Also called: Tire Development Engineer, Tire Design Engineer
Designs tires: the rubber recipe, tread pattern and inner structure that grip the road.
You design a new tread pattern for an electric car tire that must be quiet and long-lasting. You test prototypes on a spinning drum in the lab, then on a wet track to measure how fast the car stops in the rain.
Ohio, the Carolinas and Tennessee are tire industry hubs.
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 mechanical, chemical or polymer engineering.
Ways in: 4-year college. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Mechanical Engineering, Polymer Engineering, Chemical Engineering.
Growing much faster than average (about 9% over 10 years). Tracks mechanical engineers (BLS 2024-34).
Low risk for 10 years. AI predicts tread wear and grip; compounding trials and track testing stay human.
Classes: Chemistry, Physics, Auto shop, Algebra II.
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.