Materials engineers

Add Comparison

2019 Workforce

50.9k

Average Age

41.4

Estimated Job Growth

1.85%

10-year projection

Average Salary

$88,609

Average Male Salary

$87,978

Average Female Salary

$91,971

About

Materials engineers are most often employed by the Electronic component & product manufacturing, n.e.c. industry. The average yearly wage for Materials engineers was $88,609 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Materials engineers by wage are Audiologists, Computer programmers, and Construction managers.

Materials engineers are part of the Architecture & engineering occupations, along with Architects, except landscape and naval, Landscape architects, Surveyors, cartographers, & photogrammetrists, Aerospace engineers, Chemical engineers, and 16 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Materials engineers are Hillsboro City PUMA, OR, Chandler City (South) PUMA, AZ, and Youngstown City, Boardman & Austintown PUMA, OH. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Materials engineers are Hillsboro City PUMA, OR, Chandler City (South) PUMA, AZ, and Livonia City & Redford Charter Township PUMA, MI.

Management, business, science, & arts occupations Computer, engineering, & science occupations Architecture & engineering occupations

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Materials engineers and on wages and locations for those in the field. Electronic component & product manufacturing, n.e.c. is the industry that employs the most Materials engineers, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Materials engineers, by average wage, is Aerospace products & parts manufacturing. Materials engineers are paid most in Hillsboro City PUMA, OR but are relatively concentrated in Hillsboro City PUMA, OR.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$88,609

AVERAGE SALARY

± $4,520

In 2019, Materials engineers earned an average of $88,609, $33,085 more than than the average national salary of $55,524.

Audiologists make somewhat more than Materials engineers while Computer programmers make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Materials engineers as measured by average annual salary in the US.

Wage Distribution

0.24

WAGE GINI

In 2017, Materials engineers had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.24, which is lower than than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Materials engineers (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Materials engineers.

Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Materials engineers

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Materials engineers.

Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Materials engineers, by number of employees, are Electronic component & product manufacturing, n.e.c. , Aircraft & parts manufacturing, and Motor vehicles & motor vehicle equipment manufacturing.

Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Materials engineers, by average wage, are Aerospace products & parts manufacturing, Petroleum refining, Petroleum refining, Aerospace products & parts manufacturing, Aerospace products & parts manufacturing, Nonferrous metal (except aluminum) production & processing, Computer & peripheral equipment manufacturing, Architectural, engineering & related services, Navigational, measuring, electromedical, & control instruments manufacturing, Foundries, Communications, & audio & video equipment manufacturing, Communications, & audio & video equipment manufacturing, Foundries, Electronic component & product manufacturing, n.e.c. , Aircraft & parts manufacturing, National security & international affairs, Ship & boat building, and Iron & steel mills & steel product manufacturing.

Industries by Share

50.9k

2019 Workforce

± 5,537

26.4%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 13%

The number of people employed as Materials engineers has been growing at a rate of 26.4%, from 40,239 people in 2018 to 50,878 people in 2019.

This graphic shows the share of Materials engineers employed by various industries. Electronic component & product manufacturing, n.e.c. employs the largest share of Materials engineers at 19.2%, followed by Aircraft & parts manufacturing with 13.8% and Motor vehicles & motor vehicle equipment manufacturing with 8.27%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Materials engineers in the US. The average age of male Materials engineers in the workforce is 42.1 and of female Materials engineers is 37.8, and the most common race/ethnicity for Materials engineers is White (Non-Hispanic).

Gender Composition

42.8k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 5,081

8.03k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 2,200

84.2% of Materials engineers are Male, making them the more common gender in the occupation. This chart shows the gender breakdown of Materials engineers.

Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Materials engineers

White (Non-Hispanic)
Asian (Non-Hispanic)
White (Hispanic)

75.3% of Materials engineers are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 12.1% of Materials engineers, Asian (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Materials engineers.

Age by Gender

42.1

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 1.56

37.8

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 3.5

The median age of Materials engineers is 41.4, and Male employees are generally 4.25 years older than than their Female counterparts.

Education

Data on higher education choices for Materials engineers from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Materials engineers is Engineering but a relatively high number of Materials engineers hold a major in Engineering.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

MOST COMMON MAJORS

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Materials engineers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Materials engineers need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension, Science, and Critical Thinking. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Materials engineers need more than the average amount of Science, Technology Design, and Operations Analysis.

Radar Distribution

Bar Chart

Growth Projections

Projections on wages and job growth for Materials engineers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The ten-year national workforce is projected to grow 6.85%, but Materials engineers are expected to see a growth of 1.85% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow slower than the national average.

Job Growth

1.85%

ESTIMATED GROWTH

6.85%

NATIONAL AVERAGE

This line chart shows the 10-year projected employment growth (from 2018 to 2028) for Materials engineers. This profession is expected to grow lower than 6.85%, the average rate of national job growth.