Blog

8 Uncommon STEM Careers To Help You Better Understand STEM Education

Joshua Frisch • April 12, 2023

In the last decade, you have likely heard of STEAM or STEM careers. The growing impact these terms have on society year after year can’t be dismissed. Schools across the country are developing specialized programs to help prepare today’s youth for tomorrow’s future.


Is this just because STEM careers boast some of the highest paying jobs out there? While that may be true, that is simply one benefit to acknowledge. STEM education leads to careers that create new innovation, infrastructure, and overall growth.


How Does STEM Education Relate To These Fields?


The purpose behind STEM / STEAM education is to show how all of the subjects relate to one another in some way. STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics. With “STEM” the “A” is removed, but we believe art is important and should be included as well.


You may have heard of popular STEM fields and courses such as Computer Engineering, Biotechnology, and Programming just to name a few. The number of career paths available in STEM, however, go beyond what you may expect!


Did you know that being a chef in the culinary world can also be considered a STEM / STEAM based career? How can a culinary field possibly relate to computer engineering? The presentation of the next few fields should clear a few things up for you. Take a look at these unusual STEM careers to help you better understand STEM education.


Sustainable Landscape Designer

As more people become conscious of the importance of sustainability, the field of sustainable landscape design has grown in popularity. Sustainable landscape design is a field that focuses on creating outdoor spaces that are both aesthetically pleasing and environmentally friendly. With the rise of urbanization, there is an increased need for sustainable design in urban areas. Urban agriculture and edible landscapes are two examples of sustainable landscape design that are gaining popularity. 


Urban agriculture is the practice of growing food in urban areas. This can be done through community gardens, rooftop gardens, and other urban farming techniques. Edible landscapes are outdoor spaces that incorporate edible plants such as fruits, vegetables, and herbs into the design. These landscapes can be both beautiful and functional, providing food for people and wildlife while also improving the environment.



Landscape designers get involved with water management, soil science, urban planning, urban food farming and production, urban wildlife environmental support, carbon neutrality, sound abatement and fighting urban heat island effects. If you want to make a difference in creating healthy outdoor environments, creating beauty and potentially reversing food deserts, then this career may be right for you. There are many benefits to being a sustainable landscape designer. The majority of sustainable landscape designers make between $41K and $61K per year.


If you are interested in a career in the horticulture and landscape industry, you will find lessons and projects in our Sustainable Landscape Design curriculum.


Audio/Sound Effects Engineer

Audio engineers and sound effects professionals are part of production teams in film, animation, game development, television, commercials, and even social media. Sound effect artists create simple or complex sound effects that reinforce the action and feel of a scene. Sound effects work has been around for a very long time. In fact one of the pioneers of sound production’s name, Jack Foley, was the inspiration for the name for those in the industry–”Foley” artists. 


A Foley artist in the union is guaranteed a minimum of $2,773.12 a week, or $57.06 an hour, with 48.6 hours guaranteed per week. On average, audio and sound effect engineers can expect to make $64K to $100K per year.


If you are interested in Sound Effects or Audio Engineering as a career, you will find lessons and projects in Game Testing in our Web and Mobile Game Design curriculum, and our Web Animation curriculum.  


Video or Mobile Game Tester

Game testing is a crucial part of any game development. They communicate with game developers, coders, and graphic designers to identify and fix playability and game story issues. Many game testers use this step as a way to get hired into game design and game development. Game testers can be employees or independent contractors working hybrid or as remote working professionals. 


Game tester positions typically are entry level positions in game development, and therefore new game testers can expect to make less than their game designer, developer, or more senior quality assurance comrades. 


The average salary in the US is around $34K, with more experienced testers earning $44K. More experienced quality assurance and video game testers can make up to $79K per year.


If you are interested in being a game tester as a career, you will find lessons and projects in game testing in our Web and Mobile Game Design curriculum.


Zoologist


In this field, you will study the animal kingdom, its structure, and how it interacts with various ecosystems. Let’s not forget to mention that this is the perfect job if you want to spend time with exotic animals! This STEM career can have you working within a zoo, laboratory, or even a classroom. Zoology has many branches to work within, all of which, in some way, incorporate different aspects of STEM.


