Model Makers (Wood) build operations monitoring, time management and judgment and decision making skills that carry over to other work. Below are 25 careers ranked by how closely their skills match, with pay from BLS May 2025. The closest match is Layout Workers, Metal and Plastic (90%).
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Sorted by skill match.
| # | Career | Skill match | Median pay | Pay change | Extra education |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Layout Workers, Metal and Plastic | 90% | $63,870 | +13% | None |
| 2 | Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters | 87% | $51,330 | −9% | None |
| 3 | Patternmakers, Metal and Plastic | 85% | $58,000 | +3% | None |
| 4 | Model Makers, Metal and Plastic | 81% | $63,340 | +12% | None |
| 5 | Stone Cutters and Carvers, Manufacturing | 78% | $46,170Pay for the broader BLS group “Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic” | Not compared | None |
| 6 | Tool and Die Makers | 76% | $64,050 | +13% | None |
| 7 | Carpenters | 76% | $60,580 | +7% | None |
| 8 | Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 76% | $52,800 | −7% | None |
| 9 | Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers | 75% | $53,750 | −5% | None |
| 10 | Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers | 75% | $58,970 | +4% | None |
Compared with Model Makers, Wood, median $56,550. Skill match is our estimate (0–99) from O*NET 31.0 skills, knowledge, work activities and interests, adjusted for preparation and big pay drops. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025, national median.
How important each skill is in work as model makers (wood) (O*NET importance, scale 1–5).
The gaps that show up most often across your top 10 matches.
Free and low-cost training: use the CareerOneStop training finder below.
A concrete first step, the skills to add, and the hard parts of each job, from O*NET 31.0 education, training and work context data.
90% skill match · $63,870 · +13% pay
Equipment Selection · Installation · Complex Problem Solving
87% skill match · $51,330 · −9% pay
Negotiation
85% skill match · $58,000 · +3% pay
Programming · Equipment Maintenance · Repairing
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Layout Workers, Metal and Plastic (90% skill match, median $63,870), Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters (87% skill match, median $51,330) and Patternmakers, Metal and Plastic (85% skill match, median $58,000), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
Among the 25 matches, 17 pay more than model makers (wood) at the median. The biggest increases: Terrazzo Workers and Finishers (+35%, $76,170), Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians (+32%, $74,510) and Layout Workers, Metal and Plastic (+13%, $63,870).
25 of the 25 matches usually need no more education than you have now, based on O*NET Job Zones.
We compare the importance of skills, knowledge, work activities and interests in O*NET 31.0 for your job and every other career, then adjust for extra preparation and big pay drops. The full method is on our Methodology page.