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Alamo Colleges DistrictCareer Explorer

Human Factors Engineers and Ergonomists

Part of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics, in the Engineering and Technology pathway.

Bright outlookJob zone 5: extensive preparationO*NET 17-2112.01

What the work is

Design objects, facilities, and environments to optimize human well-being and overall system performance, applying theory, principles, and data regarding the relationship between humans and respective technology. Investigate and analyze characteristics of human behavior and performance as it relates to the use of technology.

On a typical day

  • Write, review, or comment on documents, such as proposals, test plans, or procedures.
  • Train users in task techniques or ergonomic principles.
  • Review health, safety, accident, or worker compensation records to evaluate safety program effectiveness or to identify jobs with high incidence of injury.
  • Provide human factors technical expertise on topics, such as advanced user-interface technology development or the role of human users in automated or autonomous sub-systems in advanced vehicle systems.
  • Investigate theoretical or conceptual issues, such as the human design considerations of lunar landers or habitats.
  • Estimate time or resource requirements for ergonomic or human factors research or development projects.

What it pays

$99,110
Median pay per year, San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX metro
New workers start near $70,810
Experienced workers reach $151,590
  1. $71k10th
  2. $83k25th
  3. $99kMedian
  4. $125k75th
  5. $152k90th
Wage percentiles: 10th $70,810, 25th $82,870, Median $99,110, 75th $124,640, 90th $151,590

About 1,670 people do this job in the San Antonio area.

Job outlook

Alamo region (Bexar and 12 surrounding counties), Texas Workforce Commission projection 2024 to 2034. U.S. figures from the BLS for comparison.

+24.2%

employment change in the Alamo region, 1,608 to 1,997 jobs · U.S. +11%

143

openings a year in the Alamo region, from growth and people leaving · U.S. 25,200

1,608

employed in the Alamo region in 2024 · U.S. 351,100

Typical entry education: Bachelor's degree

Skills this career uses

The skills O*NET rates most important for the job, with how much of each the work needs on a 1 to 7 scale.

  1. Reading Comprehension4.8
  2. Active Listening4.4
  3. Writing4.4
  4. Speaking4.4
  5. Critical Thinking4.4
  6. Complex Problem Solving4.0
  7. Active Learning4.3
  8. Judgment and Decision Making4.4

Education people in this job have

Share of workers by highest education, from O*NET surveys. It shows what others did, not what you must do.

  1. Bachelor's degree50%
  2. Master's degree50%

Job zone 5, extensive preparation: A graduate or professional degree, usually after a bachelor's.

Alamo programs that lead here

No Alamo program is mapped to this career yet. Many careers start from a transfer pre-major or a related program.

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