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Microsystems Engineers vs Materials Scientists

Side-by-side · O*NET · BLS · AI-exposure research · Anthropic Economic Index

A factual, source-backed comparison of Microsystems Engineers and Materials Scientists on the dimensions both occupations carry. Every figure is a position within an independent published dataset — not a verdict on which job is better, safer, or more “future-proof.”

Microsystems Engineers Materials Scientists
Median pay · BLS OEWS
$117,750
$104,160
Employment · BLS OEWS
150,750
8,330
AI exposure (percentile) · task overlap, not automation
71st pct
78th pct

At a glance

Dimension Microsystems Engineers Materials Scientists
Median pay $117,750 $104,160
Employment 150,750 8,330
Employment outlook (2024–34) · BLS projection About average (+2.1%) About average (+4.9%)
Annual openings · BLS projection 9,300 600
Typical education · O*NET Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree). Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
AI exposure · published exposure studies High · 71st pct High · 78th pct
Global GenAI gradient · ILO ISCO-08 · via crosswalk 57th pct · 30% of tasks 62nd pct · 34% of tasks
Observed AI use · Anthropic Economic Index Augmentation-leaning (59.2%) Augmentation-leaning (49.0%)
Mostly remote-capable · Dingel–Neiman Yes No

Pay and employment are BLS OEWS estimates; outlook and openings are BLS 2024–2034 projections; AI exposure and observed-use figures come from separate research and reflect exposure and usage, not predictions that either job will disappear. Compare like with like.

Skills

Shared: Computers and Electronics, Engineering and Technology, Oral Comprehension, Written Comprehension, Mathematics, Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Physics, Design, Complex Problem Solving, Oral Expression, Deductive Reasoning, Inductive Reasoning, Writing, Written Expression, Problem Sensitivity, Speaking, Science, Monitoring, Judgment and Decision Making, Fluency of Ideas, Information Ordering, Active Learning, Systems Evaluation, Originality, Category Flexibility, Near Vision, Speech Recognition, English Language, Mathematics, Mathematical Reasoning, Speech Clarity, Production and Processing.

Specific to Microsystems Engineers

  • Systems Analysis
  • Time Management
  • Visualization
  • Selective Attention
  • Learning Strategies
  • Operations Monitoring

Specific to Materials Scientists

  • Chemistry
  • Mechanical
  • Flexibility of Closure
  • Persuasion
  • Operations Analysis
  • Number Facility

Knowledge, skills & abilities O*NET rates as important for each occupation. “Shared” are common to both; the columns list what is distinctive to each (top by the order O*NET surfaces).

Tools & technology

Shared: Development environment software , Object or component oriented development software , Web platform development software , Data base user interface and query software , Spreadsheet software , Office suite software , Electronic mail software , Presentation software , Word processing software , Analytical or scientific software .

Specific to Microsystems Engineers

Specific to Materials Scientists

Full profiles

This page is a summary. See the complete source-backed profile for Microsystems Engineers or Materials Scientists — tasks, the full skill graph, tools, work context, preparation, wages by percentile, industries, AI exposure and the AI work map.

More comparisons

Related occupations you can place side by side on the same sourced scale.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

Cite this page
Plain

Singulariki. "Microsystems Engineers vs Materials Scientists." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/compare/microsystems-engineers-vs-materials-scientists

APA

Singulariki. (2026). Microsystems Engineers vs Materials Scientists. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/compare/microsystems-engineers-vs-materials-scientists

BibTeX 
@misc{singulariki-microsystems-engineers-vs-materials-scientists,
  title  = {Microsystems Engineers vs Materials Scientists},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/compare/microsystems-engineers-vs-materials-scientists}
}

Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.