WSU Delivers

A positive reactor experience

It’s a new era for nuclear energy, and Washington State University will help shape that future by building on its past.

Two people talking in a blue-lit nuclear reactor room surrounded by equipment.

WSU has more than a half-century of experience educating nuclear scientists and reactor operators. The university is home to the state’s only research reactor.

A major expansion at WSU’s Nuclear Science Center in Pullman will enable new lines of research and potentially new certificate and degree options, said Corey Hines, director of the center.

Interest in nuclear power is increasing globally, driven by soaring demand for energy, advances in technology, and climate goals. New reactors are being built worldwide, while companies are also developing next-generation small modular reactors that could lower costs and speed construction.

All of these facilities will need people to run and monitor them.

A student employee working the Nuclear Science Center control desk with many dials and instruments.

WSU will help fill that pipeline through its longtime reactor operator training program. At WSU, undergraduate students from any major can get the education and training needed to become a licensed reactor operator or senior reactor operator, and scores have done so.

“We’ve had music majors take the course; they’ve passed and become senior reactor operators. We’ve had history majors. We take all backgrounds,” said Layla Lumzer, a mechanical engineering student who has worked at the Nuclear Science Center for two years and is a licensed reactor operator. She graduated in December and will sit for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s senior reactor operator license exam this summer.

Students need one chemistry prerequisite to start the program. Then they must pass three additional courses and work at WSU’s research reactor to be eligible to sit for the exam. Average pay for a reactor operator in the U.S. is $121,000 per year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

This is an exciting moment for nuclear energy. WSU is uniquely positioned to drive next-generation nuclear innovations while preparing the highly qualified operators and scientists needed to power the industry’s future.
Kim Christen

A person working on equipment in a blue-lit nuclear reactor room.

WSU offers five nuclear science courses and is working on creating a nuclear science certificate within the chemistry department. After that, the university may launch a nuclear science minor, which would be a rarity in the U.S.

“Our recent motivation has been in development of undergraduate course work to introduce students to sought-after nuclear science skill sets earlier in their academic lives,” said Hines.

These programs are in addition to the research taking place in WSU’s Nuclear Science Center, conducted by university faculty and government and private partners. The center also produces radioactive isotopes for use at U.S. national laboratories, for advanced nuclear and energy industry partners, and medical research.

Two people examining information on a clipboard.

“This is an exciting moment for nuclear energy,” said WSU Vice President for Research Kim Christen. “WSU is uniquely positioned to drive next-generation nuclear innovations while preparing the highly qualified operators and scientists needed to power the industry’s future.”

Lumzer said she encourages all students to look into the nuclear field.

“Don’t be afraid to try it out if you’re not a STEM major. We’ll teach you the basics,” she said. “You get hands-on training. And, while you’ll be supervised, you get to operate a nuclear reactor yourself.”

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