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Skilled Trades

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

Set up, operate, or tend machines to extrude or draw thermoplastic or metal materials into tubes, rods, hoses, wire, bars, or structural shapes.

Median salary (BLS)

$47,720

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$37k – $64k

Job outlook

+1% (about average)

AI exposure

Plan a path to Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

Qualification costsStack incomeBest cities/statesSchool ROIJob-posting fitTailored resume

Education

Typical entry: No degree required

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How to qualify

EstimateLicense required

Cost to qualify

$100–$2,600

Time to qualify

3.1 yr

Renewal

$50/yr

  1. 1

    Registered apprenticeship (paid)

    Experience

    Earn-while-you-learn training — apprentices are paid during the program; fees are tools/books, not tuition.

    $0–$2,000 · 36 months · varies by state source

  2. 2

    Journeyman exam & state/local license

    License

    Most states and municipalities test and license journeyman-level trades workers.

    $100–$600 · 1 months · varies by state · renews every 2 yr source

Estimated typical U.S. route for "Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic" — built from BLS education requirements and College Board 2024–25 average published prices (public, in-state tuition + fees + books). Not yet verified against a specific state's licensing rules — confirm with your state licensing board or program.

Typical progression

  1. Junior Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

    Entry / Junior

    $36,700

    ~2 yrs to advance

  2. Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

    Established

    $47,720

    ~3 yrs to advance

  3. Senior Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

    Senior

    $55,715

Key skills

A typical day

  • •Measure and examine extruded products to locate defects and to check for conformance to specifications, adjusting controls as necessary to alter products.
  • •Determine setup procedures and select machine dies and parts, according to specifications.
  • •Start machines and set controls to regulate vacuum, air pressure, sizing rings, and temperature, and to synchronize speed of extrusion.
  • •Reel extruded products into rolls of specified lengths and weights.
  • •Install dies, machine screws, and sizing rings on machines that extrude thermoplastic or metal materials.

Fields of study

Any field

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Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.