Career prospects with undergraduate degree in materials science

December 3, 2008 12:57 PM

What careers would be open to me if I had a B.S. in materials science? More specifically, who would I work for, where could I find work, and how would I spend my days? I realize that there are probably a lot of possibilities, but I'm interested in hearing about as many of them as possible.

Although right now I'm primarily curious about what I could do with a B.S., if you have insights about options that would open up with graduate degrees, feel free to share.

posted by martinX's bellbottoms to work & money (7 comments total)

Materials is where it's at right now. Aerospace is big on materials science - new alloys that are lightweight yet strong for structural components, high temperature resistance for turbomachinery, and even cool exotic stuff like materials that have a "memory", shape morphing, etc.

How do you change the shape of a wing without any motors or joints? Materials. Go for it.
posted by backseatpilot at 1:07 PM on December 3, 2008

There are also places you can contribute to the renewable energy industry, looking at polysilicon wafers in solar cells, for example, or designs of turbine blades. Be warned, however, that some early stage startups (for example, 1366 Technologies, which a former colleague of mine started) are only hiring PhDs at first. Try looking for more established companies who might be more willing to let someone in with a BS.
posted by olinerd at 1:47 PM on December 3, 2008

An anecdotal data point for you: a friend of mine with a BS in Materials is now working at Powerfilm, a solar panel company that makes thin, flexible solar panels. This will likely be a hot field in the future.

Why not talk to a few professors in a department you are considering? I am sure they keep track of their recent grads (departments like to brag about that kind of thing) and that will probably give you a better idea of what types of jobs are hot right now. Also some companies recruit heavily at certain universities -- where you go may be a big factor in where you end up getting your first job.
posted by sararah at 4:31 PM on December 3, 2008

Become a patent lawyer.
posted by jabberjaw at 5:42 PM on December 3, 2008

I was working with a bunch of materials scientists earlier this year. It really surprised me how easily they could get work and the breadth of work available.

Materials science is really wide, depending on what you like and what you're good at your could work in labs for defence, labs for medicine, general labs like NIST, universities, manufacturing and the list goes on.

With a materials science degree you could also get another post grad qualification and be someone who actually understands the technical stuff they are dealing with in a non-technical position as suggested in the earlier comment about patent law. Other examples of this would be a specialist economist or government technical position.

You might want to look through some journals on materials science to see just how widely materials science is applied.
posted by sien at 6:46 PM on December 3, 2008

Terrific choice of pursuit / major / career. If you plan to stop with a BS, minor in an engineering or architectural field and that will guide you. If plastics are your thing, chemistry minor; if you are interested in applications take up biology (medical devices); mechanical engineering (aforementioned aerostructures, solar panels, automotive alloys and processes); structural engineering (concrete, application of plastic films or structural panels); electrical engineering (corrosion); interior design (electrochromic windows and color-variable fixtures). If you're into research you will need an advanced degree and an undergrad degree in any of the sciences will give you applications knowledge - but pick the applications that interest you unless you're headed for a doctorate.

Corrosion engineering is a neglected and essential field and I know very, very comfortable (old) individuals and no young ones who consult for oil companies on what alloys - and what strategies - are useful for prolonging the life of drilling and pipeline equipment.
posted by jet_silver at 9:35 PM on December 3, 2008

The challenge with Materials Science (says a Prof with a BS and a PhD in MSE) is that it's often too damned broad, so your career options will depend on:

1) your specific interests (polymers? structural properties? electronic properties? etc.)
2) how you've demonstrated depth of knowledge (undergrad research is pretty common MSE),
3) Any geographical considerations (if you're going to be in Silicon Valley, you'll be better suited with electronic properties; if you're in the Rust Belt, old-fashioned metallurgy is good to know.)
4) whether you get a MS or a PhD. With an advanced degree (esp. a PhD), research becomes an option, while with a BS, not quite as much.

When I was in undergrad, my options with a BS were companies like Intel (doing process engineering), companies like 3M (mostly glorified technician jobs with a BS), consulting (using analytical skills, but not so much of what I learned), metallurgy (those old guys are retiring), etc. With a PhD, your options become quite broad.

I'm happy to provide more details or discuss your options for grad school in MSE. It's often called a growing field, but in practice, it's several growing fields which are lumped into one discipline.
posted by JMOZ at 10:41 AM on December 4, 2008