Heavy equipment operator training in Illinois

5 heavy equipment operator programs with results and funding that can make them free

2 schools offer these heavy equipment operator programs, and Illinois has approved every one for workforce funding. Each shows how past students did; Illinois files no usable prices.

Heavy equipment operators drive and control the machines that build roads, bridges and buildings. Most have a high school diploma and learn on the job or in a three- or four-year apprenticeship, and many need a commercial driver's license to haul their equipment between jobsites.¹ In Illinois, 2 of the 5 programs take students without a high school diploma.

See the 5 programs

How much does heavy equipment operator training cost in Illinois?

Not reported

Illinois files no usable prices, so none can be shown.

In the typical program

Finished the program: Not reported
Working 6 months later: Not reported
Earned a year, estimated: Not reported
Length: 6 to 36 weeks

Source: US Department of Labor, program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Only programs approved for workforce funding are listed; other schools in Illinois may also offer heavy equipment operator training. How these figures are made

Is there free heavy equipment operator training in Illinois?

Yes, if you qualify. WIOA (public workforce funding) can pay for any program on this page, in full or in part, depending on local limits.²³⁴
Ask an American Job Center whether you qualify, or call 1-877-872-5627.⁵ Before funding training, the center goes through an assessment and a career plan with you.⁴
Or pay yourself. Usable prices are not reported for these programs.

Who qualifies, and other ways to pay: financial aid, grants and the GI Bill

Heavy equipment operator training in Chicago, Madison and other Illinois cities

Choosing an area filters the list below.

All 5 heavy equipment operator programs in Illinois approved for WIOA funding

5 programs

Heavy equipment operator courseIn personHigh school diploma or equivalent
CORE/Heavy Equipment Operator Level 1
Associated Builders and Contractors
Elk Grove Village
High school diploma or equivalent
Associated Builders and Contractors, Elk Grove Village · Heavy equipment operator course · In person · High school diploma or equivalent
Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
Price if you pay yourselfNot reported
Program website, CORE/Heavy Equipment Operator Level 1 at Associated Builders and Contractors
More details about CORE/Heavy Equipment Operator Level 1 at Associated Builders and Contractors
Finished
Not reported
Working at 6 months
Not reported
Earned in a quarter
Not reported
Length
36 weeks, 40 hours a week
Cost of supplies
Not reported
Students counted
Not reported
a year, estimated
Not reported
price
Not reported
Heavy equipment operator courseIn personNo diploma needed
Heavy Equipment Operations Program I
Associated Training Services Corp.
Sun Prairie, WI
No diploma needed
Associated Training Services Corp., Sun Prairie, WI · Heavy equipment operator course · In person · No diploma needed
Classes are outside Illinois; Illinois approved the program for its funding.
Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
Price if you pay yourselfNot reported
Program website, Heavy Equipment Operations Program I at Associated Training Services Corp.
More details about Heavy Equipment Operations Program I at Associated Training Services Corp.
Finished
Not reported
Working at 6 months
Not reported
Earned in a quarter
Not reported
Length
3 weeks, 40 hours a week
Cost of supplies
Not reported
Students counted
Not reported
a year, estimated
Not reported
price
Not reported
Heavy equipment operator courseIn personNo diploma needed
Heavy Equipment Operations Program II
Associated Training Services Corp.
Sun Prairie, WI
No diploma needed
Associated Training Services Corp., Sun Prairie, WI · Heavy equipment operator course · In person · No diploma needed
Classes are outside Illinois; Illinois approved the program for its funding.
Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
Price if you pay yourselfNot reported
Program website, Heavy Equipment Operations Program II at Associated Training Services Corp.
More details about Heavy Equipment Operations Program II at Associated Training Services Corp.
Finished
Not reported
Working at 6 months
Not reported
Earned in a quarter
Not reported
Length
6 weeks, 40 hours a week
Cost of supplies
Not reported
Students counted
Not reported
a year, estimated
Not reported
price
Not reported
Heavy equipment operator courseIn personHigh school diploma or equivalent
Heavy Equipment Operator Level 2
Associated Builders and Contractors
Elk Grove Village
High school diploma or equivalent
Associated Builders and Contractors, Elk Grove Village · Heavy equipment operator course · In person · High school diploma or equivalent
Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
Price if you pay yourselfNot reported
Program website, Heavy Equipment Operator Level 2 at Associated Builders and Contractors
More details about Heavy Equipment Operator Level 2 at Associated Builders and Contractors
Finished
Not reported
Working at 6 months
Not reported
Earned in a quarter
Not reported
Length
36 weeks, 40 hours a week
Cost of supplies
Not reported
Students counted
Not reported
a year, estimated
Not reported
price
Not reported
Heavy equipment operator courseIn personHigh school diploma or equivalent
Heavy Equipment Operator Level 3
Associated Builders and Contractors
Elk Grove Village
High school diploma or equivalent
Associated Builders and Contractors, Elk Grove Village · Heavy equipment operator course · In person · High school diploma or equivalent
Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
Price if you pay yourselfNot reported
Program website, Heavy Equipment Operator Level 3 at Associated Builders and Contractors
More details about Heavy Equipment Operator Level 3 at Associated Builders and Contractors
Finished
Not reported
Working at 6 months
Not reported
Earned in a quarter
Not reported
Length
36 weeks, 40 hours a week
Cost of supplies
Not reported
Students counted
Not reported
a year, estimated
Not reported
price
Not reported

