The median annual wage for nuclear engineers was $102,950 in May 2015.
The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $66,650, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $152,220.
In May 2015, the median annual wages for nuclear engineers in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:
Research and development in the physical, engineering, and life sciences
$116,190
Engineering services
105,040
Electric power generation, transmission and distribution
103,500
Manufacturing
93,770
Federal government, excluding postal service
92,030
The majority of nuclear engineers work full time, and about 1 in 3 worked more than 40 hours per week in 2014. Their schedules may vary with the industries in which they work.
Union Membership
Compared with workers in all occupations, nuclear engineers had a higher percentage of workers who belonged to a union in 2014.
Nuclear Engineers
Median annual wages, May 2015
Nuclear engineers
$102,950
Engineers
$90,060
Total, all occupations
$36,200
Note: All Occupations includes all occupations in the U.S. Economy. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics