Nuclear Power Reactor Operators
Operate or control nuclear reactors. Move control rods, start and stop equipment, monitor and adjust controls, and record data in logs. Implement emergency procedures when needed. May respond to abnormalities, determine cause, and recommend corrective action.
- O*NET-SOC code
51-8011.00 - Preparation Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
Wages
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $98,640 | $109,440 | $122,890 | $130,490 | $149,310 |
By state (5)
| State | Employment | Median annual | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 360 | $119,000 | 5.13 |
| Illinois | 410 | $123,980 | 2.04 |
| Nebraska | 50 | $108,650 | 1.46 |
| New York | 230 | $129,580 | 0.73 |
| South Carolina | 320 | $118,620 | 4.15 |
Similar occupations
Similarity is our measure: the cosine of importance x level over all 120 O*NET skills, knowledge areas and abilities. It is not an O*NET finding. More.
Circles are the 20 most similar occupations, coloured by Job Zone. Lines join pairs where one is among the other's 10 most similar; darker lines are pairs O*NET also lists as related. Drag a circle to move it out of the way; select one to open it.
| # | Occupation | Job Zone | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nuclear Monitoring Technicians | 3 | 0.970 |
| 2 | Nuclear Technicians | 3 | 0.962 |
| 3 | Power Distributors and Dispatchers | 3 | 0.949 |
| 4 | Chemical Plant and System Operators | 1-2 | 0.947 |
| 5 | Environmental Engineering Technologists and Technicians | 4 | 0.945 |
| 6 | Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians | 3 | 0.944 |
| 7 | Hydroelectric Production Managers | 3 | 0.941 |
| 8 | Nanotechnology Engineering Technologists and Technicians | 4 | 0.938 |
| 9 | Power Plant Operators | 1-2 | 0.936 |
| 10 | Biofuels/Biodiesel Technology and Product Development Managers | 4 | 0.935 |
One skill away
Among the 50 occupations most similar to Nuclear Power Reactor Operators, those at the same Job Zone or lower, where exactly one skill rated at least 3 in importance needs a level more than 0.75 points higher (on O*NET's 0-7 level scale). Our definition. Change the thresholds.
| Occupation | Skill to build | Level gap | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aerospace Engineering and Operations Technologists and Technicians | Repairing | 2.62 | 0.931 |
| Biomass Plant Technicians | Equipment Maintenance | 3.12 | 0.925 |
Software to learn next
Software used by at least 3 of the 20 occupations most similar to Nuclear Power Reactor Operators, excluding software Nuclear Power Reactor Operators already lists and any you named. Ranked by how many of them use it, weighted by how much more common it is among them than across all occupations (lift). Our ranking.
| Software | Similar jobs using it | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| National Instruments LabVIEW | 8 of 20 | 6.0x |
| Ansys Fluent | 4 of 20 | 23.1x |
| SAP software | 14 of 20 | 2.3x |
| Autodesk AutoCAD | 10 of 20 | 2.7x |
| Supervisory control and data acquisition SCADA software | 6 of 20 | 4.5x |
| Data acquisition software | 3 of 20 | 13.8x |
| Distributed control system DCS | 3 of 20 | 13.8x |
| The MathWorks MATLAB | 7 of 20 | 2.9x |
| ANSYS simulation software | 3 of 20 | 11.5x |
| Simulation software | 3 of 20 | 10.7x |
Skills
From O*NET data. Importance is rated 1 to 5 and level 0 to 7.
