Architecture and Engineering · Holland code RIC
Electronics Engineers, Except Computer
Research, design, develop, or test electronic components and systems for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use employing knowledge of electronic theory and materials properties. Design electronic circuits and components for use in fields such as telecommunications, aerospace guidance and propulsion control, acoustics, or instruments and controls.
Also called: Design Engineer, Integrated Circuit Design Engineer (IC Design Engineer), Product Engineer, Test Engineer, Compatibility Test Engineer, Electronics Design Engineer, Engineer, Evaluation Engineer.
O*NET 17-2072.00
At a glance
- US median annual pay
- $130,220
- Middle half earn $101,680 to $167,670. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
- Most common education
- Bachelor's Degree
- 83% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
- Preparation needed
- Job Zone 4 of 5
- Considerable preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
What the work involves
The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.
- Design electronic components, software, products, or systems for commercial, industrial, medical, military, or scientific applications.
- Operate computer-assisted engineering or design software or equipment to perform electronics engineering tasks.
- Evaluate project work to ensure effectiveness, technical adequacy, or compatibility in the resolution of complex electronics engineering problems.
- Direct or coordinate activities concerned with manufacture, construction, installation, maintenance, operation, or modification of electronic equipment, products, or systems.
- Confer with engineers, customers, vendors, or others to discuss existing or potential electronics engineering projects or products.
- Provide technical support or instruction to staff or customers regarding electronics equipment standards.
- Recommend repair or design modifications of electronics components or systems, based on factors such as environment, service, cost, or system capabilities.
- Prepare documentation containing information such as confidential descriptions or specifications of proprietary hardware or software, product development or introduction schedules, product costs, or information about product performance weaknesses.
Skills and knowledge it leans on
Skills
- Reading Comprehension4.0 / 5
- Critical Thinking4.0 / 5
- Speaking3.9 / 5
- Active Listening3.8 / 5
- Writing3.5 / 5
- Mathematics3.5 / 5
Knowledge areas
- Engineering and Technology4.8 / 5
- Computers and Electronics4.5 / 5
- Design4.3 / 5
- Mathematics4.0 / 5
- English Language3.8 / 5
- Mechanical3.2 / 5
Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.
Who tends to enjoy it
How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.
- Realistic87
- Investigative80
- Artistic17
- Social10
- Enterprising10
- Conventional61
The same work abroad
Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.
European occupation titles (ESCO)
- electromagnetic engineer · DE Ingenieur Elektromagnetik/Ingenieurin Elektromagnetik · FR ingénieur en électromagnétisme/ingénieure en électromagnétisme
- electronics engineer · DE Ingenieur Elektronik/Ingenieurin Elektronik · FR ingénieur électronicien/ingénieure électronicienne
- microsystem engineer · DE Ingenieur Mikrosystemtechnik/Ingenieurin Mikrosystemtechnik · FR ingénieur microsystèmes/ingénieure microsystèmes
- sensor engineer · DE Ingenieur Sensortechnik/Ingenieurin Sensortechnik · FR ingénieur spécialité capteurs, instrumentation et mesures/ingénieure spécialité capteurs, instrumentation et mesures
- microelectronics engineer · DE Ingenieur Mikroelektronik/Ingenieurin Mikroelektronik · FR ingénieur en microélectronique/ingénieure en microélectronique
- integrated circuit design engineer · DE IC-Designer/IC-Designerin · FR ingénieur en conception de composants électroniques/ingénieure en conception de composants électroniques
Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)
- Electrical engineers (2123)59,700 employed
- Security system installers and repairers (5245)17,800 employed
- Electronics engineers (professional) (2124)43,900 employed
Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.
Japan
Japan classifies jobs in its own way. The closest category that names the same work is “電気・電子・電気通信技術者（通信ネットワーク技術者を除く）”, which may be narrower or broader than this occupation.
- Median monthly pay
- ¥364,900
- Middle half earn ¥289,900 to ¥468,800 a month.
- Workers in the category
- 334,680
- Regular employees in firms of ten or more.
Scheduled monthly pay before tax, excluding overtime and bonuses, so it is not comparable to the annual figures above. Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025, via e-Stat, under the Japanese Government Standard Terms of Use. The category match was made by hand.
Pay across Europe, for the whole group
Median annual earnings of all employees in “Professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.
| Country | Median pay |
|---|---|
| Belgium | €61,714 |
| Germany | €59,529 |
| Ireland | €56,877 |
| Austria | €55,374 |
| Netherlands | €53,595 |
| Sweden | €43,567 |
| France | €41,515 |
| Spain | €35,735 |
| Italy | €33,649 |
| Portugal | €26,072 |
| Poland | €14,380 |
Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.
Exposure to AI
This occupation sits in the middle third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +0.67. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.
Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.
Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (17-2072).
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