Architecture and Engineering Occupations·SOC 17-2111

Best degree programs for Health and Safety Engineers, ranked by enrollment

Q: What degree do you need to become a Health?

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Engineering, Other, which awarded 3,331 degrees in 2024-25, 53.7% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Q: Which college majors lead to becoming a Health?

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 2 programs to this occupation. The largest are Engineering, Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering. Together they graduate about 6,208 people a year.

Q: How much do health and safety engineers earn?

The median is $115,160 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $68,420 at the 10th percentile to $171,250 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Q: Is demand for health and safety engineers growing?

BLS projects a +4.4% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 1,500 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

Q: How many schools offer programs for this career?

206 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 2 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

Q: What other job titles do health and safety engineers work under?

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Engineer, Safety Engineer, System Safety Engineer, Product Safety Engineer, Fire Protection Consultant, Safety and Health Consultant among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 17-2111.

2 college programs and 206 schools train Health and Safety Engineers. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $115,160 median wage, 21,450 U.S. jobs. Federal data.

2 college programs at 206 schools train health and safety engineers, graduating 6,208 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Engineering, Other. The job pays a median of $115,160 (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Graduates / yr

6,208

from every feeder program

Median annual wage

$115,160

BLS OEWS May 2025

Projected growth

+4.4%

About as fast as average

Openings / yr

1,500

new plus replacement

Schools

206

with a feeder program

States with jobs

BLS reports wages

About health and safety engineers

Promote worksite or product safety by applying knowledge of industrial processes, mechanics, chemistry, psychology, and industrial health and safety laws. Includes industrial product safety engineers.

Also calledEngineerSafety EngineerSystem Safety EngineerProduct Safety EngineerFire Protection ConsultantSafety and Health ConsultantFire Protection Engineer (FPE)Professional Fire Protection EngineerSafety TesterPlumbing DesignerPlumbing EngineerSafety Consultant

Fields of study that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.

109 schools · 1 specialization · 53.7% of pipeline

Grad earnings $73,678

Engineering

CIP 14.14

Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering

2,877graduates / yr

152 schools · 1 specialization · 46.3% of pipeline

Grad earnings $64,608

2 degree programs that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#	Program	Graduates / yr	Share of pipeline	Schools	Grad earnings (1 yr)	Median debt
1	Engineering, Othermain feeder CIP 14.9999	3,331	53.7%	109	$73,678	$22,938
2	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering CIP 14.1401	2,877	46.3%	152	$64,608	$23,250

