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Operate, test, maintain, or adjust unmanned, automated, servomechanical, or electromechanical equipment. May operate unmanned submarines, aircraft, or other equipment to observe or record visual information at sites such as oil rigs, crop fields, buildings, or for similar infrastructure, deep ocean exploration, or hazardous waste removal. May assist engineers in testing and designing robotics equipment.
Communication skills. Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians must be able to follow instructions from engineers. They also need to clearly convey problems to engineers.
Detail oriented. Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians must take and record the precise measurements that engineers need.
Dexterity. Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians must be adept in using handtools and soldering irons on small circuitry and electronic parts to create electronic components.
Logical-thinking skills. To carry out engineers’ designs, inspect designs for quality control, and assemble prototypes, electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians must follow a specific sequence or a set of rules.
Math skills. Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians use mathematics for analysis, design, and troubleshooting in their tasks.
Mechanical skills. Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians must create components for industrial machinery or equipment. They must be able to operate equipment such as drill presses, grinders, and engine lathes.
Problem-solving skills. Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians must be able to identify and fix problems that arise with engineering designs and prototypes.
Writing skills. Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians must write clear, well-organized reports that describe onsite construction, testing results, and problems they found in carrying out designs.
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Characteristics of this Career |
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93% | Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. | |
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87% | Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. | |
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83% | Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges. | |
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82% | Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles. | |
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82% | Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems. | |
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79% | Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical. | |
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78% | Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude. | |
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75% | Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. | |
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75% | Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done. | |
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74% | Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations. | |
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71% | Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks. | |
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70% | Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations. | |
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67% | Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job. | |
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67% | Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Strengths |
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100% | Realistic - Work involves designing, building, or repairing of equipment, materials, or structures, engaging in physical activity, or working outdoors. Realistic occupations are often associated with engineering, mechanics and electronics, construction, woodworking, transportation, machine operation, agriculture, animal services, physical or manual labor, athletics, or protective services. | |
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72% | Investigative - Work involves studying and researching non-living objects, living organisms, disease or other forms of impairment, or human behavior. Investigative occupations are often associated with physical, life, medical, or social sciences, and can be found in the fields of humanities, mathematics/statistics, information technology, or health care service. | |
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67% | Conventional - Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Values of the Work Environment |
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72% | Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service. | |
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67% | Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Abilities | Cognitive, Physical, Personality |
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75% | Control Precision - The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions. | |
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72% | Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer). | |
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69% | Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). | |
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69% | Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations). | |
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69% | Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem. | |
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69% | Finger Dexterity - The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects. | |
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69% | Arm-Hand Steadiness - The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position. | |
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69% | Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent |
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94% | Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job? | |
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91% | Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job? | |
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85% | Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions? | |
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84% | Time Pressure - How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines? | |
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83% | Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it? | |
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83% | Work With Work Group or Team - How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job? | |
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82% | Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls - How much does this job require using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls? | |
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78% | Electronic Mail - How often do you use electronic mail in this job? | |
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78% | Frequency of Decision Making - How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization? | |
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77% | Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets - How much does this job require wearing common protective or safety equipment such as safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hard hats or life jackets? | |
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74% | Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job? | |
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74% | Level of Competition - To what extent does this job require the worker to compete or to be aware of competitive pressures? | |
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72% | Sounds, Noise Levels Are Distracting or Uncomfortable - How often does this job require working exposed to sounds and noise levels that are distracting or uncomfortable? | |
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69% | Importance of Repeating Same Tasks - How important is repeating the same physical activities (e.g., key entry) or mental activities (e.g., checking entries in a ledger) over and over, without stopping, to performing this job? | |
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68% | Consequence of Error - How serious would the result usually be if the worker made a mistake that was not readily correctable? | |
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68% | Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - What results do your decisions usually have on other people or the image or reputation or financial resources of your employer? | |
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67% | Coordinate or Lead Others - How important is it to coordinate or lead others in accomplishing work activities in this job? | |
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67% | Exposed to Contaminants - How often does this job require working exposed to contaminants (such as pollutants, gases, dust or odors)? | |
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85% | Duration of Typical Work Week - Number of hours typically worked in one week. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Tasks & Values |
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82% | Working with Computers - Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information. | |
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81% | Repairing and Maintaining Electronic Equipment - Servicing, repairing, calibrating, regulating, fine-tuning, or testing machines, devices, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of electrical or electronic (not mechanical) principles. | |
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78% | Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. | |
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78% | Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form. | |
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77% | Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings - Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems. | |
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76% | Controlling Machines and Processes - Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles). | |
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74% | Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials - Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects. | |
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73% | Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. | |
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72% | Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. | |
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70% | Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work - Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work. | |
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70% | Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards - Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards. | |
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69% | Processing Information - Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data. | |
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67% | Analyzing Data or Information - Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts. | |
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66% | Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events. | |
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66% | Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job. |
Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians combine knowledge of mechanical technology with knowledge of electrical and electronic circuitry. They operate, test, and maintain unmanned, automated, robotic, or electromechanical equipment.
Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians typically do the following:
Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians test and operate machines in factories and at other worksites. They also document the tests they performed and analyze and record the results of those tests.
Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians install, maintain, and repair automated machinery and computer-controlled mechanical systems in industrial settings.
They also test, operate, or maintain robotic equipment at worksites. This equipment may include unmanned submarines, aircraft, or similar types of equipment for uses that include oil drilling, deep-ocean exploration, or hazardous-waste removal.
Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians held about 15,200 jobs in 2022. The largest employers of electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians were as follows:
| Scientific research and development services | 14% |
| Engineering services | 13 |
| Navigational, measuring, electromedical, and control instruments manufacturing | 8 |
| Machinery manufacturing | 8 |
| Transportation equipment manufacturing | 4 |
Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians work with electrical engineers and mechanical engineers. They work primarily in manufacturing industries, including those of computer and electronic products and of machinery, and in professional, scientific, and technical services. They often work both at production sites and in offices.
Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians are sometimes exposed to hazards from equipment or toxic materials. However, incidents are rare as long as workers follow safety procedures.
Most electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians work full time, and some work more than 40 hours per week.
Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians typically need either an associate’s degree or a postsecondary certificate.
Associate’s degree programs and postsecondary certificates for electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians are offered at vocational–technical schools and community colleges.
Employers may prefer to hire graduates of programs accredited by an organization such as ABET. Associate’s degree programs usually include courses in subjects such as algebra, trigonometry, and sciences. Depending on the program, students may have the option of concentrating in a field such as electromechanics, mechatronics, or industrial maintenance.
Electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians may earn optional certification to demonstrate professional competence.
The International Society of Automation offers the Certified Control Systems Technician (CCST) and Certified Automation Professional (CAP) designations. Both require a written exam, and recertification is required after a specified number of years.
The National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET) offers certification in electrical power testing and other specialties. The technologist certification requires a 4-year engineering technology degree.
Employment of electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians is projected to decline 3 percent from 2022 to 2032.
Despite declining employment, about 1,300 openings for electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians are projected each year, on average, over the decade. All of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to other occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
Many of these technologists and technicians are employed in manufacturing industries, for which employment projections vary. Automation in manufacturing could affect this occupation in both positive and negative ways. While automation may replace certain responsibilities, electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians will still be needed to operate and maintain the robotic equipment.
For more information about general engineering education and career resources, visit
American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE)
Technology Student Association (TSA)
For more information on accredited programs, visit
For more information about certification, visit
International Society of Automation (ISA)
National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET)
For information about working in automation, visit
This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians.
| Occupation | Job Duties | Entry-Level Education | Median Annual Pay, May 2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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Drafters |
Drafters use software to convert the designs of engineers and architects into technical drawings. |
Associate's degree | $60,400 |
|
Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologists and Technicians |
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Associate's degree | $66,390 |
|
Electrical and Electronics Engineers |
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Bachelor's degree | $104,610 |
|
Electrical and Electronics Installers and Repairers |
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See How to Become One | $64,190 |
|
Machinists and Tool and Die Makers |
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|
Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians |
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|
Mechanical Engineers |
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