Also called: CCUS Engineer, Direct Air Capture Engineer
Designs plants that pull carbon dioxide out of smokestacks or straight from the air and lock it away underground.
You size giant fans and chemical filters for a plant that sucks CO2 out of the air. You run simulations on how much energy it uses and meet with geologists about where the gas will be stored a mile underground.
Young field; pay varies a lot between startups and big energy firms.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's in chemical engineering; master's helpful.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Chemical Engineering, Environmental Engineering.
Growing faster than average. Growing but depends on climate policy and tax credits.
Low risk for 10 years. AI helps screen capture materials and model plants; designing, building and running first-of-a-kind facilities stays human.
Classes: AP Chemistry, Environmental science, AP Calculus, Earth science.
Official data: O*NET occupation 17-2041.
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.