Also called: AE Testing Technician, Acoustic Emission NDT Technician
Listens to the tiny "pings" metal and fiberglass make as they crack under load, to find hidden damage in tanks, booms and bridges.
You glue palm-sized sensors onto a giant pressure tank, then the plant slowly pumps it up while your laptop records every snap and crackle inside the steel. Patterns of sound tell you where a crack is growing. Another day you test the fiberglass boom of a utility bucket truck before a lineworker trusts it.
Travel and overtime push field pay up.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Certificate, about 2 years after high school. High school or associate degree plus ASNT acoustic emission Level I and II training and logged field hours.
Ways in: On-the-job training, Certification, 2-year college. Training cost: Under $15k.
Majors to look at: Nondestructive Testing Technology, Engineering Technology, Mechanical Engineering Technology.
Growing about average. Steady demand from refineries, utilities and aging infrastructure.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI helps sort signals and spot crack patterns; mounting sensors and judging results on real tanks stays human.
Classes: Physics, Algebra II, Engineering CTE class, Computer class.
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.