What is Materials Science and Engineering and what can you do with it?
As a material science engineer you’re likely to come across this question, and multiple times.
For those of you who don’t know, materials are anything you touch — metals, plastics, ceramics, composites, fibers, and more! Materials science is incorporated into every aspect of our daily lives, from sportswear to food packaging to renewable materials to the cars we drive.
Materials science and engineering (MSE) is manipulation of the properties and structure of materials for different applications. Incorporating elements of physics and chemistry, materials scientists work to alter the fundamental attributes of matter to improve strength, make devices smaller, and more. The main aspects explored within MSE are processing, structure, and properties, all of which influence each other and the overall performance. By changing processing constraints, you can change how a material forms or its behavior. Changing the structure also changes its behavior and the general material shape. These changes are made to materials at the atomic, nano- and microlevels! Properties that can be altered include, but are not limited to: mechanical (strength, flexibility, toughness, elasticity), electrical (conductivity, power, etc.), chemical, optical, and thermal.
Fields of study within MSE goes beyond physics and chemistry into mechanical engineering, biomedical engineering and biology, civil engineering, computer science, chemical engineering, and electrical engineering — it just depends which direction you take your studies! Careers with MSE can be at a desk working on theory or designing new materials, in the lab developing experiments and new products, or as teachers and professors, or working in management and deciding the path and future of innovation. Materials engineers:
- Plan, evaluate and execute projects
- Design and test products
- Supervise labs and project progress
- Determine the impact of a new material
- Examine material performance and degradation
- Examine material failure and improve the design to prevent failure or extend product lifetime
- Create new materials
- Study the mechanisms behind properties and performance
- Determine the environmental impact of product manufacturing
- Solve real-world problems
With MSE, you can pursue your passions. If you’re an athlete, you can study MSE to learn how turf fields are made, how to make clothes more sweat-wicking or reduce smell, create new running shoes, make stronger baseball bats, bicycles, rackets, safer helmets and shoes with better traction. If you’re into saving the environment, you can learn how to reduce plastic for food and item packaging, design biodegradable plastics, use recycled materials for new products, fix oil spills, and how to create more energy efficient designs. If you’re into cars you can learn to make impact resistant car, more lightweight components for faster speeds, stronger materials for car frames, more fuel-efficient cars, and better tires. The career options and fields of study with MSE are limitless! Below are a starter list to the careers and fields that await you:
- Biomedical devices
- Drug delivery
- Makeup and personal care products
- Recyclable materials
- Nanotechnology devices (Smaller computers/phones/technology)
- Textiles and fabrics
- 3D printing
- Defense
- Space
- Fundamental Science
- Plastics and packaging
- Construction and building materials
- Cars, planes, and other modes of transportation
- Metallurgy (working with metals!)
- Manufacturing processes
- Information Technology
- Sports
- More!
With a degree in MSE, the average median pay is $92,390/year according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. During your college career, seek out internships or co-ops with companies you’d be interested in working with after you graduate. If something doesn’t fit — don’t be afraid to switch it up! The career options within MSE are so broad that you’re not “in too far” if you decide your current path isn’t working for you. Even then, if you’re a couple of years into a career and decide it’s not what you want to be doing, MSE is so diverse that skills you’ve learned thus far will be transferrable to another field, whether it’s within MSE or not.
Most MSE choose a specific path or direction to take their studies, such as into aerospace or biomedical devices. While the careers are similar to those who study aerospace engineering, architectural engineering, biomedical engineering, chemical engineering or chemistry, physics, and mechanical engineers, the type of learning and thought processes set you apart from other students. Example being, I, as a materials scientist have had two aerospace internships while I have friends who studied aerospace engineering but didn’t have the necessary knowledge and skill set useful to the positions. While they may be able to design the physical satellite and rocket, I could determine which materials could be used for different components, material lifetime and which materials would output heat or some other reaction during their use that would negatively affect other satellite components. Each major can take you into the same field, but knowing what type of work you want to do in that field will help you decide if MSE is the right fit for you!