Some zoologists work to help preserve the life of a certain species of animal, while others may develop books and other educational materials to assist members of a team or research group. There are zoologists who even go on to teach at universities and publish journalistic reports on their discoveries and findings.

A deeper look into the zoology shows how the different aspects of STEM play a major role in being a zoologist. STEM has played a big part in helping zoologists better preserve and care for animal species across the world. The average salary for a Zoologist is $60K per year.


Chef & Flavor Chemist


Chefs are considered the artists of the food world. You could say this takes care of the “A” in STEAM education. What about the STEM part? As a chef or flavor chemist, you will be working with the combination of different food groups and ingredients.


Combining the ingredients into carefully measured portions, and applying the right cooking procedures requires a great deal of skill. You can find a number of accredited degree programs available to become a chef or flavor chemist, and there are a number of institutions dedicated to the culinary arts.


Food science, chemistry, and presentation all show heavy traces of the basic ideas of STEAM education. As a chef, you have many branches you can go into. (such as a pastry chef or fish cook) When it comes to a flavor chemist, it can be very competitive, however.


Chefs can earn anywhere from $25K and up per year, whereas a Flavor Chemist can earn well over $65K a year.


Ethical Hacker


Yes, there are actually good hackers out there! Ethical hackers help to test security by exploiting a company’s network to find the vulnerabilities. This STEM career is all about the good hackers versus the bad hackers. Be prepared to have extensive knowledge of computer systems.


If you’ve already grown up using computers on a semi advanced level, taking a computer science, networking, or programming course to improve your skills will put you well on your way in this field. This is one of the more important STEM careers in technology, as cyber security is an increasing threat in our evolving digital world.


Over the last 5 years alone, there have been dozens of stories about hackers obtaining sensitive information that they should not have accessed. The need for computer engineers to build the infrastructure is just as important as the need for ethical hackers to find the problems in the infrastructure!


An Ethical Hacker earns an average of $72K per year, but the salary range is large. Some earners report $24K per year, while some have even reported over $100K per year.


3D Printing Engineer


3D printing ( Additive Manufacturing ) has already begun to change our world, and we’ve only just begun to scrape the surface. This industry and its related fields may become some of the most innovative STEM careers over the next decade.


There are already stories of 3D printers printing functioning tools, prosthetic limbs, and even printing homes for people to live in! There are talks of 3D printers making food, and functioning organs to be implanted into humans. Let’s not forget that it's also cool to show off to your friends that you 3D printed a small trinket.

Today, there aren’t many fields related directly to additive manufacturing or 3D printing. However, there are a number of STEM fields that will greatly benefit your advancement in this career. Knowledge of mechanical and electrical engineering, 3D modeling, and industrial design all play an important role.


The average Additive Manufacturing Engineer salary in the United States range typically falls between $80,719 and $95,305.


3D printing is one of the more exciting, and new emerging industries we are looking forward to. Look at some of the cool achievements made with 3D printing! Just recently a nearly fully 3D printed rocket (Terran 1 About 85% of the rocket body and all 9 of its nine engines were 3D printed) lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.


Machine Learning Engineer


Machine learning is another exciting STEM career field pushing our society into the future of artificial intelligence. Hollywood has spooked us with movies about the emergence of self-aware AI. In reality, machine learning is about applying methods to large data sets that personalize and optimize experiences.

There are plenty of machine learning applications that we all use every day but might not be aware of. Whenever you search for something on Google, buy something on Amazon, or browse through Facebook, machine learning is at work to personalize your online experience.


As a machine learning engineer, you will have to deal with a lot of data. Data management skills are a must, and knowledge of programming and computer science are also required. You will be writing algorithms to gather and analyze data. After this, the goal is to autonomously achieve the desired outcome, and continue to adapt.


Ai Robotics Engineer in the United States is $96,474 a year, and the average for a Machine Learning Engineer is $152,000.


