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Occupational Employment Statistics


DETAILED OCCUPATION DATA

51-5111 Prepress Technician and Workers



Format and proof text and images submitted by designers and clients into finished pages that can be printed. Includes digital and photo typesetting. May produce printing plates.

Geography Click link for Career Profile EmploymentEmp SE*Percentiles
Mean10th25thMedian75th90th
Northwest Minnesota 10017$19.61/hr$15.28/hr$16.75/hr$17.26/hr$23.63/hr$26.93/hr


IndustryOES Employment (Statewide)OES Median Wage (Statewide)
Manufacturing1,080$22.51/hr
Trade, Transportation and UtilitiesN/AN/A
Information50$22.19/hr
Professional and Business Services190$21.25/hr
Education and Health ServicesN/AN/A
 
Geography Click link for details EmploymentMedian WageProjections
% Change 2022-2032
Grand Forks ND-MN MSA N/AN/AN/A
Northeast Balance of State N/AN/AN/A
Fargo ND-MN MSA 10$22.19/hrN/A
Northeast Minnesota 20$20.24/hrN/A
Duluth MN-WI MSA 20$21.94/hrN/A
Rochester MN MSA 20$22.90/hrN/A
St Cloud MN MSA 20$24.12/hrN/A
Southwest Balance of State 20$22.94/hrN/A
Central Minnesota 50$20.94/hr-12.3%
Mankato-North Mankato MN MSA 70$21.90/hrN/A
La Crosse WI-MN MSA 90$19.19/hrN/A
Northwest Balance of State 90$17.26/hrN/A
Northwest Minnesota 100$17.26/hr-15.5%
Southwest Minnesota 100$21.90/hrN/A
Southeast Minnesota 110$21.46/hr-8.7%
Southeast Balance of State 110$18.81/hrN/A
Seven County Mpls-St Paul, MN 950$22.53/hr-13.2%
Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington MN-WI MSA 980$22.51/hrN/A
Minnesota 1,340$22.25/hr-12.8%


Occupations Click link for details EmploymentMedian WageProjections
% Change 2022-2032
Life, Physical, and Social Science Technicians, All Other 1,500$22.98/hr5.8%
Desktop Publishers 230$29.68/hr-9.2%
Etchers and Engravers 210$21.63/hr0.0%


  • Punch holes in light-sensitive plates and insert pins in holes to prepare plates for contact with positive or negative film.
  • Enter, store, and retrieve information on computer-aided equipment.
  • Enter, position, and alter text size, using computers, to make up and arrange pages so that printed materials can be produced.
  • Operate presses to print proofs of plates, monitoring printing quality to ensure that it is adequate.
  • Perform close alignment or registration of double and single flats to sensitized plates prior to exposure to produce composite images.
  • Examine photographic images for obvious imperfections prior to plate making.
  • Operate and maintain a variety of cameras and equipment, such as process, line, halftone, and color separation cameras, enlargers, electronic scanners, and contact equipment.
  • Generate prepress proofs in digital or other format to approximate the appearance of the final printed piece.
  • Proofread and perform quality control of text and images.
  • Activate scanners to produce positive or negative films for the black-and-white, cyan, yellow, and magenta separations from each original copy.