Also called: Flight test engineer, Weapons test engineer, T&E engineer
Plans and runs tests of new missiles, aircraft, and military systems to prove they work before troops use them.
T&E engineers write test plans, sit in control rooms during missile launches or flight tests, analyze data, and report whether a system meets requirements. Many work at desert and ocean test ranges.
Estimate from BLS aerospace engineers.
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 aerospace, electrical, or mechanical engineering.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering.
Growing faster than average (about 6% over 10 years). BLS aerospace engineers projection (approximate).
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI speeds data analysis from tests; planning tests and judging results stay human.
Classes: AP Physics, AP Statistics, AP Calculus.
Official data: O*NET occupation 17-2011.
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.