Industrial Engineers

What Industrial Engineers Do

Design, develop, test, and evaluate integrated systems for managing industrial production processes, including human work factors, quality control, inventory control, logistics and material flow, cost analysis, and production coordination.

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience

None

On-the-job training

None

Self-employed

0.2%

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

Key Knowledge Areas

Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.

• Engineering and Technologyimportance 4.4/5
• Production and Processingimportance 4.3/5
• Mechanicalimportance 4.2/5
• Designimportance 4.1/5
• English Languageimportance 4.0/5
• Mathematicsimportance 3.9/5
• Computers and Electronicsimportance 3.8/5
• Administration and Managementimportance 3.5/5

Work Environment

What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.

• E-Mail4.9/5
• Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.9/5
• Telephone Conversations4.7/5
• Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.6/5
• Contact With Others4.5/5
• Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.5/5

Related Careers

• Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians
• Industrial Production Managers
• Mechanical Engineers
• Logisticians
• Engineers, All Other
• Electrical Engineers
• Materials Engineers
• Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians

Careers With Similar Skills

Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.

• Animal Scientists96% skill match
• Microbiologists96% skill match
• Environmental Engineers95% skill match
• Petroleum Engineers95% skill match
• Soil and Plant Scientists94% skill match
• Conservation Scientists94% skill match
• Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health94% skill match
• Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors94% skill match

Transferable Skills

Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.

• Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.9/5
• Systems Analysisimportance 3.3/5
• Systems Evaluationimportance 3.3/5
• Coordinationimportance 3.1/5
• Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.1/5
• Social Perceptivenessimportance 3.0/5
• Instructingimportance 3.0/5
• Time Managementimportance 3.0/5

Software & Technologies

Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.

Work Style

Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.

• Attention to Detail
• Dependability
• Intellectual Curiosity
• Innovation
• Achievement Orientation
• Integrity
• Cautiousness

Career Interests

This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.

• ConventionalHigh
• InvestigativeMedium
• RealisticMedium
• EnterprisingMedium
• ArtisticLow
• SocialLow

Where This Career Is Most Concentrated

Metro areas where industrial engineers make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).

1. 1Columbus, IN7.76× national avg
2. 2Kalamazoo-Portage, MI4.34× national avg
3. 3Sheboygan, WI3.95× national avg
4. 4Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI3.87× national avg
5. 5Peoria, IL3.85× national avg

Possible Career Moves

A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.

• Petroleum EngineersLateral Move
• Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and InspectorsLateral Move
• Materials ScientistsCareer Change
• Environmental EngineersLateral Move

See the full career path from Industrial Engineers →

Related Education Programs

Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.