Also called: Gas Turbine Engineer, Compressor Design Engineer
Designs the spinning heart of jet engines, power-plant turbines, pumps and compressors.
You study a turbine blade that spins 10,000 times a minute while glowing hot, and work out how to shave weight without it flying apart. You run stress and heat models, then fly to a test cell to watch a real engine scream at full power while sensors stream data to your laptop.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Master's degree, about 6 years after high school. Bachelor's in mechanical or aerospace engineering; master's strongly preferred.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $60k – $150k.
Majors to look at: Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering.
Growing about average. Steady demand from power generation, aviation and LNG compressors.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI speeds blade optimization and simulation; engine testing, failure analysis and safety-critical design approval remain human work.
Classes: AP Physics, AP Calculus, Chemistry, Engineering design CTE.
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.