What the work is worth. A hurricane forecast that is right by a day and fifty miles is thousands of lives. Atmospheric scientists give a community the time to act.
An ordinary day. Model and forecast weather and climate, analyze satellite and radar data, issue warnings, and communicate risk to the public and to decision makers.
The path in. Bachelor's in atmospheric science or meteorology; master's for research and forecasting leadership.
From zero. The STEM Farm Energy / Utilities / Environmental Technology track starts at zero-STEM intake and ends in this kind of work, with verified proof at every gate.
Take the STEM Compass assessmentZero to Atmospheric Scientist & Meteorologist →
STEM profession path. A path has a start, a direction and a destination. The assessment gives the direction, the career pages the destination, and the STEM Farm track the start at zero. A profession is a career you stay in. The assessment measures the traits that make the daily work sustainable — not whether you can pass the first class, but whether you will still want the work at year ten.
Atmospheric Scientist & Meteorologist and the Aurora County economy
Aurora County is farming-typed in the USDA ERS 2025 typology, a nonmetro county. Its labor market is the Mitchell, SD commuting zone (6 counties). By local economy, atmospheric scientist & meteorologist ranks #5 of forty for this county.
The personality behind the work
- Numbers & Data Affinity. You like living in numbers, tables, and measurements; quantitative work feels natural.
- Abstract & Systems Thinking. You can hold an invisible system in your head — logic flows, data moving between parts, cause and effect you cannot see.
- Composure. You stay calm and clear-headed when the situation is urgent and other people are not.
- Communication. You can turn a complex finding into a clear story for people who do not share your training.
- Skepticism. You question whether the data is accurate, complete, or biased before you trust any conclusion.
- Detail Orientation. You remember complex facts and catch small errors before they become large ones.
- Adaptability. New tools, new languages, new rules do not throw you. You expect the ground to move and you enjoy relearning.
Across the Mitchell, SD labor market
Same search, other careers in Aurora County
What moves it
- WIOA-funded training pays for the credential, ages 14 to 24 and adults: find your local office.
- Registered apprenticeship — a wage from day one: apprenticeship.gov.
- FAFSA — free to file, the gate to nearly all aid: studentaid.gov.
- STEM Farm — the track from zero to the career the assessment says fits: the twelve tracks.
STEM profession path: Atmospheric Scientist & Meteorologist in Mitchell, SD → · All careers in Aurora County →