Also called: Laser Applications Specialist
Figures out how lasers can cut, weld, mark, or 3D-print a customer's product.
A customer sends you a box of parts and asks whether a laser can weld them faster than their current method. You run trials in the applications lab, examine the welds under a microscope, and present results. You travel to factories to help install and tune new laser systems.
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 engineering, physics, or laser/photonics technology.
Ways in: 4-year college, 2-year college. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Mechanical Engineering, Physics, Laser & Photonics Technology, Manufacturing Engineering.
Growing about average. BLS does not project this specialty separately; rating estimated from related occupations.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI suggests settings, but running weld trials on real parts and installing systems at factories stay human.
Classes: Physics, Welding or manufacturing CTE, Algebra II.
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.