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Skilled Trades

Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers

Design, fabricate, adjust, repair, or appraise jewelry, gold, silver, other precious metals, or gems.

Median salary (BLS)

$52,540

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$36k – $88k

Job outlook

No separate BLS projection for this specific role

AI exposure

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports one wage for this occupational group, which covers 2 related roles — so read the median as an approximate group figure, and the range as the truer picture for this specific title. BLS source.

Early-career check: graduates of the matching programs below typically earn $70,000 ten years after starting college — an early-career figure, vs. the all-experience BLS median above. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard.

Plan a path to Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers

Qualification costsStack incomeBest cities/statesSchool ROIJob-posting fitTailored resume

Education

Typical entry: No degree (trade/license)

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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 "Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers" — 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 Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers

    Entry / Junior

    $35,580

    ~2 yrs to advance

  2. Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers

    Established

    $52,540

    ~3 yrs to advance

  3. Senior Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers

    Senior

    $70,040

Key skills

A typical day

  • •Clean and polish metal items and jewelry pieces, using jewelers' tools, polishing wheels, and chemical baths.
  • •Smooth soldered joints and rough spots, using hand files and emery paper, and polish smoothed areas with polishing wheels or buffing wire.
  • •Create jewelry from materials such as gold, silver, platinum, and precious or semiprecious stones.
  • •Cut and file pieces of jewelry such as rings, brooches, bracelets, and lockets.
  • •Examine assembled or finished products to ensure conformance to specifications, using magnifying glasses or precision measuring instruments.

Fields of study

Any field

Top colleges for Skilled Trades

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