, or other power plant equipment as necessary.
- Monitor power plant equipment and indicators to detect evidence of operating problems.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on objects & tools, then information & systems?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Control generator output to match the phase, frequency, or voltage of electricity supplied to panels.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Operations Monitoring, Operation and Control, Critical Thinking, Speaking.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though long-term on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $102,040 a year and 2,300 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Power Plant Technology/TechnicianCIP 15.1702
- Hydroelectric Energy Technology/TechnicianCIP 15.1705
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Hydroelectric Plant Technicians
- Biomass Plant Technicians
- Gas Plant Operators$87,820 · -6.0%
- Geothermal Technicians
- Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators$78,620 · +3.1%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.