Also called: Core Design Engineer, Nuclear Analyst
Calculates how neutrons behave inside a reactor core to design fuel layouts that are safe and efficient.
You run simulations of a reactor core with 50,000 fuel rods and figure out where to place fresh and used fuel so power stays even. You check that the reactor can always be shut down safely, no matter what goes wrong.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Master's degree, about 6 years after high school. Master's or PhD in nuclear engineering or physics.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $60k – $150k.
Majors to look at: Nuclear Engineering, Physics.
Shrinking (about -1% over 10 years). Tracks nuclear engineers; small modular reactor startups are adding jobs.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI surrogate models speed core calculations, but regulators demand validated codes; human physicists sign off on every safety margin.
Classes: AP Physics C, AP Calculus, AP Computer Science, Statistics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 17-2161.
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.