Education · 1 of 4

The path

A paid apprenticeship. Three to four years, most of it on a wall.

1. 1

   High school diploma or an equivalency certificate

   Grade 12

   Shop and math classes help. You need to be 18 and physically able to lift and carry all day.

2. 2

   Find a program or a contractor

   Weeks to months

   Apply to a local union apprenticeship or get hired by a masonry contractor who will register you. Pre-apprenticeship courses help you get picked.

3. 3

   Register the apprenticeship

   Days

   The program is registered with the federal or your state apprenticeship agency, which sets the hours and the wage schedule.

4. 4

   Work plus classroom training

   3 to 4 years

   Registered apprenticeships run on a minimum of about 2,000 hours of paid work plus roughly 144 hours of classroom instruction a year.

5. 5

   Journeyman mason

   After the hours

   Complete the hours and skills checks and you work at the full rate anywhere in the country.