Artificial intelligence and machine learning, like 3D printing, will certainly change our world in the near future. Here at CTE Learning, we’ve developed an Artificial Intelligence and Mobile Robotics course to help students learn more about AI.


Did You Know These Were STEAM / STEM Careers?


STEAM / STEM careers are still typically thought of in general terms. However, there are many career paths that we don’t know actually apply to many STEM subjects. STEM and STEAM are all about incorporating the subjects of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics into old, and new industries. This introduces creative thinking, problem solving, innovation, and growth for the foreseeable future.


STEM’s growing influence in our everyday lives will only continue to become stronger. Next time you’re considering the difficulty of STEM related fields or careers, take another look. You’ll find that STEM is not as narrow as you think, and is always expanding. There is a STEM career out there for you that will help us shape the world of tomorrow.


Share To

Get in touch with us today!


You can book a demo directly using Calendly, call us directly at 913-764-4272 or 877-828-1216, or submit the form and we will reach out to you.


We look forward to helping you and your students.

students with STEM certifications

Most Recent Posts

Equipping the Next Generation With AI Skills

By Steve Waddell • May 1, 2025
Today we are highlighting one of our long-time partners, Dr. Maurico Castillo, and his students. Dr. Castillo teaches in the College of Engineering, Computer Science, and Technology at California State University, Los Angeles and is an Advisor for Web Professionals Global , the professional association for all things web. This semester, Dr. Castillo has been teaching students at the Esteban Torres High School Engineering & Technology Academy. He is teaching CTeLearning’s AI for the Workplace course . 30 students worked their way through the course that teaches students how AI can be harnessed in the workplace, no matter what the future educational and career paths of the students may be. The course features the PromptScout tool, which helps students learn how various AI prompts can be used in a variety of professional settings to streamline work. The 5,360 prompts cover 63 different industries ranging from welding and business and cosmetology to agriculture. We caught up with Dr. Castillo to hear about his experience working with CTeLearning and teaching the course: “AI is here and is becoming a part of every career pathway. As CTE educators we must prepare learners for their future, and their future will include AI. AI will not replace people in their chosen pathways, but I see it helping to do more in less time. For example, people in a variety of career fields including welders, electricians, mechanics, solar techs, cosmetologists, web designers, and arborists are small business owners and entrepreneurs. As a welder, you have a craft that is high-paying and you may own your own business. AI can help you with many administrative tasks including digital marketing, customer service communications, and even safety reviews and codes review. AI is becoming the new career literacy. Every student needs to learn about how AI is a valuable tool and not something we should be afraid of. I was the first to deploy this course in CA. I took the opportunity with a class at a local high school that had 30 students. As a member of the advisory committee of Web Professionals Global, I got to see much of the early development of the microcredential and its supporting curriculum. So, when I had the chance to give it a test drive, I could not resist. I am a professor, and so like all professor types I am passionate about learning and can talk forever on any topic I love. I am excited for you to hear from the first class of certificate earners.” Hear From the Students Let’s hear from Dr. Castillo’s students about how they liked the course.  “What I liked about the CTelearning course is that it made you learn ways you can work with AI without letting the AI control your work. It helps you understand how to make the AI work with you and what you want to create. I also like the scenarios because it helps us get an experience of what it's like to use AI to help which work. ” –Veronica Perez “To learn about AI is a great thing considering that’s what is increasing in this economy. I feel like this program is doing a good thing teaching us high school students how to use it. Learning AI can help us in the future as we can find a path in an AI-based career or even in common life situations. I’m very glad to be able to have this opportunity as I see this as something very useful for my future.” –Josie Beltran “There were many things that I enjoyed about the AI in the Workplace course. Before this, I was always skeptical about AI, and even considered myself a hater. When I started reading the modules, I really enjoyed the new information I was learning about AI and how helpful it can be in work life, but also in real life. I also liked how there were sections in the modules that showed the dangers and cons for AI. A lot of people who are passionate about something seem to only show the bright side of it, but I really liked that the course didn’t show any bias and showed how AI can be bad as well. Another reason why I liked this was because it taught me new ways to use AI and all the capabilities it has.” –Derrek Aparicio “The program was very helpful because it helps you learn completely different things and can help prepare you for the future.” –Jesse Mendez “What I like about the program is the attention to detail throughout the course. Each action is divided into different topics, making it more accessible to users.” –Emely Perez “What I liked about the program we took was the scenarios. They allow me to see situations where I could use AI in real life. The situations were mainly in work environments, where I could really use AI to help me in situations.” –Abel Gonzales Your School Could Be Next Contact us today at hello@ctelearning.com or 877-828-1216 to schedule your free 20-minute demo. One of our team members will show you how you can bring this innovative AI curriculum into your classroom and prepare your students for success.

