EKG Tech job description: duties, skills and qualifications.

Core duties

9

O*NET task statements

Preparation

Job Zone 3 of 5

medium preparation

Typical entry education

Associate's degree

BLS 2025–35

Median pay

$74,310

BLS May 2025

Data Government data groups this job as Cardiovascular Technologists and Technicians (O*NET-SOC 29-2031.00). Figures on this page are for that occupation.

1. Explain testing procedures to patients to obtain cooperation and reduce anxiety. importance 4.7 of 5
2. Monitor patients' blood pressure and heart rate using electrocardiogram (EKG) equipment during diagnostic or therapeutic procedures to notify the physician if something appears wrong. importance 4.7 of 5
3. Obtain and record patient identification, medical history, or test results. importance 4.6 of 5
4. Monitor patients' comfort and safety during tests, alerting physicians to abnormalities or changes in patient responses. importance 4.6 of 5
5. Prepare and position patients for testing. importance 4.6 of 5
6. Attach electrodes to the patients' chests, arms, and legs, connect electrodes to leads from the electrocardiogram (EKG) machine, and operate the EKG machine to obtain a reading. importance 4.6 of 5
7. Adjust equipment and controls according to physicians' orders or established protocol. importance 4.5 of 5
8. Check, test, and maintain cardiology equipment, making minor repairs when necessary, to ensure proper operation. importance 4.1 of 5
9. Supervise or train other cardiology technologists or students. importance 3.7 of 5

Work activities O*NET rates most important here: Assisting and Caring for Others, Documenting/Recording Information, Working with Computers, Getting Information and Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events.

Also part of the job

Supplemental tasks O*NET lists for this occupation: less central than the core duties above, and not done in every job.

• Compare measurements of heart wall thickness and chamber sizes to standard norms to identify abnormalities.
• Maintain a proper sterile field during surgical procedures.
• Observe ultrasound display screen and listen to signals to record vascular information, such as blood pressure, limb volume changes, oxygen saturation, or cerebral circulation.
• Assist physicians in the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac or peripheral vascular treatments, such as implanting pacemakers or assisting with balloon angioplasties to treat blood vessel blockages.
• Assess cardiac physiology and calculate valve areas from blood flow velocity measurements.
• Operate diagnostic imaging equipment to produce contrast enhanced radiographs of heart and cardiovascular system.

Knowledge areas: Customer and Personal Service, Medicine and Dentistry, English Language, Computers and Electronics and Education and Training.

Software O*NET lists for this occupation: MEDITECH software, JavaScript, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Word. These are examples O*NET records for the job, not a list of tools every employer uses or a checklist of what you must know.

• Education: BLS lists an associate's degree as the typical entry-level education.
• Experience: BLS lists no work experience in a related occupation as typical to enter.
• Training on the job: BLS lists no typical on-the-job training once hired.
• Preparation: O*NET places the job in Job Zone 3 of 5 (medium preparation). Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations.
• Licenses and certifications: not listed here. A license is a legal requirement set by a state; a certification is a credential from a private or professional body. Rules vary by state and employer, and a missing entry on this page does not mean none is required: check with your state's licensing board and see how to become an EKG tech.

Most EKG techs surveyed by O*NET (63%) name an associate's degree as the education the job requires.

Job title: EKG Tech
[Company] · [City, State] · [Full-time or part-time] · [Pay range, where your state requires one]

About the role
[Company] is hiring an EKG Tech to conduct tests on pulmonary or cardiovascular systems of patients for diagnostic, therapeutic, or research purposes.
[One sentence on your team and why this role matters.]

What you will do
- Explain testing procedures to patients to obtain cooperation and reduce anxiety.
- Monitor patients' blood pressure and heart rate using electrocardiogram (EKG) equipment during diagnostic or therapeutic procedures to notify the physician if something appears wrong.
- Obtain and record patient identification, medical history, or test results.
- Monitor patients' comfort and safety during tests, alerting physicians to abnormalities or changes in patient responses.
- Prepare and position patients for testing.
- Attach electrodes to the patients' chests, arms, and legs, connect electrodes to leads from the electrocardiogram (EKG) machine, and operate the EKG machine to obtain a reading.
- Adjust equipment and controls according to physicians' orders or established protocol.
- Check, test, and maintain cardiology equipment, making minor repairs when necessary, to ensure proper operation.

What we are looking for
- [Education: BLS lists an associate's degree as typical for this occupation; set the level this role truly needs]
- [Experience: BLS lists no related work experience as typical to enter; set what this role needs]
- Strength in active listening, operations monitoring and speaking
- Working knowledge of Customer and Personal Service and Medicine and Dentistry
- [Software your team uses, e.g. MEDITECH software or JavaScript]
- [Any license or certification your state or company requires]

[Schedule, benefits and how to apply]

Illustrative: every name, employer, school, date and number in these samples is fictional or a bracketed placeholder. Replace each bracket with your own true details; never copy a result you did not achieve.

Not a real job posting. This template is TryHired's illustration built from government occupational data. It is not an opening at any employer, and no employer wrote it.

The median annual wage was $74,310 in May 2025. The median hourly wage was $35.73. BLS estimates about 62,960 jobs in this occupation in the U.S.

BLS projects employment of Cardiovascular Technologists and Technicians to grow 3.7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 3,400 openings a year over that period, including openings to replace workers who leave.

See the full EKG tech salary breakdown by percentile, state and metro.

• Read a real EKG tech posting next to the core duties above. Duties it repeats, such as “Explain testing procedures to patients to obtain cooperation and…”, tell you what that employer weighs most; anything it adds is specific to that team.
• Tailor your resume to the posting, not to this page: describe only EKG tech work you have actually done, with your own results.
• Prepare a story for each of the top-rated skills (active listening and operations monitoring).