Qualifications
"Step right on up, folks! Don't feel shy now. There's no need to wait in line! No need for school. No tickets necessary, just a prodigious, savant-level pottery-crafting ability!"
Seems easy to become a potter, right? There aren't state licensing requirements. You don't have to do four years of a bachelor's degree, followed by four years of graduate studies, two exams, and continuing education courses. You don't really have to have anything. You could make a couple pots one day, sell 'em on Etsy, and bam! You're a potter.
But if you're serious about becoming a potter—a potter who's going to do this for a living, not just some extra dough—there are some steps you can take to make your life easier. You can get a fine arts degree in ceramics, and many potters do: forty percent have an associate's degree, and another twenty-four percent have a bachelor's (source).
If you've ever wanted to take a class specifically devoted to glazing techniques or wheel shaping, the process of earning a degree will feel like heaven on Earth to you.
Formal education is really nice, but unlike many professions, it's not the most important tool in a potter's box—or wherever you keep your tools. Business smarts, whether you get them via formal education or just learn by working closely with other potters, are what you really need to succeed in the dog-eat-dog world of clay molding. You'll need to know how to balance books, make a sustainable business model, market your products, and sell, sell, sell.
If you develop a sound grasp of finances and marketing, along with a great website and a whole lot of hustle, you can work the wheel and mold yourself a decent career.