Heavy Equipment Operator Technician (Certificate)
Butte College · Oroville, CA
- Cost
- $2,045
- Length
- 34 weeks
- Working 6 months later
- Not reported
Program names, program descriptions and occupation titles appear here in English, because that is the only language the federal and state records publish them in. Everything else on this page is translated.
What happened to people who took this
- People enrolled
- 231
- Finished the program
- 63%Based on 112 peopleTypical California program: 85% of 1,951 reportingThat median pools every California program that reported this measure, whatever its length, credential, or field, and leaves out the ones that reported nothing. It is a reference point, not a rating of this program.
- Working 6 months later
- Not reported
- Earnings in one quarter after
- Not reported
The jobs this trains for
This describes the jobs people do, not the classes this program teaches. It comes from the U.S. Department of Labor, which asks people already doing the work. The Department publishes it in English only, so the job names and the sentences below stay in English on this page.
Trains for more than one job. The outlook shown is the weakest of them.
No regional figures for this program's city
Oroville is not one of the metropolitan or rural areas California names when it publishes wages and openings. A neighbouring area's figures would look exactly like a correct answer, so none are shown and the statewide figures stand alone. About half of California's programs are in this position.
Agricultural Equipment Operators
Job ads may call this: Sprayer · Hay Baler · Rake Operator · Baler Operator
Some of what people in this job do. The Department rates how important each one is, and they appear in that order.
- Load and unload crops or containers of materials, manually or using conveyors, handtrucks, forklifts, or transfer augers.
- Mix specified materials or chemicals, and dump solutions, powders, or seeds into planter or sprayer machinery.
- Spray fertilizer or pesticide solutions to control insects, fungus and weed growth, and diseases, using hand sprayers.
- Observe and listen to machinery operation to detect equipment malfunctions.
Show 4 more things this job involves
- Manipulate controls to set, activate, and adjust mechanisms on machinery.
- Load hoppers, containers, or conveyors to feed machines with products, using forklifts, transfer augers, suction gates, shovels, or pitchforks.
- Direct and monitor the activities of work crews engaged in planting, weeding, or harvesting activities.
- Operate or tend equipment used in agricultural production, such as tractors, combines, and irrigation equipment.
- Typical pay in California
- $39,872per year
- Projected openings
- 26,200
- Projected change
- +7.4%
- Usually needs
- No formal educational credential
Getting in
- Experience needed first
- None
- Training after you are hired
- 1 to 12 months
These are the federal government's answers for the occupation, not rules this provider sets. California publishes the same two answers for every one of these jobs.
What people in this job actually studied
Most common: No high school diploma — 46% of the people doing this work.
- No high school diploma
- 46%
- High school diploma
- 29%
- Started college, no degree
- 11%
- Two-year degree
- 5%
- Four-year degree
- 8%
- Master's degree
- 1%
- Doctorate or professional degree
- 0.5%
This counts people already doing this job, across the whole United States. Every other figure on this page is California's, and the federal government publishes no state version of this one. It is what people happen to have, not a rule about who gets hired. A small row does not mean you would be turned away, and a large one is not a promise of a job.
Farm Equipment Mechanics and Service Technicians
Pay, hiring, and what people studied
Job ads may call this: Mechanic · Field Mechanic · Tractor Mechanic · Farm Equipment Mechanic
- Reassemble machines and equipment following repair, testing operation and making adjustments, as necessary.
- Examine and listen to equipment, read inspection reports, and confer with customers to locate and diagnose malfunctions.
- Maintain, repair, and overhaul farm machinery and vehicles, such as tractors, harvesters, and irrigation systems.
- Typical pay in California
- $55,311per year
- Projected openings
- 4,900
- Projected change
- +5.4%
- Usually needs
- High school diploma or equivalent
Getting in
- Experience needed first
- None
- Training after you are hired
- More than a year
New hires are trained on the job for more than a year after they start. The classroom part is the beginning of this work, not the whole of it.
What people in this job actually studied
Most common: High school diploma — 44% of the people doing this work.
California says this job usually needs: High school diploma or equivalent. 12% of the people doing it went less far than that.
- No high school diploma
- 12%
- High school diploma
- 44%
- Started college, no degree
- 23%
- Two-year degree
- 16%
- Four-year degree
- 4%
- Master's degree
- 0.3%
- Doctorate or professional degree
- 0.4%
Program details
This program provides in-person instruction only.
Students who successfully complete the program requirements will have the operation, repair, and diagnostic skills necessary to obtain entry-level employment. Each year, the demand for qualified operators and maintenance technicians increases. Our partners including the Operating Engineers Local 3, Caltrans, CalFire, local and statewide contractors, and agriculture companies. Most jobs are obtained with smaller contractors. Jobs are also available in production, agriculture, land leveling, orchard removal, and other agricultural employers.
Someone else may be able to pay for this
This program was on California's Eligible Training Provider List when the state last reported it to the U.S. Department of Labor (2026-08-04). Programs on that list can be paid for through an Individual Training Account. Listings are renewed periodically and can lapse, so a program listed when the state last reported may not be listed today. Ask before you rely on it.
The place to ask is an America's Job Center of California
A comprehensive center is where all the required partner programs can be reached; an affiliate site offers some of them. California's Employment Development Department directs people to CareerOneStop's finder to locate one. Contacting a center before traveling is worth it — the state notes that its own staff are not physically present at every location.
The rule: 20 CFR 678.305 — What is a comprehensive one-stop center? · 20 CFR 678.310 — What is an affiliated site? · California EDD — Office Locator
Alliance for Workforce Development Inc.-OrovilleComprehensive center
Phone: 530-538-7301
78 Table Mountain BlvdButte Co. Dept. of Employment and Social ServicesOroville, CA 95965about 6.3 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Has a veterans' representative
Nations Finest OfficeAffiliate site
Phone: 530-809-2831
535 Wall StreetChico, CA 95928about 18.1 miles away
Hours: Monday -Friday 8:00am-5:00pm
Alliance for Workforce Development, Inc.Comprehensive center
Phone: 530-961-5125
500 Cohasset Road, Suite # 30Chico, CA 95926about 19.9 miles away
Hours: Monday - -Friday 8:000am - 5:00pm
Has a veterans' representative
Distances are straight-line, so the drive is longer. Call before you travel: opening hours here are as the federal directory published them, and the state notes its own staff are not present at every location.
Find a center anywhere in California, and check what is on the list today:
CareerOneStop — American Job Center Finder (U.S. DOL) · California EDD — Office Locator · California EDD — Eligible Training Provider List
How this gets paid for, and what to ask →
Whether a person can have a program paid for is decided by their local workforce development board and the America's Job Center staff who interview them — not by this site, and not by the training provider. California has 45 local workforce development areas and each sets its own policies, so the answer can differ between two people in neighboring counties. Nothing here is a promise of funding or a determination of eligibility.
The rules cited here, and the state and federal sites linked to, are published in English.
How this site gets its figures, and what they do not tell you →