How to pay for heavy equipment operator training in Illinois

WIOA funding can pay for heavy equipment operator training in Illinois

Every program on this page is approved for WIOA funding: public workforce funding under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. It can pay for training for eligible adults, people who lost their job and young people.²People on public assistance, with a low income or lacking basic skills come first, and veterans have priority.³Your state or local area may limit how much WIOA pays and for how long. If a program costs more, a Pell Grant, a scholarship or severance pay can cover the rest.⁴

Ask at an American Job Center

Eligibility rules apply, and services vary from state to state. Your local American Job Center can tell you whether you qualify. The Department of Labor's page links to the center finder, or call 1-877-US-2JOBS (1-877-872-5627).⁵

Financial aid and grants for heavy equipment operator training

Most students can get federal student aid for college, career school or trade school. A Federal Pell Grant, unlike a loan, usually doesn't have to be repaid. Ask the school whether its program qualifies.⁶⁷

GI Bill for heavy equipment operator training

Veterans, service members and qualified dependents can use GI Bill benefits for non-college training programs.⁸

The program list does not show which programs accept these. Ask the school.

Does WIOA pay for job training? Who qualifies and how to apply

Where the Illinois heavy equipment operator program numbers come from

Which Illinois heavy equipment operator programs are on this list?

These are the heavy equipment operator programs Illinois approved for WIOA funding (public workforce funding under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act), as reported to the US Department of Labor for program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Each state keeps its approved programs on an eligible training provider list (ETPL).⁹ The list here covers programs approved as of June 30, 2025. Schools that never applied for approval are missing, so this is a part of what Illinois offers.

How Illinois heavy equipment operator program prices are reported

The price is tuition and required fees for someone paying without workforce funding, as the school reported it. "Trained with WIOA funding" on a program counts the people whose training there WIOA paid toward through a training account in program year 2024; the file never gives counts under 3, so a program without the line may still take WIOA students. It does not say how much of the price WIOA covered. Prices under $100 are treated as not reported, because the file holds many blanks entered as $0. Check the current price with the school.

What the graduate results of these programs measure

The figures at the top of this page are the middle program among those that report results: half did better, half did worse. Results describe students who left each program in recent years: the share who finished, the share working in the second quarter after leaving, and the middle earnings of those working in that quarter. States report earnings for that one quarter because they take them from the wage reports employers file every three months. The yearly figure here is that quarter times four, rounded to the nearest $100: an estimate, and an early one, since it is measured about half a year after training. The quarter as reported is under "More details" on each program. Results are withheld for small programs, and they describe past students, so they are no guarantee.

Why do some heavy equipment operator programs say "Not reported"?

Where a school or the state left a field empty, or the Department of Labor withheld it, the page says "Not reported". Nothing here is estimated to fill a gap.

Why the kind of school is left off each program

The file also records whether a school is public, private or nonprofit, but those entries are wrong too often to print next to a school's name, so this page leaves them out.

How reliable are the Illinois figures?

The US Department of Labor's own results site lists Illinois among the states with "known data quality concerns".¹⁰ We leave out the share who finished for Illinois: only a few programs report it, and those at a typical 11%. We leave out prices for Illinois: the state files a code in place of each price, so no price can be shown.

Sources for the facts about heavy equipment operator training in Illinois

Show the 10 sourcesHide the sources