Top 50 schools by graduates into this job

Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#	School	Graduates / yr	Top feeder program	Grad rate	Net price	Acceptance
1	Northeastern University Boston, MA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	662	Engineering, Other	91%	$18,925	5%
2	Purdue University - Main Campus West Lafayette, IN Public · 2 feeder programs	243	Engineering, Other	83%	—	50%
3	University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	220	Engineering, Other	92%	$26,873	10%
4	University of Akron Main Campus Akron, OH Public · 1 feeder programs	181	Engineering, Other	52%	—	60%
5	Clemson University Clemson, SC Public · 2 feeder programs	169	Engineering, Other	87%	—	38%
6	Stanford University Stanford, CA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	122	Engineering, Other	92%	$12,032	4%
7	Pennsylvania State University - Main Campus University Park, PA Public · 2 feeder programs	107	Engineering, Other	86%	—	61%
8	University of California - Berkeley Berkeley, CA Public · 2 feeder programs	104	Engineering, Other	93%	—	11%
9	Washington University in St Louis St. Louis, MO Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	103	Engineering, Other	94%	$14,126	12%
10	Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA Public · 1 feeder programs	100	Engineering, Other	46%	—	90%
11	Northwestern University Evanston, IL Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	99	Engineering, Other	95%	$14,799	8%
12	Missouri University of Science and Technology Rolla, MO Public · 2 feeder programs	95	Engineering, Other	64%	—	73%
13	Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus Atlanta, GA Public · 1 feeder programs	94	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	94%	—	14%
14	University of Florida Gainesville, FL Public · 1 feeder programs	86	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	91%	—	24%
15	The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX Public · 2 feeder programs	84	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	89%	—	27%
16	University of Wisconsin - Madison Madison, WI Public · 2 feeder programs	84	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	90%	—	45%
17	Ohio State University - Main Campus Columbus, OH Public · 2 feeder programs	82	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	88%	—	61%
18	Colorado School of Mines Golden, CO Public · 2 feeder programs	80	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	82%	—	61%
19	University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA Public · 2 feeder programs	80	Engineering, Other	85%	—	58%
20	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI Public · 2 feeder programs	77	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	93%	—	16%
21	Pennsylvania State University - World Campus University Park, PA Public · 1 feeder programs	75	Engineering, Other	34%	—	91%
22	University of California - San Diego La Jolla, CA Public · 2 feeder programs	72	Engineering, Other	86%	—	27%
23	University of Virginia - Main Campus Charlottesville, VA Public · 1 feeder programs	72	Engineering, Other	96%	—	17%
24	Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs	69	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	96%	$15,315	4%
25	University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO Public · 1 feeder programs	69	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	74%	—	78%
26	Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs	67	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	68%	—	90%
27	Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs	63	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	94%	$11,888	6%
28	Michigan Technological University Houghton, MI Public · 1 feeder programs	61	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	68%	—	92%
29	University of Michigan - Dearborn Dearborn, MI Public · 1 feeder programs	55	Engineering, Other	58%	—	56%
30	Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	50	Engineering, Other	94%	$23,803	12%
31	North Carolina A & T State University Greensboro, NC Public · 1 feeder programs	45	Engineering, Other	57%	—	50%
32	Oklahoma State University - Main Campus Stillwater, OK Public · 2 feeder programs	45	Engineering, Other	68%	—	75%
33	Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA Public · 1 feeder programs	45	Engineering, Other	63%	—	93%
34	Mississippi State University Mississippi State, MS Public · 1 feeder programs	44	Engineering, Other	67%	—	78%
35	Montana State University Bozeman, MT Public · 1 feeder programs	44	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	57%	—	82%
36	University of Georgia Athens, GA Public · 1 feeder programs	44	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	90%	—	38%
37	California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA Public · 2 feeder programs	43	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	86%	—	31%
38	Michigan State University East Lansing, MI Public · 2 feeder programs	43	Engineering, Other	81%	—	85%
39	Oregon State University Corvallis, OR Public · 2 feeder programs	43	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	70%	—	77%
40	University of Central Florida Orlando, FL Public · 1 feeder programs	43	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	78%	—	40%
41	North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, NC Public · 2 feeder programs	42	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	85%	—	42%
42	Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, MA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	41	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	90%	$32,926	60%
43	San Diego State University San Diego, CA Public · 2 feeder programs	40	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	76%	—	36%
44	University at Buffalo Buffalo, NY Public · 1 feeder programs	39	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	75%	—	74%
45	University of Cincinnati - Main Campus Cincinnati, OH Public · 2 feeder programs	39	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	75%	—	85%
46	Colorado State University - Fort Collins Fort Collins, CO Public · 1 feeder programs	38	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	67%	—	89%
47	Cornell University Ithaca, NY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs	38	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	95%	$17,613	9%
48	Alabama A & M University Normal, AL Public · 1 feeder programs	37	Engineering, Other	24%	—	58%
49	University of San Diego San Diego, CA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	37	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	84%	$26,035	52%
50	University of California - Davis Davis, CA Public · 1 feeder programs	36	Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	86%	—	42%

What health and safety engineers earn

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual wage

$115,160

Mean annual

$119,770

Median hourly

$55.36/hr

People employed

21,450

What the range looks like

10th pct$68,420Median$115,16090th pct$171,250

Top-paying states

Top-paying metro areas

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA

$143,050median

160 jobs

Midland, TX

$137,030median

60 jobs

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA

$147,220median

350 jobs

Kennewick-Richland, WA

$149,740median

100 jobs

Manchester-Nashua, NH

$152,360median

40 jobs

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

$130,280median

1,400 jobs

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

$128,600median

490 jobs

Baton Rouge, LA

$132,040median

90 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34

+4.4%

About as fast as average

Openings per year

1,500

new jobs plus replacements

Employment change

1,100

23,800 → 24,900

Typical entry education

Bachelor's degree

Where the jobs are, state by state

Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.

This occupation state by state: pay, jobs, and schools
State	Median pay	Jobs	Concentration	Schools	Graduates / yr
California	$131,540	2,470	0.98×	19	868
Massachusetts	$131,210	750	1.50×	7	784
Pennsylvania	$121,730	490	0.59×	17	448
Ohio	$129,560	650	0.84×	12	350
New York	$101,300	1,570	1.18×	14	331
Michigan	$107,780	720	1.18×	10	316
Indiana	$83,240	440	1.00×	5	264
Florida	$101,790	770	0.56×	10	249
Virginia	$104,920	380	0.66×	5	240
Texas	$123,440	4,320	2.23×	12	218
Colorado	$120,950	210	0.54×	6	208
Missourimoderate	$89,820	250	0.61×	3	207
South Carolinamoderate	$104,120	280	0.89×	3	177
Illinois	$111,370	230	0.27×	6	174
Georgia	$105,880	350	0.52×	5	157
North Carolina	$106,800	480	0.70×	5	126
Wisconsinmoderate	$92,700	250	0.62×	4	106
Marylandmoderate	$110,950	520	1.37×	3	99
Arizonamoderate	$106,370	180	0.41×	3	95
Alabama	$105,490	570	1.94×	5	88
Montanalimited	$97,670	60	0.86×	2	60
Oregonmoderate	$116,020	180	0.65×	4	60
Oklahomalimited	$102,890	620	2.65×	2	59
Connecticutmoderate	$115,640	270	1.16×	4	57
Mississippilimited	$87,180	120	0.74×	2	45
New Jerseymoderate	$119,370	430	0.73×	3	45
Tennesseelimited	—	240	0.54×	2	37
Minnesotalimited	$120,050	220	0.53×	2	36
Louisianalimited	$118,490	370	1.39×	2	35
Washingtonmoderate	$126,590	420	0.85×	3	34
Iowalimited	$106,350	230	1.05×	2	30
Nevadalimited	$121,660	80	0.37×	2	25
Delawarelimited	$118,440	50	0.80×	1	22
Utahlimited	$106,980	260	1.07×	2	19
New Hampshirelimited	$130,500	80	0.81×	1	17
Kansaslimited	$102,690	120	0.62×	2	16
New Mexicolimited	$94,640	340	2.83×	2	10
Idaholimited	$98,860	250	2.10×	2	9
Rhode Islandlimited	$94,620	40	0.55×	2	8
Nebraskalimited	$103,230	90	0.64×	1	6
West Virginialimited	$76,700	210	2.15×	1	3
Alaskalimited	$102,690	110	2.41×	1	2
Kentuckylimited	$107,760	300	1.07×	1	1

