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Heavy equipment operator training in North Carolina

4 heavy equipment operator programs with costs, results and funding that can make them free

3 schools offer these heavy equipment operator programs, and North Carolina has approved every one for workforce funding. Each shows its price if you pay yourself and how past students did.

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 North Carolina, 3 of the 4 programs take students without a high school diploma.

See the 4 programs

How much does heavy equipment operator training cost in North Carolina?

$201 to $6,775

is what the 4 programs with a price cost if you pay yourself

In the typical program

Finished the program
Not enough data
Working 6 months later
Not enough data
Earned a year, estimated
Not enough data
Length
Not enough data

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

Is there free heavy equipment operator training in North Carolina?

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

Heavy equipment operator training in Charlotte, Raleigh, Burlington and other North Carolina cities

Choosing an area filters the list below.

All 4 heavy equipment operator programs in North Carolina approved for WIOA funding

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4 programs

  • Heavy equipment operator courseIn personNo diploma needed

    NCCER Heavy Equipment Operator Training with Core Curriculum

    Carolina Construction School

    Lancaster, SC

    No diploma needed

    Carolina Construction School, Lancaster, SC · Heavy equipment operator course · In person · No diploma needed

    Classes are outside North Carolina; North Carolina approved the program for its funding.

    Earned a year, estimated$4,700
    Price if you pay yourself$6,775
    Program website, NCCER Heavy Equipment Operator Training with Core Curriculum at Carolina Construction School
    More details about NCCER Heavy Equipment Operator Training with Core Curriculum at Carolina Construction School
    Finished
    92%
    Working at 6 months
    18%
    Earned in a quarter
    $1,176
    Length
    8 weeks, 40 hours a week
    Cost of supplies
    $175
    Students counted
    46
    a year, estimated
    $4,700
    price
    $6,775

  • Single machine courseIn personNo diploma needed

    Heavy Equipment Operator Training - Excavator Course

    Carolina Trucking Academy LLC

    Raleigh

    No diploma needed

    Carolina Trucking Academy LLC, Raleigh · Single machine course · In person · No diploma needed

    Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
    Price if you pay yourself$3,500
    Program website, Heavy Equipment Operator Training - Excavator Course at Carolina Trucking Academy LLC
    More details about Heavy Equipment Operator Training - Excavator Course at Carolina Trucking Academy LLC
    Finished
    75%
    Working at 6 months
    Not reported
    Earned in a quarter
    Not reported
    Length
    3 weeks, 40 hours a week
    Cost of supplies
    None listed
    Students counted
    11
    a year, estimated
    Not reported
    price
    $3,500

  • Heavy equipment operator courseIn personNo diploma needed

    Heavy Equipment Operator

    Alamance Community College

    Graham

    No diploma needed

    Alamance Community College, Graham · Heavy equipment operator course · In person · No diploma needed

    Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
    Price if you pay yourself$201
    Program website, Heavy Equipment Operator at Alamance Community College
    More details about Heavy Equipment Operator at Alamance Community College
    Finished
    Not reported
    Working at 6 months
    Not reported
    Earned in a quarter
    Not reported
    Length
    50 weeks, 9 hours a week
    Cost of supplies
    $480
    Students counted
    Not reported
    a year, estimated
    Not reported
    price
    $201

  • Heavy equipment operator courseIn personHigh school diploma or equivalent

    NCCER Heavy Equipment Operator Training without Core Curriculum

    Carolina Construction School

    Lancaster, SC

    High school diploma or equivalent

    Carolina Construction School, Lancaster, SC · Heavy equipment operator course · In person · High school diploma or equivalent

    Classes are outside North Carolina; North Carolina approved the program for its funding.

    Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
    Price if you pay yourself$5,825
    Program website, NCCER Heavy Equipment Operator Training without Core Curriculum at Carolina Construction School
    More details about NCCER Heavy Equipment Operator Training without Core Curriculum at Carolina Construction School
    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
    $125
    Students counted
    Not reported
    a year, estimated
    Not reported
    price
    $5,825

How to pay for heavy equipment operator training in North Carolina

WIOA funding can pay for heavy equipment operator training in North Carolina

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 North Carolina heavy equipment operator program numbers come from

Which North Carolina heavy equipment operator programs are on this list?

These are the heavy equipment operator programs North Carolina 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 North Carolina offers.

How the prices and results of North Carolina heavy equipment operator programs are measured

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. Results describe students who left the program in recent years, and the yearly earnings figure is the reported quarter times four, an estimate. They describe past students, so they are no guarantee. Where a field was left empty or withheld, the page says "Not reported". Where the numbers come from explains each figure in full.

Other training in North Carolina

Sources for the facts about heavy equipment operator training in North Carolina

Show the 9 sourcesHide the sources
  1. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Construction Equipment Operators
  2. US Department of Labor, TrainingProviderResults.gov: About This Site
  3. US Department of Labor: WIOA Adult Program
  4. Code of Federal Regulations, title 20, part 680, sections 680.220 and 680.310: career services before training, and limits on Individual Training Accounts (GovInfo, 2024 edition)
  5. US Department of Labor: American Job Centers
  6. US Department of Education, Federal Student Aid: Eligibility for Federal Student Aid
  7. US Department of Education, Federal Student Aid: Don't Miss Out on Federal Pell Grants
  8. US Department of Veterans Affairs: GI Bill benefits for non-college degree programs
  9. US Department of Labor, Training and Employment Guidance Letter 8-19, Attachment I: Requirements for Training Providers, Program Eligibility, and the State Eligible Training Provider (ETP) List