SOC 51-9195.00Bright outlook

    Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic

    Mold, shape, form, cast, or carve products such as food products, figurines, tile, pipes, and candles consisting of clay, glass, plaster, concrete, stone, or combinations of materials.

    Median pay
    $46,170
    Growth
    +5.8%
    Faster than average
    Openings a year
    5,100
    Typical education
    High school diploma

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

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    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $35,850
    Median
    $46,170
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $61,530
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    33,190 people work in this occupation.

    What molders, shapers, and casters, except metal and plastic do

    Job Zone 2: Some preparation

    Mold, shape, form, cast, or carve products such as food products, figurines, tile, pipes, and candles consisting of clay, glass, plaster, concrete, stone, or combinations of materials.

    Usually a high school diploma; some on-the-job training or experience.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R) · strongest
    94 / 100
    Investigative (I)
    21 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    19 / 100
    Social (S)
    0 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    0 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    55 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code RCI. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Handling and Moving Objects
    78
    Performing General Physical Activities
    77
    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    70
    Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
    67
    Controlling Machines and Processes
    67
    Getting Information
    66
    Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
    60
    Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
    60
    Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
    59
    Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
    59
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Operation and Control
    • Active Listening
    • Operations Monitoring
    • Reading Comprehension
    • Monitoring
    • Quality Control Analysis
    • Speaking
    • Coordination
    • Critical Thinking
    • Social Perceptiveness

    Knowledge

    • Production and Processing
    • Mechanical
    • Administration and Management
    • English Language
    • Mathematics
    • Engineering and Technology
    • Education and Training
    • Customer and Personal Service
    • Public Safety and Security
    • Transportation

    Abilities

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
    • Finger Dexterity
    • Manual Dexterity
    • Control Precision
    • Near Vision
    • Multilimb Coordination
    • Oral Comprehension
    • Selective Attention
    • Deductive Reasoning
    • Extent Flexibility

    Work styles

    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Cautiousness
    • Perseverance
    • Integrity
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Self-Confidence
    • Self-Control
    • Adaptability

    Also called

    Adobe Block Maker · Adobe Maker · Almond Paste Molder · Artificial Candy Maker · Batter Out · Bed Laborer · Bit Gatherer · Block Maker · Blower · Bow Maker

    CareerOneStop

    Certifications, licenses and pay by state

    What molders, shapers, and casters, except metal and plastic may need beyond a degree, where a license is required, and what the work pays in each state.

    Certifications

    Core certifications employers recognise for this work.

    Search all certifications on CareerOneStop

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 6, 2026.

    Your plan

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    Courses, majors, colleges, scholarships and a timeline for this career, built from your profile.

    Related careers

    Careers with similar work, interests or skills.

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    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 6, 2026.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.