Discover a Career as a
Nuclear Power Plant Technician
Discover your career path in the energy industry.
Learn where your interests will take you. Explore the meaningful work in which you can immerse yourself. Set your sites on what you can learn and the increasing responsibilities that can be yours. See how you will be challenged and what will you accomplish.
*Compensation averages should be used as a guide. There are numerous factors that impact actual compensation. These estimates do not include over-time, which can be a sizeable addition to base pay. Years of service and training recommendations should also be used as a guide. Company requirements vary.
Note: Some energy companies may require pre-employment testing. Please check the job requirements. These may include an EEI Pre-Employment Test or a Physical Abilities Test.
Become a Nuclear Power Plant Technician
Starting off as an Electrical, Mechanical or Instrument & Control Technician:
What will you do?
- Provide assistance to plant operators by reading gauges, checking equipment
- Make work area safe
- Install and maintain equipment based on site procedures and/or manufacturer’s specifications
- Read instrumentation schematics to diagnose circuit trouble
- Participate in classroom
- On-the-job training
What knowledge / skills / abilities will you need?
- Be adept at written and verbal communication and documentation
- Be able to document and record work performed
- Ability to work within a team
- Be able to lift heavy equipment
- Listen and follow directions
- Be comfortable with heights
- Be able to work in noisy conditions
- Math skills including algebra, trigonometry, and geometry
- Come to work on time and prepared
- Physical ability to climb stairs and ladders, operate stiff valves manually, lift weights, and control pneumatic or hydraulic wrenches
- Apply knowledge obtained during training in the work environment
- Work with various types of test equipment, including multi-meters
- Work with various types of tools
Senior Technician:
What will you do?
- Inspect equipment, including motors and belts, fluid levels, and filters
- Take apart machines, then repair and replace parts using hand or power tools
- Use large equipment such as hoists and cranes
- Use detailed site procedures and manuals to determine problems and then fix them
- Do preventive maintenance checkups on machines, mechanical equipment and on buildings
What knowledge / skills / abilities will you need?
- Be adept at written and verbal communication and documentation
- Use information to diagnose and solve problems
- Be able to manage multiple tasks at one time
- Ability to understand basic mechanical principles (e.g., gear trains, centrifugal force, heat flow)
- Ability to comprehend entire systems and how they function
- Ability to foresee system implications of malfunctions or of own actions
- Ability to anticipate required future conditions in numerous interacting systems
Supervisor:
What will you do?
- Determine schedules and work activities of team members
- Review team member performance and provide feedback
- Inspect records and log book entries to determine plant efficiency
- Prepare and manage budgets
- Communicate and report to management
- Deal with potentially stressful situations
What knowledge / skills / abilities will you need?
- People management
- Communications skills
- Financial management
- Computer skills for report preparation
- Assign priority or sequence to the steps for completing a job
- Coordinate several, competing activities for efficient use of time and material
- Adapt work procedures or priorities in response to changing or unforeseen requirements or conditions
Courtesy of Idaho National Laboratory
“The main role of my job as a Radiation Protection Technician is to help protect the health and safety of the public, the plant, and the workers. I have always had a passion for helping people, so this job gives me a great opportunity to put that into action. I like being a part of a team and continuously learning new skills. I am proud that the work I do contributes to providing safe and reliable energy at a low cost to our customers.”
Shawna Henry
Radiation Protection Technician
Nebraska Public Power District