Also called: Terminal Ballistics Engineer, Ballistician
Studies how projectiles fly and what happens when they hit, to design better protection and munitions.
You fire test rounds through high-speed cameras capturing a million frames a second, then compare the impact with computer simulations. Some days are spent outdoors at a firing range; others writing reports and models.
Mostly Army and Navy research labs.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Master's degree, about 6 years after high school. Master's in mechanical or aerospace engineering or physics.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $60k – $150k.
Majors to look at: Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Physics.
Growing much faster than average (about 9% over 10 years). Mechanical engineers overall; tiny specialty.
Low risk for 10 years. AI helps simulate impacts; live-fire tests and classified design work stay human.
Classes: AP Physics, AP Calculus, Chemistry, Computer science.
Official data: O*NET occupation 17-2141.
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.