Architecture and Engineering · Holland code RIC
Fuel Cell Engineers
Design, evaluate, modify, or construct fuel cell components or systems for transportation, stationary, or portable applications.
Also called: Engineer, Fuel Cell Engineer, Research Engineer, Stack Engineer.
O*NET 17-2141.01
At a glance
- US median annual pay
- $104,110
- Middle half earn $84,130 to $132,590. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
- Most common education
- Bachelor's Degree
- 57% 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.
- US employment outlook, 2024 to 2034
- +9% · Much faster than average
- 293,100 jobs in 2024, projected 319,600. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which groups this with similar roles as "Mechanical engineers".
What the work involves
The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.
- Plan or conduct experiments to validate new materials, optimize startup protocols, reduce conditioning time, or examine contaminant tolerance.
- Provide technical consultation or direction related to the development or production of fuel cell systems.
- Characterize component or fuel cell performances by generating operating maps, defining operating conditions, identifying design refinements, or executing durability assessments.
- Plan or implement fuel cell cost reduction or product improvement projects in collaboration with other engineers, suppliers, support personnel, or customers.
- Conduct fuel cell testing projects, using fuel cell test stations, analytical instruments, or electrochemical diagnostics, such as cyclic voltammetry or impedance spectroscopy.
- Analyze fuel cell or related test data, using statistical software.
- Conduct post-service or failure analyses, using electromechanical diagnostic principles or procedures.
- Define specifications for fuel cell materials.
Skills and knowledge it leans on
Skills
- Reading Comprehension4.0 / 5
- Critical Thinking4.0 / 5
- Writing3.8 / 5
- Speaking3.8 / 5
- Science3.8 / 5
- Active Listening3.6 / 5
Knowledge areas
- Engineering and Technology4.6 / 5
- Chemistry4.0 / 5
- Design3.9 / 5
- Mathematics3.9 / 5
- Physics3.6 / 5
- Computers and Electronics3.5 / 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.
- Realistic76
- Investigative73
- Artistic14
- Social7
- Enterprising25
- Conventional51
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)
- aerospace engineer · DE Ingenieur Luft- und Raumfahrttechnik/Ingenieurin Luft- und Raumfahrttechnik · FR ingénieur en aérospatiale/ingénieure en aérospatiale
- aerodynamics engineer · DE Ingenieur Aerodynamik/Ingenieurin Aerodynamik · FR aérodynamicien/aérodynamicienne
- engine designer · DE Fahrzeug- und Motoreningenieur/Fahrzeug- und Motoreningenieurin · FR ingénieur qualité moteur/ingénieure qualité moteur
- liquid fuel engineer · DE Ingenieur Flüssigbrennstoffe/Ingenieurin Flüssigbrennstoffe · FR ingénieur combustibles liquides/ingénieure combustibles liquides
- calculation engineer · DE Berechnungsingenieur/Berechnungsingenieurin · FR ingénieur calcul/ingénieure calcul
- component engineer · DE Ingenieur Bauteile und Komponenten/Ingenieurin Bauteile und Komponenten · FR ingénieur pièces détachées/ingénieure pièces détachées
Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)
- Mechanical engineers (professional) (2122)94,400 employed
- Quantity surveyors (2453)45,300 employed
- Engineering professionals n.e.c. (2129)124,800 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.
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 higher third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +1.00. 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 (17-2141).
Related careers
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