Also called: Materials Scientist, Research Scientist
Invents new materials, like super-strong alloys, flexible screens or self-healing plastics, by studying atoms and molecules.
You make a new metal alloy in a tiny arc furnace, slice it thin and look at its crystal structure under an electron microscope. Then you test how much it stretches before snapping and compare it with what your computer model predicted.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Doctorate (PhD), about 9 years after high school. PhD in materials science, chemistry or physics is typical for research roles.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Materials Science & Engineering, Chemistry, Physics.
Growing faster than average (about 6% over 10 years). Tracks materials engineers.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI and robot labs now discover candidate materials much faster; making, testing and understanding them still need human researchers.
Classes: AP Chemistry, AP Physics, AP Calculus, Computer science.
Official data: O*NET occupation 19-2032.
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.