How To Become A Wastewater Process Engineer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a wastewater process engineer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Libby Toping

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a wastewater process engineer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $40.33 an hour? That's $83,885 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 4% and produce 1,800 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a wastewater process engineer?

Libby Toping

Engineer intern, Crafton Tull

It has definitely been a unique time to start my first job. COVID-19 has caused many of my peers to struggle to find a job, so I think it has caused me to recognize how thankful I am to have a job that I enjoy working and that allows me to improve my community, even in the midst of a pandemic. There are certainly struggles with virtual meetings and mask-wearing, but learning to be flexible and adaptable are skills that I think will make me a better engineer in the long run!

ScoreWastewater Process EngineerUS Average

Salary

6.6

Avg. Salary $83,885

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.6

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.42%

Asian 10.60%

Black or African American 1.87%

Hispanic or Latino 7.69%

Unknown 3.74%

White 75.68%

Gender

female 33.33%

male 66.67%

Age - 42

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42

Stress level

6.6

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.7

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a wastewater process engineer

Explore wastewater process engineer education requirements

Most common wastewater process engineer degrees

Bachelor's

83.3 %

High School Diploma

8.3 %

Associate

8.3 %

Start to develop specific wastewater process engineer skills

Skills	Percentages
Biowin	47.29%
EPA	30.40%
P Id	18.15%
Collection Systems	4.16%

Complete relevant wastewater process engineer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New wastewater process engineers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a wastewater process engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real wastewater process engineer resumes.

Research wastewater process engineer duties and responsibilities

Lead and participate in KAIZEN events, IQ, OQ, PQ activities, set-up reduction techniques.
Develop a method to get AutoCad isometric drawings relevant to relief valve transferred electronically to the relief valve sizing package.
Monitor potable pilot plant for chlorination/dechlorination technologies including ozone, UV, chlorine gas/liquid emulsions, and peroxide.

Apply for wastewater process engineer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a wastewater process engineer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do wastewater process engineers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Wastewater process engineer reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2020

Cons

very little

A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2019