Getting into a line worker apprenticeship
Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers earn a median of $95,320 a year across the US. Here is what the application actually asks for.
US Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS · survey 2025-05
Building and maintaining the overhead and underground power lines that carry electricity from the plant to the street. Distinct from an electrician: an electrician works inside the building, a line worker works on everything outside it, usually at height and usually live.
What year one actually looks like
Groundwork first. You are on a crew handling equipment, learning the gear and watching the people up the pole, long before you climb one. Storm work means being called out at night and in the weather that caused the outage.
5 common requirements
What they ask for
- 18 or older.
- High-school diploma or GED, and algebra at most programs.
- A commercial driver's license, or willingness to get one early. Line crews run heavy trucks and most programs require it.
- Pole-climbing and physical testing. Comfort with heights is not optional.
- Drug screen and a demanding physical.
These are what most programs ask. Every sponsor sets its own, so check the program page before you rely on any of it.
Algebra, reading, a climb
The test
Aptitude testing on algebra and reading, plus a physical and climbing assessment. Many programs also expect a climbing or pre-apprenticeship course before you apply.
When to apply
Intakes are competitive and often annual. Utility and co-op programs recruit separately from union JATCs, so ask both.
We do not list application dates, because no registry publishes them and we will not invent one. Calling the training center and asking is the only reliable way, and it takes five minutes.
3 next steps
If you are not ready yet
- Get the CDL. It is the single most common blocker and it is worth having regardless.
- A short line-worker pre-apprenticeship course is close to expected at many programs.
- Be honest with yourself about heights and weather. This is one of the better-paid trades because the work is genuinely hard and genuinely dangerous.
None of this disqualifies you permanently. Most of it is a few months of work.
77 line worker programs listed