Also called: Optics Engineer, Photonics Engineer
Designs and tests systems that use light: cameras, lasers, sensors, fiber optics and imaging equipment.
You build a prototype barcode scanner on an optical bench, aligning lenses and a laser with tiny screws. Then you test how far away it can read a code and figure out why it struggles in bright sunlight.
Rolled into 'engineers, all other' by BLS.
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 optical engineering, physics or electrical engineering; master's common.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Optical Engineering, Optics & Photonics, Physics, Electrical Engineering.
Growing faster than average. Not tracked separately by BLS; photonics demand is growing with AI data centers, lidar and AR.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI design and simulation tools speed routine work; aligning, testing and debugging real optical systems stay hands-on.
Classes: AP Physics, AP Calculus, Computer science, Photography.
Official data: O*NET occupation 17-2199.
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.