# Nuclear Monitoring Technicians

> Collect and test samples to monitor results of nuclear experiments and contamination of humans, facilities, and environment.

- **SOC code:** 19-4051.02
- **Canonical URL:** https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-4051-02
- **Also known as:** Health Physics Technician (HP Tech), Radiation Protection Specialist (RP Specialist), Radiation Protection Technician (RPT), Radiochemical Technician, Nuclear Chemistry Technician, Radiation Control Technician (Radcon Technician), Radiation Technician, Cathodic Protection Technician
- **Frame:** "AI exposure" means task overlap (how codifiable the work is), not jobs lost or a forecast. Every figure below is traced to a named public dataset.

## What this work is

**Core tasks** (O*NET):
- Brief workers on radiation levels in work areas.
- Calculate safe radiation exposure times for personnel using plant contamination readings and prescribed safe levels of radiation.
- Monitor personnel to determine the amounts and intensities of radiation exposure.
- Provide initial response to abnormal events or to alarms from radiation monitoring equipment.
- Inform supervisors when individual exposures or area radiation levels approach maximum permissible limits.
- Determine intensities and types of radiation in work areas, equipment, or materials, using radiation detectors or other instruments.
- Instruct personnel in radiation safety procedures and demonstrate use of protective clothing and equipment.
- Collect samples of air, water, gases, or solids to determine radioactivity levels of contamination.
- Analyze samples, such as air or water samples, for contaminants or other elements.
- Enter data into computers to record characteristics of nuclear events or to locate coordinates of particles.
- Determine or recommend radioactive decontamination procedures, according to the size and nature of equipment and the degree of contamination.
- Set up equipment that automatically detects area radiation deviations and test detection equipment to ensure its accuracy.

**Emerging tasks** (O*NET):
- Calibrate, maintain, and repair chemical instrumentation sensing elements and sampling system equipment, using calibration instruments and hand tools.
- Document results from radiation and contamination surveys.
- Inspect, test, and maintain respiratory protection equipment.
- Write radiological work permits.

## Skills, tools, capabilities

**Knowledge, skills & abilities** (O*NET, highest importance first):
- Problem Sensitivity _(ability)_
- Oral Comprehension _(ability)_
- Oral Expression _(ability)_
- Deductive Reasoning _(ability)_
- Inductive Reasoning _(ability)_
- Active Listening _(essential_skill)_
- Critical Thinking _(essential_skill)_
- Monitoring _(essential_skill)_
- Written Comprehension _(ability)_
- Near Vision _(ability)_
- Reading Comprehension _(essential_skill)_
- Operations Monitoring _(transferable_skill)_

**Skills in demand:**
- Inductive Reasoning _(Common Skill)_
- Deductive Reasoning _(Common Skill)_
- Critical Thinking _(Common Skill)_
- Active Listening _(Common Skill)_
- Reading Comprehension _(Common Skill)_
- Information Ordering _(Specialized Skill)_
- Physics _(Specialized Skill)_
- Mathematics _(Common Skill)_
- Instructing _(Specialized Skill)_
- Writing _(Common Skill)_
- Speech Recognition _(Specialized Skill)_
- Learning Strategies _(Specialized Skill)_

**Tools & technology:**
- Microsoft Azure software _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Excel _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Office software _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft PowerPoint _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Windows _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Windows Server _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Word _(hot technology)_
- Oracle Java _(hot technology)_
- Structured query language SQL _(hot technology)_
- AVEVA InTouch HMI
- Connectivity software

## AI exposure & outlook

- **AI task-overlap index:** 44th percentile (Moderate) across all occupations — composite of current-era exposure studies (ai-exposure-index-v1).
- **Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.):** 53rd percentile (Moderate) — source: felten_aioe.
- **LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou):** 32nd percentile (Low) — source: eloundou_gamma.
- **AI assistant applicability (Microsoft):** 51st percentile (Moderate) — source: microsoft_applicability.
- **Frey–Osborne (2013, historical computerization estimate):** 71st percentile — kept separate from current-era studies.
- **Remote-capable (Dingel–Neiman):** no — task structure, not who actually works remote.
- **Projected employment (BLS 2024–34):** -7.7% growth (Declining); 0.7k annual openings; 6k → 5.5k jobs.
- **Pay & employment (BLS OEWS, May 2024):** median $104,240; 5,990 employed.

## Sources

- **O*NET** (30.3) — U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)** (May 2024) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS Employment Projections** (2024–2034) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **Anthropic Economic Index** (v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27)) — Anthropic. https://www.anthropic.com/economic-index
- **Microsoft “Working with AI”** (working-with-ai) — Microsoft Research. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/
- **“GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.)** (arXiv 2303.10130) — OpenAI / academic. https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130
- **AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE)** (Felten, Raj & Seamans) — academic. https://github.com/AIOE-Data/AIOE
- **Frey & Osborne (2013)** (frey-osborne-automation) — academic. https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/publications/the-future-of-employment/
- **Dingel & Neiman (2020)** (dingel-neiman-workathome) — academic. https://github.com/jdingel/DingelNeiman-workathome

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_Generated from Singulariki's joined dataset; data snapshot 2026-06-02T21:00:32.945303+00:00. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-4051-02_