Jobs / Science and research / 19-4051.02
Nuclear Monitoring Technicians
Collect and test samples to monitor results of nuclear experiments and contamination of humans, facilities, and environment.
- US jobs
- 6,470 (SOC 19-4051 group, "Nuclear Technicians")
- Median wage
- $110,240 a year
- Job family
- Science and research
Can agents do the work of nuclear monitoring technicians?
We read the evidence at the level of the job family, Science and research:
- Task levelPartialThin evidence. CORE-Bench asks agents to reproduce the results of published papers in computer science, social science, and medicine from the authors' code and data. Princeton's HAL team declared it solved in December 2025: Claude Code with Claude Opus 4.5 scored 95.5% after manual regrading. No benchmark in our collection tests new experiments or lab work.
- Project levelNot yetThin evidence. On PaperBench, where agents replicate machine learning papers from scratch, the best official result is 26.0% (o1, April 2025). On a small subset, ML PhDs scored 41.4% against o1's 26.6%. No newer official results exist, and no benchmark tests research projects in other sciences.
Benchmarks for the job family
These cover work in science and research, not always this occupation's tasks.
- 95.5%Claude Code + Claude Opus 4.5 (after manual regrading) · 3 Dec 2025Solved
Typical tasks
From O*NET 31.0. Core tasks first. Few of these tasks have a benchmark today.
- Brief workers on radiation levels in work areas.
- Calculate safe radiation exposure times for personnel using plant contamination readings and prescribed safe levels of radiation.
- Monitor personnel to determine the amounts and intensities of radiation exposure.
- Inform supervisors when individual exposures or area radiation levels approach maximum permissible limits.
- Provide initial response to abnormal events or to alarms from radiation monitoring equipment.
- Determine intensities and types of radiation in work areas, equipment, or materials, using radiation detectors or other instruments.
- Instruct personnel in radiation safety procedures and demonstrate use of protective clothing and equipment.
- Collect samples of air, water, gases, or solids to determine radioactivity levels of contamination.
- Analyze samples, such as air or water samples, for contaminants or other elements.
- Determine or recommend radioactive decontamination procedures, according to the size and nature of equipment and the degree of contamination.
- Set up equipment that automatically detects area radiation deviations and test detection equipment to ensure its accuracy.
- Prepare reports describing contamination tests, material or equipment decontaminated, or methods used in decontamination processes.
Other job titles for this occupation (23)
Health Physics Technician (HP Tech) · Nuclear Chemistry Technician · Radiation Control Technician (Radcon Technician) · Radiation Protection Specialist (RP Specialist) · Radiation Protection Technician (RPT) · Radiation Technician · Radiochemical Technician · Cathodic Protection Technician · Chemical Radiation Technician · Decontaminator · Instrumentation Control Specialist · Laboratory Control Specialist · Metallographic Technician · Nuclear Control Technician · Nuclear Technician · Nuclear Worker Technician · Radiation Control Specialist · Radiation Monitor · Radiation Protection Monitor · Radiation Safety Officer · Radiation Safety Specialist · Radiation Safety Technician (Radiation Safety Tech) · Systems Protection Technician