Engineers who design, develop, and test advanced materials. A critical role in industries from aerospace to healthcare, ensuring materials meet the highest standards of performance and reliability.
Materials Engineers play a pivotal role in the development and application of advanced materials. They work across a range of industries, from aerospace and automotive to healthcare and electronics, ensuring that materials meet the highest standards of performance, reliability, and sustainability. These engineers are responsible for designing, developing, and testing materials to meet specific requirements, often working in multidisciplinary teams to solve complex problems.
A typical week for a Materials Engineer is a mix of laboratory work, data analysis, and collaboration with other engineers and scientists.
Based on advertised midpoints across the 17 UK listings priced in pounds in the last 12 months. Base salary only.
% of 26 listings posted in the last 12 months that mention each skill, extracted from job descriptions.
A typical UK progression for materials engineers. Years are guidance — strong people move faster, and many senior folks sidestep into research, product or management.
Assist in material testing and data collection, working under the guidance of senior engineers.
Lead specific projects, manage small teams, and contribute to the development of new materials.
Oversee multiple projects, mentor junior engineers, and drive innovation in material development.
Strategise long-term material development plans, lead large teams, and influence company direction.
There's no single route, but most people follow some version of these steps.
Complete a degree in materials science, engineering, or a related field.
Gain practical experience through internships or junior roles in materials engineering.
Focus on a specific area of materials science, such as polymers, nanomaterials, or biomaterials.
Progress to senior roles, leading projects and managing teams.
Take on leadership positions, driving strategic initiatives and innovation.
Become a recognised expert in the field, contributing to industry standards and research.
Join the Materials & Processes Laboratory team supporting the supply chain for landing gear parts, monitoring raw material suppliers, forgers and foundries. You will review metallic supplier performance, implement improvement plans for steel, aluminium and titanium, conduct technical audits and support new supplier qualification, with scope for hands-on mechanical testing and forensic investigation.
Ensures supplier capability, compliance and performance across a global aerospace supply chain, conducting product, process and system audits and supporting NPI and part transfers. Drives improvement using APQP, PFMEA, PPAP and Lean, working with raw material suppliers of titanium, high-strength steels and aerospace aluminium. Regular UK and international travel is required.
AS9100 · AS9102 · APQP +3
Honeywell Aerospace
This role involves supporting aerospace product design and manufacturing through advanced materials engineering expertise. The engineer will evaluate materials for compliance with environmental regulations like REACh and TSCA, qualify new materials, and ensure supply chain performance and process compliance. Key responsibilities include driving specification standardization, supporting supplier transitions, and leading root cause analysis for product or process issues in a regulated aerospace environment.
Queen Mary University of London
Deliver undergraduate materials and polymer science education for a joint UK-China engineering school, with a focus on curriculum development, novel pedagogies and inclusive teaching. The post is based in London but involves extensive travel to Xi'an, China for substantial periods, supporting transnational education programmes.
United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority
Lead the development, testing and qualification of copper alloy heatsink and tungsten plasma-facing component materials for the STEP fusion programme. Combines hands-on experimental research with technical leadership of a small team, external collaboration and funding bids, providing performance data for next-generation in-vessel component design.
MS Office · Outlook · Word +2
CuspAI
Trains and evaluates multi-modal foundation models for a materials discovery platform, spanning crystal structures, properties, text and images. Owns a model end to end, from data curation and experiment design through large-scale distributed training to integration, working closely with chemists and materials scientists.
GPUs · SFT · RLHF +1
Swansea University
Develops next-generation microporous membranes for low-cost, long-duration iron–sulfur redox flow batteries, designing and synthesising functional polymers of intrinsic microporosity with tailored sub-nanometre pores. Involves membrane characterisation, electrochemical testing and structure–ion transport–performance studies, with an industrial placement at Leaf-Tech Ltd on scale-up and manufacturing.
Polymers of Intrinsic Microporosity
Ernest Gordon Recruitment
Lead and mentor a team of nine, ranging from placement students to skilled engineers, in an advanced composite and materials testing laboratory serving defence, aerospace, automotive and energy sectors. Set scopes of work, manage project timeframes and drive team development plans, working on-site five days a week with exotic and novel materials.
The locations with the most live listings for this role today.
Materials Engineers are hired by a variety of industries, including aerospace, automotive, healthcare, electronics, and manufacturing.
Essential skills include a strong foundation in materials science, analytical skills, problem-solving ability, and proficiency in laboratory techniques.
Continual learning, specialisation in a specific area, and gaining leadership experience are key to advancing your career in materials engineering.
Salaries for Materials Engineers can vary widely based on experience, industry, and location. For more detailed salary information, please refer to the salary section on this page.
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