Career: Nuclear Engineers
U.S. Department of Energy
No longer the stuff of science fiction, nuclear power provides electricity for much of the world, and scientists are even working on nuclear-powered rockets. What’s more, radiation has many medical uses. It allows us to treat cancer and to see inside the human body without surgery.
Nuclear engineers still face many challenges, however. What should we do with the radioactive waste created by nuclear reactors? How can we prevent accidents at nuclear reactors? If you become a nuclear engineer, you can join in the search for solutions.
Nuclear engineers find ways to use nuclear energy (produced when atoms split or, potentially, when they fuse) and radiation.
Did You Know?
- While in the Navy, former president Jimmy Carter worked on the plans for the first nuclear-powered submarine.
Are You Ready To...?
- Design or maintain nuclear reactors
- Come up with new ways to use radiation in medicine
- Look for safe ways to dispose of nuclear waste
- Research the way radiation leads to illness
- Design new ways to detect radiation
- Study subatomic particles
It Helps to Be...
A math and science fan who’s into environmental issues. If you want to find solutions to today’s energy problems, nuclear engineering may be the field for you.
Make High School Count
- Go for challenging math and science courses, including calculus, physics, chemistry, and biology.
- Take English classes seriously. You’ll need to write about your work.
- Sign up for computer science and computer-assisted drafting.
- Join an engineering club or get others involved in engineering competitions, such as the one offered by JETS (Junior Engineering Technical Society).
- Join the environmental club at your school or volunteer for a related government agency like the National Park Service or nonprofit group like The Sierra Club.
- Volunteer at or tour a hospital to see how nuclear energy and radiation are used in medicine.
“Ever since I became a Star Trek fan, I've wanted to bring about the kind of world depicted in the show, and I discovered that nuclear engineers were leading the way toward that technology.”
Don, freshman, nuclear engineering, Texas A&M University
Outlook
Government economists expect job growth for nuclear engineers to be as fast as the average for all careers through 2016. There should be enough job openings for the small number of nuclear engineering graduates expected. They'll find work running nuclear power plants, designing new ones, and researching new sources of nuclear power. Other areas of work include nuclear medicine and waste management.
Compensation
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the average yearly earnings of nuclear engineers in 2006 as $92,040.
A 2005 survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers found that nuclear engineering bachelor’s degree candidates received starting offers averaging $51,182. Master’s degree candidates averaged $58,814.
