Materials Engineers: Salary, Job Description, How To Become One, and Quiz

Job description

Materials Engineers evaluate materials and develop machinery and processes to manufacture materials for use in products that must meet specialized design and performance specifications. Develop new uses for known materials. Includes those engineers working with composite materials or specializing in one type of material, such as graphite, metal and metal alloys, ceramics and glass, plastics and polymers, and naturally occurring materials. Includes metallurgists and metallurgical engineers, ceramic engineers, and welding engineers.

• Review new product plans and make recommendations for material selection, based on design objectives such as strength, weight, heat resistance, electrical conductivity, and cost.
• Supervise the work of technologists, technicians, and other engineers and scientists.
• Analyze product failure data and laboratory test results to determine causes of problems and develop solutions.
• Conduct or supervise tests on raw materials or finished products to ensure their quality.

Salary

Materials Engineers with little to no experience tend to make between $57110 and $71960 while the more experienced ones can earn over $119360 per year.

One of the easiest ways to increase your salary as a Materials Engineer is to move to a higher paying state like NM. Right now, the highest paying states for Materials Engineers are NM, MD, TN, LA and CA.

However, a higher pay at NM doesn’t guarantee that you will make more because the living expenses at NM might be twice as high than where you are currently at now.

Three other factors that can increase your salary as a Materials Engineer is the degree you hold, the industry you work in, and lastly the company you work for.

Requirements

We asked other Materials Engineers what degree they had when they got the job and most of them said they had a Bachelor’s Degree followed by a Master’s Degree.

Other than that, we also asked them what did they major in and here are the most popular majors that came up.

Pros and Cons

Here are some of the pros and cons of being a Materials Engineer.

What is the job like

65% of Materials Engineers said they were satisfied with their job and 50% said they feel like their job is making other people’s lives better.

Is this right for me

You can read more about these career personality types here.

People who are suitable for this job tends to like working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. They like searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally..

They also like work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They like working with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

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