In Pennsylvania - Approval for New Animation Certification

By Steve Waddell • April 10, 2025
Frequent readers of our blog know we like to highlight our teachers and students across the country who are doing great work. Today we are highlighting Patrick McLane and his students. Patrick is the Illustration and Design Instructor at the Career Technology Center (CTC) of Lackawanna County in Pennsylvania and will be delivering a new certificate opportunity to his students in Fall 2025 thanks to a new partnership. Recently, career and technical education (CTE) programs in PA schools worked with the Pennsylvania Department of Education Bureau of Career and Technical Education (BCTE) to provide an alternative to Adobe certificates for high school and CTC students. Thanks to this effort, the Certified Web Animator Certificate is now recognized in the Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) by the state of Pennsylvania. The certificate is part of our Web and Computer Animation course and is backed by Web Professionals Global , our industry partner. Web Professionals Global is the industry association for all web-related careers, and all certifications are created and backed by industry professionals. The Learn and Earn partnership with Web Professionals Global allows students to earn career-building certifications while still in school, and the cost of certifications are underwritten by the CTeLearning partnership with the professional association. Editors’s Note: Formerly known as the World of Webmasters (WOW), Web Professionals Global underwent a rebranding in 2022. Certifications in state listings may still appear under the WOW umbrella. Today, most educators and industry members recognize that WOW is now known as Web Professionals Global. Patrick’s students will be exploring an exciting career pathway and earning certifications that they can take with them in their future educational and professional careers. Another bonus Patrick and his students will enjoy is the fact that the curriculum is PC, Mac and Chromebook ready. It also includes a robust online animation editor tool suite that is free with the curriculum, and there is nothing to install on the student’s device. This will ensure complete flexibility and mobility for all his learners. Let’s hear from Patrick to hear about his experience getting the certificate approved by the state and what he is looking forward to when his students take advantage of this opportunity next fall. What did your advisory committee say when you approached them about adding the Certified Web Animator Certificate and shifting away from offering only an Adobe Photoshop certification? Did they echo your sentiments about wanting to offer more to students? Our Occupational Advisory Committee was in agreement that there needed to be an alternative to the Adobe Certifications as a path to graduation for students. They felt that the Certified Web Animator Certificate was a great option. Not only did it satisfy many of the Digital Imaging requirements of our task list, it offered an opportunity for students to practice and master many soft-skills addressed in our instructional area. One of the stand outs of the Web Professionals Global certifications is their attention to soft skills. The certifications are all about building the whole professional and not someone who is proficient in just a tool or a couple skills. In this case the Web Animator certification also covers ethics, IP, project management, design process, marketing, storyboard, audio, and technical aspects of creating robust animations built on a timeline. What was the process like working with the Pennsylvania Department of Education to get the Certified Web Animator Certificate approved? The process proved to be pretty painless. The documentation of your curriculum was so thorough, it made it easy for us to show alignment with our state task list. The Certified Web Animator Certificate teaches not only animation but also music, sound effects, audio engineering, storyboarding, ethics, critical thinking, and math in the workplace. What do you like about this comprehensive approach to preparing learners? I love the fact that the program incorporates various competencies. The soft skills and professional practice elements of the certification add another level of assessment for those areas of my curriculum. The production areas are an added bonus that help the students develop into more well-rounded professionals and prepare them for the workforce. How does it feel knowing you are giving your students the opportunity to earn certifications that are backed by industry, not just a testing company? It is an excellent addition to my program. Not only does it give students skills that are transferable no matter which platform a potential employer utilizes, it provides opportunities for higher level creative problem solving. What feedback have you received from your administrators about the course change and upgrading the certification options? Our administration is always appreciative when we can offer additional opportunities to students. It helps when they are marketing our program to sending school districts. What would you tell other teachers who may be interested in offering this certification to their students? If you have been searching for an alternative certification path for your students, the Certified Web Animator Certificate is an excellent option whether your program is focused on digital media, web design, or commercial and advertising design. The concepts presented in the program are industry standard and applicable to a wide range of disciplines. Contact us Today For more information about how you can help your students earn career-building certifications, contact us today at 913-764-4272 or hello@ctelearning.com . We would be happy to show you how we can help in a free 20-minute demo.

