Nuclear Engineers
Architecture and Engineering · SOC 17-2161
AI exposure from the Anthropic Economic Index (2025); salary from BLS; skills from O*NET. See /sources.
Decision card
Career Evidence Passport
SOC 17-2161 evidence across exposure, wages, projections, postings, certified LCAs, skills, and transitions.
- SOC exposure
- 0.0%
- Low · Anthropic AEI
- Automation friction
- 50/100
- Moderate friction; broad SOC seed ORS job-requirements coverage.
- Wages
- $133,970
- H-1B offered wage $117,291; LCAs are filings.
- Projected openings
- 1,100
- BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change -1.1%.
- Observed/proxy demand
- 68
- FY2025 certified LCAs; 1,774 postings in 2025.
Skill evidence
Transition context
- H-1B values are certified Labor Condition Applications, not visa approvals.
- Job postings are seed-static / seed-derived; treat as provider-ready proxy coverage until observed provider data is wired in.
- Transition matches are directional skill-overlap context, not placement guarantees.
- This release is a FutureGrid broad-SOC seed derived from public BLS ORS requirement concepts and categories, not direct occupation-level ORS survey estimates. It describes job requirements, not worker ability, AI capability, or displacement probability. Automation friction is a FutureGrid derived score and should be read alongside exposure, demand, wage, and projection signals.
AI Exposure Analysis
Across AI measures
Multiple exposure lenses for this occupation.
AI could do ~55% of this role but only ~0% is currently done with AI — a large capability-vs-adoption gap.
Top Skills
H-1B Visa Sponsorship Demand
View full H-1B trends →Certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications naming this occupation, FY2016–FY2025. A descriptive high-skill labor-demand signal — employer filings, not visa approvals or individual outcomes. Note: one LCA can cover multiple worker positions.
O*NET occupation profile
What this work involves
Conduct research on nuclear engineering projects or apply principles and theory of nuclear science to problems concerned with release, control, and use of nuclear energy and nuclear waste disposal.
Common titles: Engineer, Nuclear Design Engineer, Nuclear Engineer, Nuclear Licensing Engineer, Nuclear Process Engineer, Nuclear Reactor Engineer
Representative Tasks
- •Design or develop nuclear equipment, such as reactor cores, radiation shielding, or associated instrumentation or control mechanisms.
- •Monitor nuclear facility operations to identify any design, construction, or operation practices that violate safety regulations and laws or could jeopardize safe operations.
- •Initiate corrective actions or order plant shutdowns in emergency situations.
- •Examine accidents to obtain data for use in design of preventive measures.
- •Direct operating or maintenance activities of nuclear power plants to ensure efficiency and conformity to safety standards.
Detailed Work Activities
- •Design energy production or management equipment or systems.
- •Monitor processes for compliance with standards.
- •Resolve operational performance problems.
- •Investigate safety of work environment.
- •Direct energy production or management activities.
Tools & Technologies
Employment Projections & AI Exposure
Employment & Wage Trend
BLS OEWS, 2019–2025
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). See /sources.
Sector Comparison
| Metric | This Career | Sector Average |
|---|---|---|
| AI Exposure | 0.0% | 4.5% |
| Outlook | Average | 15% Bright |
| Median Salary | $133,970 | N/A |
| AI Resiliency | 100/100 | N/A |