Are semiconductors a good career path?

Semiconductors are products, developed from elements like silicon and germanium, with a unique set of electrical properties that help them serve a foundational role in modern electronics. Their range of practical functions—including controlling electrical current, amplifying signals, and switching—makes them integral parts of everything from smartphones, laptops, and home appliances to automobiles, data centers, and advanced military systems. Semiconductors, which are also referred to as microchips or integrated circuits (ICs), are such widespread fixtures of contemporary life that there are now as many of them in active use—around 100 billion—as there are stars in the entire Milky Way Galaxy. 

Though relatively few people are aware of semiconductors and their ever-expanding myriad of applications, almost everyone living in a technologically advanced nation uses them in one capacity or another. And that means, of course, that hundreds of millions of people all over the globe are spending money to pay for them. 

Why Semiconductors Are a Fast-Growing Industry

The global semiconductor market is one of the fastest-growing industries on the planet. Less than 15 years ago, in 2010, the sector reached what was at the time a record revenue of $298 billion. Fast forward a little over a decade, to 2022, and that figure ballooned to just under $600 billion. (For comparison, total revenue for the global smartphone market that same year was around $500 billion.) Despite years of accelerating growth, the industry is showing no signs of plateauing, either. The ascendance of the “Internet of Things” (IoT) and the multi-industry shift to transforming homes, wearables, and critical infrastructure into smart devices with internet connectivity will continue to drive demand for chips. In addition, the mass adoption of AI across the corporate landscape will require a new generation of cutting-edge semiconductors—including graphics processing units, or GPUs—to help these programs process the massive reams of data they need to run effectively. 

Because of these developing trends and the various functionalities microchips already serve in a world entrenched in electronic devices and entranced by digitization, the semiconductor industry is poised to continue its stratospheric expansion. By some estimates, the sector will experience a compound annual growth rate of around 8% for the remainder of the decade, putting it on track to become a trillion-dollar industry by 2030. 

Growing Opportunities for Semiconductor Technicians

Generally speaking, there are two primary professional pathways people can take when entering the semiconductor industry: the role of a technician and that of an engineer. 

The Path for Semiconductor Technicians

Semiconductor technicians are the professionals staffing the chipmakers’ factories and fabrication facilities. They are mainly involved in manufacturing and testing a range of semiconductor materials and hardware, including wafers, circuits, packaging, and the advanced equipment the field relies on to mass-produce microchips and related components. The umbrella category of semiconductor technician encompasses a range of more specialized, niche roles, including process technicians, manufacturing technicians, and equipment technicians. 

Semiconductor Technician Education Qualifications

Those looking to pursue a career in one of these professions need to have, at minimum, an associate’s degree in electronics, microelectronics, or electrical engineering. These two-year degrees are often available at community colleges, trade schools, or vocational programs, and frequently include intensive hands-on training and the targeted development of skills highly specific to the semiconductor industry. 

An associate’s degree is not the only viable route for an aspiring semiconductor technician, though. Attaining a bachelor’s degree in one of these fields may put individuals in a stronger, more advantageous position within a fluid, rapidly evolving industry that is growing increasingly specialized. 

The Many Roles for Semiconductor Engineers 

For those reasonably acquainted with the world of semiconductors, it probably goes without saying that engineers are the indispensable fulcrum of the industry. Engineers are responsible for designing, developing, and testing semiconductor devices, ICs, and electrical packaging, and they play a crucial role in nearly every step of the manufacturing supply chain. Perhaps most importantly, these professionals work at the helm of arguably the two most important processes in chip production: wafer fabrication and IC assembly. Each of these phases is a highly sophisticated, painstakingly precise series of steps that demands deep expertise in the field of microelectronics and a comprehensive set of skills that can only be honed within these facilities. 

Semiconductor Engineer Education Qualifications

There are an array of different types of engineers that work in microelectronics, including materials engineers, integrated circuit designers, and process engineers. Though the specific qualifications vary from one position to the next, these roles typically require individuals to possess a bachelor’s or master’s degree in materials science, electrical engineering, or applied physics. Those particularly interested in working on the research and development side of the industry, meanwhile, should consider pursuing a PhD and using the degree to carry out research projects relevant to the kind of professional work they want to do. (Employers may look beyond the advanced degree itself and also consider the extent to which one’s coursework and academic focus will be applicable to their specific responsibilities at the company.)