2025 Infographic Web and Mobile Game Design Career Pathway

By Steve Waddell • April 7, 2025
The demand for new web and mobile games continues to surge, driven by the staggering numbers of players worldwide. With approximately 1 in 4 people globally engaging in mobile gaming and over 1.13 billion online gamers, the market shows no signs of slowing down. We offer a Web and Mobile Video Game Design course designed to prepare middle school and high school students for this exciting career pathway. In 2024 alone, the industry witnessed the release of over one million new mobile games annually across iOS and Android platforms. These figures are subject to slight fluctuations influenced by market dynamics and global events. Notably, statistics reveal a significant presence of women in mobile gaming, constituting 63% of the player base. Furthermore, while the US contributes 29% to global mobile game spending, a substantial 71% of revenue emanates from outside the US. Currently, there are approximately 500,000 mobile gaming apps available on Android platforms. The average age of mobile gamers stands at 36.3 years, indicating a broad demographic appeal. China leads the gaming market with over 700 million gamers, while the US boasts over 191 million mobile gamers, with both numbers continuing to grow. Browser-based games, or web games, are projected to become a market worth over $9 billion by 2027, highlighting the expanding opportunities in this sector. Additionally, gamification is increasingly permeating various industries, simplifying training and process descriptions, including marketing. A recent poll indicates that 50% of startups plan to integrate gaming elements into their strategies in the near future. One aspect of game development is web app games. These games appear as mobile games, but do not need to be downloaded to the mobile device. Unlike traditional mobile games that require purchase or download from app stores, web app games are accessible through any smartphone browser. Game designers are leveraging this to bypass app store fees and directly reach a broad audience eager for new gaming experiences. Game design is a broad field and allows many different opportunities for anyone interested in this industry. The obvious are game designers and game developers, but that is only a small part of the story. To build a successful game you need graphic artists, sound effects artists, audio engineers, project managers, producers, and game testers, just to name a few. The Opportunity In the realm of career opportunities, the demand for web design skills is skyrocketing in today's digital age. From small enterprises to multinational corporations, establishing a robust online presence is imperative for global competitiveness. Learning web design not only unlocks diverse opportunities but also equips individuals with sought-after skills applicable across industries. While some designers pursue four-year degrees, many enter the field armed with industry credentials, a strong portfolio, and some post-secondary education. Employers now prioritize industry certifications and portfolios over traditional college degrees, recognizing the value of practical skills and expertise. Embarking on a career in game design offers various pathways. While a formal degree program remains an option, an increasing number of studios and employers prefer industry credentials and portfolios. Lifelong learning is emphasized, with many designers opting for self-education supplemented by industry-based certifications to gain a competitive edge. Entrepreneurial individuals may opt to establish their own design businesses, offering autonomy over projects, clients, and schedules. Freelancing is another avenue, providing flexibility in choosing clients and setting rates, along with exposure to the global market and diverse collaborations. Beyond career prospects, game design enhances problem-solving and critical thinking skills, offering continuous learning opportunities and transferable skills applicable across diverse fields. Educators are encouraged to guide students towards this high-growth pathway, unlocking doors to successful and fulfilling careers in web and mobile game design. Check out our Web and Mobile Video Game Design course and contact us for a free demo.