Marines · 1371
Your Combat Engineer experience maps to civilian jobs like Carpenters and Brickmasons and Blockmasons—and well beyond. Explore the specific roles below, see what each pays and requires, and build from there.
These are the civilian jobs the U.S. Department of Labor maps to 1371, plus the roles most closely related to them—ordered from the closest match. Think of them as a floor, not a ceiling: see what each role involves and pays, start where your Combat Engineer experience already fits, and build toward the rest.
$56,350/yr mediantypical $37k–$95k~700K U.S. jobs
★ Bright Outlook — Rapid growth
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Construct, erect, install, or repair structures and fixtures made of wood and comparable materials, such as concrete forms; building frameworks, including partitions, joists, studding, and…
Why it fits: A direct Department of Labor match—your Combat Engineer work maps straight onto the construction & skilled trades side of this role.
$59,640/yr mediantypical $38k–$94k~57K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Lay and bind building materials, such as brick, structural tile, concrete block, cinder block, glass block, and terra-cotta block, with mortar and other substances, to construct or repair walls,…
Why it fits: A direct Department of Labor match—your Combat Engineer work maps straight onto the construction & skilled trades side of this role.
$50,720/yr mediantypical $37k–$84k~204K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: Little prep — a few days to a few months of training
Smooth and finish surfaces of poured concrete, such as floors, walks, sidewalks, roads, or curbs using a variety of hand and power tools.
Why it fits: A direct Department of Labor match—your Combat Engineer work maps straight onto the construction & skilled trades side of this role.
$61,590/yr mediantypical $43k–$89k~5K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Place and detonate explosives to demolish structures or to loosen, remove, or displace earth, rock, or other materials.
Why it fits: A direct Department of Labor match—your Combat Engineer work maps straight onto the construction & skilled trades side of this role.
$55,700/yr mediantypical $37k–$103k~91K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Apply plasterboard or other wallboard to ceilings or interior walls of buildings.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Combat Engineer occupations on the construction & skilled trades side—a natural next step.
$62,760/yr mediantypical $41k–$105k~64K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Raise, place, and unite iron or steel girders, columns, and other structural members to form completed structures or structural frameworks.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Combat Engineer occupations on the construction & skilled trades side—a natural next step.
$48,480/yr mediantypical $36k–$67k~58K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Fabricate, position, align, and fit parts of structural metal products.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Combat Engineer occupations on the manufacturing & production side—a natural next step.
$58,780/yr mediantypical $37k–$101k~116K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Fabricate, assemble, install, and repair sheet metal products and equipment, such as ducts, control boxes, drainpipes, and furnace casings.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Combat Engineer occupations on the construction & skilled trades side—a natural next step.
$43,260/yr mediantypical $31k–$61k~88K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Cut, shape, and assemble wooden articles or set up and operate a variety of woodworking machines, such as power saws, jointers, and mortisers to surface, cut, or shape lumber or to fabricate parts…
Why it fits: Closely related to your Combat Engineer occupations on the manufacturing & production side—a natural next step.
$42,470/yr mediantypical $33k–$62k~16K U.S. jobs
Typical entry: High-school diploma plus short on-the-job training
Help brickmasons, blockmasons, stonemasons, or tile and marble setters by performing duties requiring less skill.
Why it fits: Closely related to your Combat Engineer occupations on the construction & skilled trades side—a natural next step.
Source: O*NET / DMDC Military Crosswalk and O*NET related-occupations data, August 2024. Pay is BLS OEWS (May 2023).
Use the level that reflects what you actually did—not rank alone. Two people with the same code and very different experience should not submit the same résumé.
Lead with hands-on tasks, tools, equipment, qualifications, safety discipline, and the conditions in which you performed. Do not inflate supervisory scope.
Add team leadership, training, inspections, work allocation, quality control, readiness, and the people or assets you directly supervised.
Emphasize multi-team operations, schedules, resource forecasting, safety systems, policy enforcement, advising leaders, and organization-level results.
A translated title isn't enough. These four moves turn Combat Engineer experience into evidence a civilian hiring manager can act on.
List the systems, vehicles, equipment, and tools you personally operated as Combat Engineer—plus qualifications, certifications, and the recurring high-stakes tasks you owned.
Marines led, dollar value of equipment you were accountable for, workload, readiness rates, and safety or quality outcomes. Scope beats adjectives.
For any target role, name the license, degree, or software it requires and start now—your GI Bill and credentialing assistance can cover most of it.
Recruiters rarely search “1371.” Search job boards by the equipment, skills, and outcomes above as much as by “Combat Engineer.”
You don't have to make this jump alone. These programs exist specifically to move service members into civilian careers—most are free, and several pay you while you train.
Train or intern with a civilian employer during your last ~180 days on active duty—at full military pay.
Earn a paycheck while you train for a trade or technical role; USMAP can credit the military training you already have.
Corporate fellowships and hiring events that place transitioning service members and military spouses.
Free career training and nationally recognized certifications for service members, veterans, and spouses.
VA-funded high-tech training (IT, cyber, data, software) that does not touch your GI Bill entitlement.
Free local career centers plus certification and state-by-state license finders for any field.
Free placement into registered apprenticeships across the building and construction trades.
How to use this: Treat these as targets, not limits. Your exact duties depend on your assignments, so lead with what you actually did—and remember that regulated careers require their own license, certification, or degree.