| Skill | Type | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operations Monitoring | Transferable skill | 4.00 | 3.88 |
| Reading Comprehension | Essential skill | 4.00 | 3.88 |
| Operation and Control | Transferable skill | 4.00 | 3.75 |
| Critical Thinking | Essential skill | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Monitoring | Essential skill | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Active Listening | Essential skill | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Complex Problem Solving | Transferable skill | 3.75 | 3.25 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | Transferable skill | 3.50 | 3.38 |
| Writing | Essential skill | 3.50 | 3.00 |
| Time Management | Transferable skill | 3.38 | 3.38 |
| Coordination | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.25 |
| Quality Control Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.25 |
| Speaking | Essential skill | 3.25 | 3.25 |
| Active Learning | Essential skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Systems Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Social Perceptiveness | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Troubleshooting | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Instructing | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Learning Strategies | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Persuasion | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Service Orientation | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Systems Evaluation | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Science | Essential skill | 2.75 | 3.00 |
| Mathematics | Essential skill | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Negotiation | Transferable skill | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Management of Financial Resources | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 1.25 |
| Management of Material Resources | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 1.25 |
| Programming | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 1.25 |
| Operations Analysis | Transferable skill | 1.38 | 0.50 |
| Technology Design | Transferable skill | 1.38 | 0.50 |
| Repairing | Transferable skill | 1.38 | 0.38 |
| Equipment Maintenance | Transferable skill | 1.12 | not rated |
| Equipment Selection | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Installation | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
Knowledge (33) and abilities (52)
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Physics | 4.08 | 4.79 |
| Mechanical | 3.88 | 4.56 |
| Public Safety and Security | 3.66 | 3.99 |
| Mathematics | 3.58 | 4.23 |
| Engineering and Technology | 3.54 | 3.85 |
| Chemistry | 3.37 | 4.16 |
| Design | 3.02 | 3.15 |
| English Language | 2.93 | 3.10 |
| Computers and Electronics | 2.85 | 3.71 |
| Education and Training | 2.80 | 3.27 |
| Law and Government | 2.78 | 2.75 |
| Administration and Management | 2.36 | 2.32 |
| Production and Processing | 2.35 | 2.43 |
| Psychology | 2.18 | 2.48 |
| Building and Construction | 1.99 | 1.84 |
| Customer and Personal Service | 1.97 | 1.87 |
| Telecommunications | 1.94 | 1.40 |
| Biology | 1.90 | 1.79 |
| Communications and Media | 1.90 | 1.50 |
| Administrative | 1.88 | 1.76 |
| Personnel and Human Resources | 1.84 | 1.46 |
| Transportation | 1.48 | 0.96 |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 1.36 | not rated |
| Sociology and Anthropology | 1.31 | not rated |
| Economics and Accounting | 1.26 | not rated |
| Therapy and Counseling | 1.26 | not rated |
| Geography | 1.17 | not rated |
| Sales and Marketing | 1.17 | not rated |
| History and Archeology | 1.10 | not rated |
| Philosophy and Theology | 1.08 | not rated |
| Foreign Language | 1.06 | not rated |
| Fine Arts | 1.03 | not rated |
| Food Production | 1.00 | not rated |
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Problem Sensitivity | 4.12 | 4.12 |
| Information Ordering | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Oral Comprehension | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Oral Expression | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Written Comprehension | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Inductive Reasoning | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Near Vision | 3.88 | 3.75 |
| Written Expression | 3.62 | 3.88 |
| Speech Clarity | 3.50 | 3.12 |
| Selective Attention | 3.38 | 3.38 |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.38 | 3.25 |
| Speech Recognition | 3.25 | 3.12 |
| Category Flexibility | 3.12 | 3.25 |
| Far Vision | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Auditory Attention | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Fluency of Ideas | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Originality | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Time Sharing | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Hearing Sensitivity | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Number Facility | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Speed of Closure | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Control Precision | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Reaction Time | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Visualization | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Finger Dexterity | 2.88 | 2.75 |
| Memorization | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Response Orientation | 2.62 | 2.50 |
| Multilimb Coordination | 2.62 | 2.00 |
| Manual Dexterity | 2.38 | 2.00 |
| Depth Perception | 2.25 | 2.12 |
| Rate Control | 2.00 | 2.12 |
| Wrist-Finger Speed | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Trunk Strength | 1.88 | 1.75 |
| Glare Sensitivity | 1.75 | 0.75 |
| Gross Body Coordination | 1.12 | not rated |
| Gross Body Equilibrium | 1.12 | not rated |
| Peripheral Vision | 1.12 | not rated |
| Spatial Orientation | 1.12 | not rated |
| Dynamic Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Dynamic Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
| Explosive Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
| Extent Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Night Vision | 1.00 | not rated |
| Sound Localization | 1.00 | not rated |
| Speed of Limb Movement | 1.00 | not rated |
| Stamina | 1.00 | not rated |
| Static Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
Software used
Examples from O*NET data. "Hot" and "in demand" are O*NET flags for technologies often listed in job postings.
- Outage management system OMS in demand
- Microsoft Access hot
- Microsoft Azure software hot
- Microsoft Excel hot
- Microsoft Office software hot
- Microsoft Power Automate hot
- Microsoft Power BI hot
- Microsoft PowerPoint hot
- Microsoft SharePoint hot
- Structured query language SQL hot
- Data logging software
- Plant information data entry software
Where it concentrates
Metro areas ranked by BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of the area's jobs divided by its share of all US jobs. Above 1 means more concentrated than the nation. Metros employing fewer than 100 are left out.
No metro meets the threshold.