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Nanosystems Engineers

Experience, Skills, and Personality Traits

Those wishing to enter the field of nanotechnology should obtain as much experience as possible in high school and college by participating in internships, co-ops, or volunteer or part-time positions at nanoengineering firms and laboratories or other companies that develop or use nanosystems.

To be a successful nanosystems engineer, you should have strong communication and interpersonal skills; be attentive to detail; be able to think analytically in order to solve problems and work with abstract ideas; and be willing to continue to learn throughout your career. Other important traits include science and engineering skills; creativity and imagination; and the ability to work both independently and as a member of a group.

Nanosystems engineers must know how to use (or be willing to learn):

  • analytical or scientific software (e.g., Dassault Systemes Abaqus, General Atomic and Molecular Electronic Structure System GAMESS, Simcenter Nastran)
  • computer-aided design software (e.g., Autodesk AutoCAD, LinkCAD, Dassault Systemes CATIA, PTC Creo Parametric)
  • development environment software (e.g., National Instruments LabVIEW)
  • graphics or photo imaging software (e.g., Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop)
  • spreadsheet software (e.g., Microsoft Excel)
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