By: Aadhya Kondapuram

The STEM field is one of the most commonly mentioned career areas, with some of the discussed jobs being nurses and doctors, computer scientists, and engineers. Despite the popularity of STEM majors and careers, the STEAM field is often overlooked. The field of STEAM adds the topic of art into the conversation with science, technology, engineering, and math, opening up new career avenues and areas of specialization. This article introduces ten new careers that you might not know fall under the STEAM category!

1. Special Effects Artist

• STEAM Areas: Technology & Art
  • Median Income: $99,800 annually
  • Projected Growth: 2%
  • Education: Bachelor’s Degree
  • Special Effects Artists and Animators utilize a combination of animation programs and artistic skills to incorporate computer-generated images and backgrounds into shows and movies. It is often used to show a background of events that are difficult or expensive to film.

2. Fragrance Chemist

• STEAM Areas: Science & Art
  • Median Income: $87,180 annually
  • Projected Growth: 6%
  • Education: Bachelor’s Degree
  • Fragrance Chemists utilize specific and complex knowledge about chemical and natural compounds to create scents for perfumes, skincare, hair products, and cleaning supplies. The job also requires knowledge about customer marketing and artistic acumen to pair a scent with a product accurately.

3. Medical Illustrator

• STEAM Areas: Science & Art
  • Median Income: $83,500 annually
  • Projected Growth: 2%
  • Education: Master’s Degree
  • Medical Illustrators use in-depth anatomical and biological knowledge along with artistic skills in order to produce accurate visual representations that convey medical information. The illustrations are often used in textbooks, doctors’ offices, or movies.

4. Cosmetic Scientist

• STEAM Areas: Science & Art
  • Median Income: $83,547 annually
  • Projected Growth: 5%
  • Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree
  • Cosmetic Scientists create chemical and dye solutions for skincare and makeup products, including sunscreen, nail polish, deodorant, hair dye, and lipstick. They are also responsible for researching trends in the beauty industry and safety protocols.

5. Fashion Designer

• STEAM Areas: Math & Art
  • Median Income: $80,690 annually
  • Projected Growth: 2%
  • Education: Bachelor’s Degree
  • Fashion Designers make detailed sketches and blueprints of clothing, footwear, and accessories for production and sale to consumers. This can be done as an individual brand or as part of a larger, mainstream company, and requires precise measurements and knowledge of materials as well as drawing skills.

6. Industrial Designer

• STEAM Areas: Technology, Engineering & Art
  • Median Income: $79,450 annually
  • Projected Growth: 3%
  • Education: Bachelor’s Degree
  • Industrial Designers create sketches, models, and diagrams of equipment or items that are often manufactured in factories or mass-produced. This can include furniture, cars, or various other consumer goods.

7. Virtual Reality Designer

• STEAM Areas: Technology & Art
  • Median Income: $95,380 annually
  • Projected Growth: 7%
  • Education: Bachelor’s Degree
  • Virtual Reality Designers create immersive layouts used in Virtual and Augmented Reality devices, whether in a game or other application. They combine the technology used to design the device, the scientific principles used throughout the images, and artistic skills to sketch out the design that will be implemented.

8. User Experience Designer

• STEAM Areas: Technology, Science & Art
  • Median Income: $126,421 annually
  • Projected Growth: 7%
  • Education: Bachelor’s Degree
  • User Experience Designers use scientific knowledge, psychological input, coding skills, and artistic ideas to design a website that provides a convenient, user-friendly access to a company’s information. Their expertise can be applied across any discipline that requires a website or online design.

9. Audio Engineer

• STEAM Areas: Technology & Art
  • Median Income: $59,430 annually
  • Projected Growth: 7%
  • Education: Bachelor’s Degree
  • Audio Engineers use technological and musical knowledge in order to operate recording equipment to create music, voices, sound effects, and songs. Their productions are often used in television shows, movies, theater, podcasts, concerts and other musical events.

10. Flavor Chemist

• STEAM Areas: Science, Engineering, Art & Technology
  • Median Income: $71,372 annually
  • Projected Growth: 6.5%
  • Education: Master’s Degree
  • Flavor chemists combine knowledge of chemistry of food, its preservation, and the use of various equipment in order to improve the properties of foods for the consumers. Their work can be seen as an art that combines multiple aspects of food science in order to create flavor profiles that appeal to the consumer of the goods.

Works Cited

“Careers.” AMI, 2022, www.ami.org/medical-illustration/enter-the-profession/careers.

EBSCO. “Perfume Chemist | Research Starters | EBSCO Research.” EBSCO, 2023, www.ebsco.com/research-starters/science/perfume-chemist. Accessed 7 Sept. 2025.

“Exploring STEAM in Health – Upstate AHEC.” Upstate AHEC, 12 Jan. 2021, www.upstateahec.org/health-careers-programs/steam/. Accessed 12 Sept. 2025.

Indeed Editorial Team. “How to Become a Cosmetic Chemist (with Steps).” Indeed Career Guide, 25 Aug. 2025, www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/how-to-become-cosmetic-chemist.

Ireland, Jodi. “Arts and Technology | STEAM Education.” TeenLife, 2025, www.teenlife.com/blog/arts-and-technology/. Accessed 7 Sept. 2025.

McGinty, David. “10 More Unusual STEM Careers.” Twig Education, 1 June 2017, twigeducation.com/blog/10-more-unusual-stem-careers/.

Quance, Shelly. “6 Dynamic Careers That Combine Art and Science.” Blog.graduateadmissions.wvu.edu, 26 Oct. 2023, blog.graduateadmissions.wvu.edu/the-summit-ahead/6-dynamic-careers-that-combine-art-and-science.

Sangeeta Parmar, Anuradha. “SHEROES – the Women-Only Social Network.” Sheroes.com, 2025, sheroes.com/articles/jobs-for-people-who-love-to-draw/MTY4NTM=. Accessed 7 Sept. 2025.

“Science Careers: 12 Roles You Didn’t Even Know Existed.” Insight – Charles Sturt University, 12 Mar. 2025, insight.study.csu.edu.au/science-careers/. Accessed 7 Sept. 2025.

U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS. “Web Developers : Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.” Bls.gov, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 13 Apr. 2018, www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/web-developers.htm.

U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics. “Fashion Designers : Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.” Bls.gov, 13 Apr. 2018, www.bls.gov/ooh/arts-and-design/fashion-designers.htm.

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Industrial Designers : Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.” Bls.gov, 4 Sept. 2019, www.bls.gov/ooh/arts-and-design/industrial-designers.htm.

“Multimedia Artists and Animators: Occupational Outlook Handbook: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.” Bls.gov, 22 Feb. 2019, www.bls.gov/ooh/arts-and-design/multimedia-artists-and-animators.htm.

“Sound Engineering Technicians.” Bureau of Labor Statistics, 25 Apr. 2023, www.bls.gov/oes/2023/may/oes274014.htm.

“User Experience Designer Salary in the United States.” Www.indeed.com, 31 Aug. 2025, www.indeed.com/career/user-experience-designer/salaries.

Yenko, Emma. “Getting Ready for Careers in STEAM.” Affordable Colleges Online, 24 Aug. 2020, www.affordablecollegesonline.org/college-resource-center/steam-careers-art-schools/.