Universities With Programs for Semiconductor Engineering

Because programs dedicated to semiconductor engineering remain relatively few and far between, students interested in cultivating an academic track tailored to a career in the industry may want to focus on colleges and universities with top-ranked departments for the aforementioned majors. These include institutions like Stanford University, Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

Worth noting, however, is the fact that over the past few years a handful of schools have significantly ramped up their emphasis on microelectronics and semiconductor manufacturing. In 2022, for example, the Purdue University College of Engineering introduced a repertoire of new degrees centered on the field, including a graduate-level concentration in microelectronics and advanced semiconductors—housed in the university’s Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering—and a master’s of science degree with the same focus. 

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And with the help of a string of grants from Intel, Ohio State University recently launched a multi-institutional initiative, the Center for Advanced Semiconductor Fabrication Research and Education (CAFE). With the aim of bolstering the semiconductor workforce pipeline in the Midwest, CAFE is revamping the curricula for various tracks at the university’s engineering school to give students greater exposure to the semiconductor field. Newly designed coursework will emphasize manufacturing phases, fabrication tools, and packaging materials. The center is also developing internships, associateships, and other training programs intended to offer aspiring engineers valuable experience in key processes like semiconductor design, materials synthesis, and characterization. 

While an undergraduate background in a relevant science or engineering program may offer a reasonable foundation for a career as a semiconductor engineer, pursuing a degree at a college or university with an established reputation for research and training in the field can provide crucial advantages. The combination of hands-on experience, a specialized degree attractive to employers, and the networking opportunities within a university ecosystem populated by industry professionals all contribute to a substantive competitive edge that could boost a graduate’s career trajectory. 

The U.S. Semiconductor Manufacturing Landscape

Between the projected growth of the industry over the latter half of the decade and the stimulating effects of the CHIPS Act, which will continue to be felt for years to come, professional prospects for the semiconductor sector are strong. According to estimates by the Semiconductor Industry Association, the field’s domestic workforce is projected to increase by about 115,000 jobs by 2030. This represents a swift expansion of 33% in just a few years, and a commensurate explosion of new opportunities for qualified graduates. In-demand positions will include technicians, computer scientists, and engineers at the bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD levels. 

What’s more, given the current degree completion rates nationwide, more than half of these newly created jobs risk going unfulfilled. While this represents a risk to American industry and its prospects of capturing a larger market share of this critical, high-revenue sector, it may actually benefit prospective employees entering the field, creating a tight labor market heavily favoring workers. 

Where Will These New Semiconductor Jobs Be Located?

Many of those tens of thousands of new jobs are going to be clustered around the U.S.’s chief semiconductor manufacturing hubs. Sometimes referred to as the “Silicon Desert,” Arizona will continue to be a thriving hotbed for semiconductor firms through the rest of the decade. The state currently hosts facilities run by Intel, Microchip Technology, and Onsemi. TSMC has also recently established itself in the southwest chipmaking enclave, having started construction on a trio of new fabs in the Phoenix area. The West Coast has long wielded a strong influence at every level of the industry, too, with Intel, Nvidia, Micron Technology, and Infineon, among other firms, all represented in either California, Oregon, or Washington. Finally, on the other side of the country, a constellation of manufacturing plants, fabless facilities, and university-based research and development centers are scattered across New York and Massachusetts, with companies like GlobalFoundries, IBM, Wolfspeed running operations there. 

Positions in the semiconductor industry have long been overshadowed by more purportedly prestigious, high-profile careers in tech, including software engineers, computer programmers, and data scientists. But because of the increasingly vital role microchips play in nearly every aspect of modern life, and their growing criticality to national security measures and high-level geopolitical strategy, that should no longer be the case. Between the recent semiconductor shortage’s catastrophic economic effects and the subsequent public-investment boom focused on galvanizing the industry’s domestic supply chain, the previously obscure field is now a fixture in headlines and national discourse. After operating under the radar for so long, its proximity to the zeitgeist has never been closer. Those factors alone cogently speak to the industry’s rising status and growing profitability—ideal conditions, one might argue, for a stable, fulfilling, and lucrative career.