Skills and tools

From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.

What they do day to day

Investigate industrial accidents, injuries, or occupational diseases to determine causes and preventive measures.
Conduct research to evaluate safety levels for products.
Evaluate product designs for safety.
Conduct or coordinate worker training in areas such as safety laws and regulations, hazardous condition monitoring, and use of safety equipment.
Maintain and apply knowledge of current policies, regulations, and industrial processes.
Recommend procedures for detection, prevention, and elimination of physical, chemical, or other product hazards.
Report or review findings from accident investigations, facilities inspections, or environmental testing.
Evaluate potential health hazards or damage that could occur from product misuse.

Skills

Reading Comprehension4.0
Critical Thinking4.0
Active Listening3.8
Writing3.8
Speaking3.8
Active Learning3.6
Monitoring3.3
Learning Strategies3.2

Knowledge areas

Engineering and Technology4.4
English Language4.0
Design3.9
Public Safety and Security3.9
Building and Construction3.8
Mathematics3.8

Abilities

Problem Sensitivity4.1
Inductive Reasoning4.1
Deductive Reasoning4.1
Oral Comprehension4.0
Oral Expression3.9
Written Comprehension3.9

Core activities

Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards4.6
Making Decisions and Solving Problems4.4
Getting Information4.4
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge4.2
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates4.1
Working with Computers4.0

Tools and technology

hotmarks an O*NET hot technology

Autodesk AutoCADhotMicrosoft ExcelhotMicrosoft Office softwarehotMicrosoft PowerPointhotMicrosoft ProjecthotMicrosoft VisiohotMicrosoft WordhotComputational fluid dynamics CFD softwareHuman modeling softwareAutodesk Revithot

How to get in

How to become a Health

Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0

Typical entry education: Bachelor's degree

Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 2 majors mapped to Health and Safety Engineers2 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+

14.1401Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering
14.9999Engineering, Other

Related careers

Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.

33-2021

Fire Inspectors and Investigators

$75,92013,800 jobs+3.8%

19-5012

Occupational Health and Safety Technicians

$61,56030,590 jobs+8.5%

33-2022

Forest Fire Inspectors and Prevention Specialists

$56,8702,780 jobs+14.6%

19-5011

Occupational Health and Safety Specialists

$90,150140,610 jobs+12.5%

13-1041

Compliance Officers

$80,730417,070 jobs+3.0%

19-2041

Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health

$82,22089,250 jobs+4.4%

Common questions

What degree do you need to become a Health?+

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Engineering, Other, which awarded 3,331 degrees in 2024-25, 53.7% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Health?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 2 programs to this occupation. The largest are Engineering, Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering. Together they graduate about 6,208 people a year.

How much do health and safety engineers earn?+

The median is $115,160 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $68,420 at the 10th percentile to $171,250 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for health and safety engineers growing?+

BLS projects a +4.4% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 1,500 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career?+

206 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 2 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do health and safety engineers work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Engineer, Safety Engineer, System Safety Engineer, Product Safety Engineer, Fire Protection Consultant, Safety and Health Consultant among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 17-2111.

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024-25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025
Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
Official source →
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34
Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
Official source →
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)
Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
Official source →
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohorts
Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Official source →
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest available
Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
Official source →
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018
Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
Official source →
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3
Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

All Clema data sources and release dates →

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Best degree programs for Health and Safety Engineers, ranked by enrollment

About health and safety engineers

Fields of study that lead to this job

2 degree programs that lead to this job

Top 50 schools by graduates into this job

What health and safety engineers earn

Top-paying states

Top-paying metro areas

Job outlook

Where the jobs are, state by state

Skills and tools

What they do day to day

Skills

Knowledge areas

Abilities

Core activities

Tools and technology

How to get in

How to become a Health

Every major mapped to this job

Related careers

Common questions

BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

BLS Employment Projections

IPEDS Completions

College Scorecard, Field of Study

Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

O*NET Database 30.3

Explore every U.S. college in one conversation