What Is a Pest Control Technician and How to Become One
Table of Contents
What Does a Pest Control Technician Do?
As a pest control technician, you diagnose pest problems and eliminate pests like cockroaches, termites, ants, and small rodents. Your job duties are to perform inspections of residential or commercial properties and—when you find pests—to use pesticides or other techniques to get rid of the unwanted guests. Working with chemical pesticides is a health risk, so taking safety precautions to protect yourself, your clients, and their pets is one of your primary responsibilities. During inspections or pesticide treatments, you’ll have to walk, stand, stoop, reach, bend, and crawl, sometimes in awkward positions, so you need physical strength and stamina.
How to Become a Pest Control Technician
To become a pest control technician, you need to be licensed by your state to apply restricted use pesticides. Licensing requirements vary by state, and can often include passing an exam and completing a pesticide safety and general pesticide use course. You’ll also receive on-the-job training from your employer, and you’ll work with an experienced pest control technician for the first few weeks of your career.
Is Being a Pest Control Technician a Good Job?
A career as a pest control technician is ideal if you like driving between various job sites and providing customized services to clients depending on their unique needs. Typical qualifications for pest control jobs include a clean driving record, job training, and a state license. To succeed as a pest control technician, you need strength and stamina to handle heavy equipment, customer service skills to interact with clients, organizational skills to manage your schedule of appointments, and attention to detail to identify and resolve pest control issues.
Pest Control Technician Job Description Sample
With this Pest Control Technician job description sample, you can get a good idea of what employers are looking for when hiring for this position. Remember, every employer is different and each will have unique qualifications when they hire for a Pest Control Technician role.
Job Summary
Our company is looking for a Pest Control Technician to join our team. In this position, you will work to rid each property of unwanted animals and insects by setting traps, spraying poison, and utilizing other effective methods. While we are willing to provide on-the-job training, our ideal candidate already has a state license and professional pest control experience. You will travel from site to site, so you need to have a valid driver's license and some experience driving larger vehicles.
Duties and Responsibilities
- Inspect the property for evidence of pests
- Assess damage and level of infestation
- Spray and dispense poisons around the property
- Set traps for larger pests
- Air out the property after large fumigations
- Log and manage your jobs using our customer relationship management software
Requirements and Qualifications
- High school diploma or GED certificate
- State license to dispense pesticides
- Pest control experience
- Physical stamina
- Strong communication, analytical, and observational skills
