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Materials Engineering at University of California-Irvine

Irvine, CA · Public · Bachelor's Degree
60 /100
DegreeWorth Score (Base Case)
60
Optimistic
60
Base Case
56
Pessimistic
Earnings $58,177/yr (-18% vs median)
AI Risk High (48% exposed)
Job Market Large (37,000 openings/yr)

How AI Changes the Outlook

Three scenarios based on how aggressively AI disrupts the career paths available to Materials Engineering graduates.

Optimistic
No Disruption		 Base Case
Gradual AI		 Pessimistic
Aggressive AI
10-Year Earnings $667K $556K $425K
Earnings Multiple (In-State) 11.7x 9.8x 7.5x
Earnings Multiple (Out-of-State) 3.7x 3.1x 2.4x
Viable Career Paths 4 of 4 4 of 4 4 of 4
DegreeWorth Score 60 60 56

10-Year Earnings Projection

*Year 1 uses actual reported earnings. Scenarios diverge as AI impact compounds over time.

4-Year Tuition (In-State)
$56,948
Out-of-state: $180,056
Median Debt at Graduation
$7,500
1.5 months of Year 1 earnings

Career Paths

Where Materials Engineering graduates typically work. Raw data — no blending. The scenarios above model how these factors interact. This field has roughly 37,000 combined openings per year.

Career Path Wage Openings/yr Growth AI Risk
Architectural and engineering managers $167,740 14,500 +3.8% 41%
Materials engineers $108,310 1,500 +5.7% 49%
Engineering teachers, postsecondary $106,120 4,100 +8.1% 50%
Cost estimators $77,070 16,900 -4.2% 50%

Compare & Explore

Materials Engineering at Other Schools

University of Florida ($79,200) Drexel University ($78,623) Michigan State University ($78,276) Purdue University-Main Campus ($78,265) Arizona State University Campus Immersion ($77,646) University of Wisconsin-Madison ($76,662) Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus ($76,488) University of Connecticut ($75,607)

Other Majors at University of California-Irvine

Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing ($87,715) Computer Science ($82,161) Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering ($80,412) Computer Engineering ($79,812) Civil Engineering ($73,835) Management Information Systems and Services ($68,786) Mechanical Engineering ($67,633) Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering ($67,425)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the DegreeWorth Score for Materials Engineering at University of California-Irvine?
This program scores 60/100 in the Base Case scenario, factoring in earnings, AI disruption risk, job market size, and earnings multiple. The score ranges from 60 (optimistic) to 56 (pessimistic) depending on AI's impact.
How does AI affect Materials Engineering career prospects?
We model three scenarios: Optimistic (no disruption), Base Case (gradual AI adoption), and Pessimistic (aggressive AI displacement). In the base case, Materials Engineering graduates retain 4 of 4 viable career paths. 10-year earnings range from $425,143 (pessimistic) to $666,934 (optimistic).
How many job openings are there for Materials Engineering graduates?
The career paths mapped to Materials Engineering have roughly 37,000 combined job openings per year nationally, making this a large job market.
Is Materials Engineering at University of California-Irvine worth it?
In the Base Case, this degree earns 9.8x its in-state tuition over 10 years. Even in the Pessimistic scenario, the multiple is 7.5x. The spread between scenarios tells you how sensitive this degree is to AI disruption.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024-2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Scenarios use a continuous weighting function combining AI exposure and BLS job growth projections. "Earnings Multiple" is total 10-year projected earnings divided by tuition — not a discounted financial ROI. Last updated 2025.