Materials Engineers
What Materials Engineers Do
Evaluate materials and develop machinery and processes to manufacture materials for use in products that must meet specialized design and performance specifications. Develop new uses for known materials. Includes those engineers working with composite materials or specializing in one type of material, such as graphite, metal and metal alloys, ceramics and glass, plastics and polymers, and naturally occurring materials. Includes metallurgists and metallurgical engineers, ceramic engineers, and welding engineers.
See full salary breakdown & percentiles →
Career Outlook
National employment outlook, 2024–2034.
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- None
- Self-employed
- Not available
Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.
How Much Preparation Does This Take?
Job Zone 4 of 5Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
- Experience
- A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations.
- Education
- Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
- Job training
- Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Source: O*NET Job Zones.
Key Knowledge Areas
Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.
- Engineering and Technologyimportance 4.3/5
- Chemistryimportance 4.3/5
- Physicsimportance 4.2/5
- Production and Processingimportance 4.1/5
- Mathematicsimportance 4.1/5
- English Languageimportance 3.9/5
- Designimportance 3.6/5
- Computers and Electronicsimportance 3.4/5
Work Environment
What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.
- E-Mail5.0/5
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.7/5
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.5/5
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.4/5
- Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets4.3/5
- Telephone Conversations4.2/5
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.
- Materials Scientists95% skill match
- Agricultural Engineers93% skill match
- Commercial and Industrial Designers92% skill match
- Nuclear Engineers92% skill match
- Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers92% skill match
- Soil and Plant Scientists91% skill match
- Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors91% skill match
- Prosthodontists91% 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 4.0/5
- Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.3/5
- Instructingimportance 3.1/5
- Service Orientationimportance 3.1/5
- Operations Analysisimportance 3.1/5
- Quality Control Analysisimportance 3.1/5
- Systems Analysisimportance 3.1/5
- Social Perceptivenessimportance 3.0/5
Software & Technologies
Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.
Hot Technologies
Other Software Used
- ANSYS Multiphysics
- Dassault Systemes CATIA
- Digital image correlation DIC software
- Fault detection isolation and recovery FDIR software
- Finite element analysis software
- Formula translation/translator FORTRAN
- Fused deposition modeling FDM rapid prototyping systems
- Graphics software
Work Style
Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.
- Attention to Detail
- Innovation
- Intellectual Curiosity
- Dependability
- Cautiousness
- Achievement Orientation
- Integrity
Career Interests
This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.
- RealisticHigh
- InvestigativeHigh
- ConventionalMedium
- ArtisticLow
- EnterprisingLow
- SocialLow
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Where This Career Is Most Concentrated
Metro areas where materials engineers make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).
- 1Boulder, CO7.58× national avg
- 2Huntsville, AL7.07× national avg
- 3Toledo, OH6.00× national avg
- 4Decatur, AL5.83× national avg
- 5Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH4.85× national avg
Possible Career Moves
A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.
- Materials ScientistsCareer Change
- Chemical EngineersLateral Move
- Industrial EngineersLateral Move
- Commercial and Industrial DesignersCareer Change
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.
Materials Engineering
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (Champaign, IL)grads earn ~$97,924
- Stanford University (Stanford, CA)
- University of Florida (Gainesville, FL)grads earn ~$87,779
- Northwestern University (Evanston, IL)
- Purdue University-Main Campus (West Lafayette, IN)grads earn ~$107,557
Textile Sciences and Engineering
- North Carolina State University at Raleigh (Raleigh, NC)grads earn ~$71,837
- North Carolina State University at Raleigh (Raleigh, NC)grads earn ~$89,842
- North Carolina State University at Raleigh (Raleigh, NC)
- North Carolina State University at Raleigh (Raleigh, NC)
- Thomas Jefferson University (Philadelphia, PA)
Polymer/Plastics Engineering
- Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Erie-Behrend College (Erie, PA)grads earn ~$87,636
- University of Massachusetts-Lowell (Lowell, MA)grads earn ~$100,428
- University of Massachusetts-Lowell (Lowell, MA)grads earn ~$107,285
- Western Washington University (Bellingham, WA)grads earn ~$92,439
- Pennsylvania College of Technology (Williamsport, PA)grads earn ~$88,433