How To Become A Substation Technician: What It Is and Career Path

What is a substation technician and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Even without a bachelor's degree, you can become a substation technician. These technicians are responsible for emergency repairs and routine maintenance on electrical substations. They also install control panels and wiring systems. Substation technicians have a strong understanding of substation equipment, hand tools, circuit breakers, safety rules, and heavy equipment.

A small percentage of substation technicians have a bachelor's degree. Mostly they have a high school diploma or an associate's degree. Commonly, these technicians study general studies, electrical engineering, or electrical engineering technology. Apart from that, an electrical apprenticeship program can be quite helpful as it teaches them to read engineering blueprints, deal with electrical emergencies, and handle electricity safely.

Normally, you can expect to earn around $20 in an hour while working in this role. That means you can make more than $40,000 per year. The career growth rate is slowly moving in a negative direction, and job opportunities will probably reduce in the future.

ScoreSubstation TechnicianUS Average

Salary

3.1

Avg. Salary $39,335

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

7.4

Growth Rate -1%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.55%

Asian 3.88%

Black or African American 5.54%

Hispanic or Latino 13.85%

Unknown 7.20%

White 68.98%

Gender

female 2.65%

male 97.35%

Age - 37

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 37

Stress Level

7.4

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

6.7

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

5.9

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Newest jobs for Substation Technician in Columbus, OH

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Key steps to become a substation technician

Explore substation technician education requirements

Most common substation technician degrees

Associate

34.9 %

High School Diploma

34.9 %

Bachelor's

14.0 %

Start to develop specific substation technician skills

Skills	Percentages
Hand Tools	13.01%
Circuit Breakers	11.75%
Substation Equipment	11.03%
Safety Rules	9.79%
Loaders	7.64%

Complete relevant substation technician training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 2-4 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New substation technicians learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a substation technician based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real substation technician resumes.

Research substation technician duties and responsibilities

Document all work perform to meet WECC and Nerc Cip compliant requirements.
Diagnose, repair and replace monitoring and control systems, hoisting equipment, and overhead cranes.
Check and refill SF6 on circuit switches.
Use ladders and Ariel Lifts/Trek-Lifts when need.

Prepare your substation technician resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your substation technician resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a substation technician resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Substation Technician Resume templates

Build a professional Substation Technician resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Substation Technician resume.

Apply for substation technician jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a substation technician job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do substation technicians rate their job?

-/5

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Substation Technician reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2022

Pros

The day to day is awesome. You never know what you are going to be doing. Working for a small co-op. We are part of every aspect of the the substation. It’s not the same old thing every day. We do it all.

Cons

Being under staffed.