Also called: Mask Designer, Analog Layout Designer
Draws the actual shapes of transistors and wires that get printed onto a computer chip.
You zoom in on a circuit until individual transistors fill your screen, then draw and connect them like a microscopic puzzle. Rules checkers tell you if two shapes are a few nanometers too close.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Associate's degree (2-year), about 2 years after high school. Associate degree in electronics technology or a bachelor's in electrical engineering; trained on the job.
Ways in: 2-year college, 4-year college, On-the-job training. Training cost: Under $15k.
Majors to look at: Electronics Engineering Technology, Electrical Engineering.
Growing about average (about 2% over 10 years). Tracks electrical and electronics engineering technicians.
Medium risk in 5 years, high in 10. Automated layout generators increasingly draw transistors and wires, shrinking manual layout jobs.
Classes: Electronics CTE, Drafting or CAD, Geometry.
Official data: O*NET occupation 17-3023.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.