Also called: Relay Protection Engineer, Grid Protection Engineer
Sets up the electrical 'circuit breakers' of the power grid so faults are cut off in a split second before they cause blackouts.
You model what happens if a tree falls on a high-voltage line and calculate the exact settings for relays that must trip within milliseconds. You review fault recordings from last night's storm and figure out whether the protection system did its job.
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 electrical engineering with power focus; PE license common.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Electrical Engineering, Electrical & Computer Engineering.
Growing faster than average (about 7% over 10 years). Grid upgrades and renewables are creating a shortage of power engineers.
Low risk for 10 years. Software automates relay settings checks and fault studies; grid-safety judgment, field commissioning and PE accountability stay human and in demand.
Classes: AP Physics, Algebra II, Computer science, Electrical CTE.
Official data: O*NET occupation 17-2071.
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.