# Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters

> Coordinate activities of switch-engine crew within railroad yard, industrial plant, or similar location. Conductors coordinate activities of train crew on passenger or freight trains. Yardmasters review train schedules and switching orders and coordinate activities of workers engaged in railroad traffic operations, such as the makeup or breakup of trains and yard switching.

- Edition: Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition
- Page: https://www.collegesref.com/careers/railroad-conductors-and-yardmasters
- SOC code: 53-4031.00
- Career family: Transportation
- Median annual pay: $78,000 (10th percentile $58,740, 90th percentile $109,770)
- Projected growth: Little or no change, +0.9%
- Openings a year: 3,000
- Typical entry education: High school diploma
- Bright outlook: no
- Data years: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

## Interest profile (code RCE)

| Interest area | Score (0–100) |
| --- | ---: |
| Realistic (R) | 80 |
| Investigative (I) | 16 |
| Artistic (A) | 0 |
| Social (S) | 14 |
| Enterprising (E) | 46 |
| Conventional (C) | 65 |

## What you'd do

- Getting Information (importance 84/100)
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials (importance 80/100)
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates (importance 75/100)
- Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events (importance 74/100)
- Performing General Physical Activities (importance 73/100)
- Documenting/Recording Information (importance 71/100)
- Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards (importance 68/100)
- Handling and Moving Objects (importance 66/100)
- Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings (importance 65/100)
- Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work (importance 63/100)

## Skills

Coordination, Monitoring, Speaking, Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Judgment and Decision Making, Time Management, Operations Monitoring, Complex Problem Solving, Operation and Control

## Knowledge

Public Safety and Security, Transportation, English Language, Education and Training, Law and Government, Customer and Personal Service, Telecommunications, Mechanical, Computers and Electronics, Mathematics

## Also called

Conductor, Freight Conductor, Freight Train Conductor, Local Freight Conductor, Passenger Conductor, Pullman Conductor, Railroad Conductor, Railway Yardmaster, Road Conductor, Road Freight Conductor

## Majors that lead here (NCES CIP–SOC crosswalk, 4-digit CIP)

- [Ground Transportation](https://www.collegesref.com/programs/4902) (CIP 4902, 213 colleges)

## Colleges with strong outcomes (College Scorecard, 2025)

| College | Program | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yrs | Median debt |
| --- | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| [Pennsylvania College of Technology](https://www.collegesref.com/college/pennsylvania-college-of-technology-2096) | Ground Transportation | $54,938 | $62,389 | $12,000 |

## Related careers

- [Locomotive Engineers](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/locomotive-engineers): $81,410 median pay
- [Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/railroad-brake-signal-and-switch-operators-and-locomotive-firers): $68,840 median pay
- [Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/rail-yard-engineers-dinkey-operators-and-hostlers): $60,600 median pay
- [Subway and Streetcar Operators](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/subway-and-streetcar-operators): $86,380 median pay
- [Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/dispatchers-except-police-fire-and-ambulance): $50,340 median pay
- [First-Line Supervisors of Material-Moving Machine and Vehicle Operators](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/first-line-supervisors-of-material-moving-machine-and-vehicle-operators): $62,890 median pay

## Sources

- [O*NET Database](https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html), version 31.0 (CC BY 4.0)
- [BLS Employment Projections](https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables.htm), version 2025-35, data year 2025 (Public domain (U.S. government work))
- [BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics](https://www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm), version 2025, data year 2025 (Public domain (U.S. government work))
- [NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk](https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/resources.aspx?y=56), version 2020, data year 2020 (Public domain (U.S. government work))

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.