Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019

19-0000 Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations (Major Group)

This major group comprises the following occupations: Animal Scientists ; Food Scientists and Technologists ; Soil and Plant Scientists ; Biochemists and Biophysicists ; Microbiologists ; Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists ; Biological Scientists, All Other ; Conservation Scientists ; Foresters ; Epidemiologists ; Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists ; Life Scientists, All Other ; Astronomers ; Physicists ; Atmospheric and Space Scientists ; Chemists ; Materials Scientists ; Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health ; Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers ; Hydrologists ; Physical Scientists, All Other ; Economists ; Survey Researchers ; Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychologists ; Industrial-Organizational Psychologists ; Psychologists, All Other ; Sociologists ; Urban and Regional Planners ; Anthropologists and Archeologists ; Geographers ; Historians ; Political Scientists ; Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other ; Agricultural and Food Science Technicians ; Biological Technicians ; Chemical Technicians ; Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health ; Geological and Hydrologic Technicians ; Nuclear Technicians ; Social Science Research Assistants ; Forest and Conservation Technicians ; Forensic Science Technicians ; Life, Physical, and Social Science Technicians, All Other ; Occupational Health and Safety Specialists ; Occupational Health and Safety Technicians

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this major group:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
1,288,920	0.7 %	$37.28	$77,540	0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for this major group:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$17.62	$23.73	$32.77	$46.24	$61.59
Annual Wage (2)	$36,640	$49,360	$68,160	$96,180	$128,100

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Scientific Research and Development Services	190,370	26.92	$43.35	$90,160
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	130,980	4.24	$30.33	$63,090
Federal Executive Branch (OES Designation)	128,530	6.40	$42.69	$88,790
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation)	95,310	1.72	$33.14	$68,940
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation)	87,040	4.00	$30.51	$63,460

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Scientific Research and Development Services	190,370	26.92	$43.35	$90,160
Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing	44,790	15.07	$39.56	$82,280
Chemical Manufacturing (3251, 3252, 3253, and 3259 only)	26,420	7.26	$34.86	$72,520
Federal Executive Branch (OES Designation)	128,530	6.40	$42.69	$88,790
Oil and Gas Extraction	8,960	6.34	$57.87	$120,360

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Legal Services	280	0.02	$67.77	$140,960
Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities	600	0.06	$63.26	$131,580
Oil and Gas Extraction	8,960	6.34	$57.87	$120,360
Monetary Authorities-Central Bank	540	2.85	$56.22	$116,940
Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers	30	0.06	$55.51	$115,460

Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	182,360	10.49	1.20	$42.42	$88,230
Texas	102,540	8.25	0.94	$35.83	$74,530
New York	72,570	7.62	0.87	$37.84	$78,720
Massachusetts	58,340	16.12	1.84	$43.24	$89,950
Pennsylvania	49,320	8.36	0.95	$36.90	$76,750

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia	24,560	33.95	3.87	$53.06	$110,360
Alaska	6,380	20.12	2.29	$37.72	$78,450
Massachusetts	58,340	16.12	1.84	$43.24	$89,950
Maryland	43,350	16.05	1.83	$45.26	$94,140
Montana	7,380	15.78	1.80	$29.88	$62,140

Top paying States for this occupation:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia	24,560	33.95	3.87	$53.06	$110,360
New Jersey	43,130	10.55	1.20	$46.60	$96,930
Maryland	43,350	16.05	1.83	$45.26	$94,140
Massachusetts	58,340	16.12	1.84	$43.24	$89,950
California	182,360	10.49	1.20	$42.42	$88,230

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	76,970	7.97	0.91	$43.95	$91,410
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	63,660	20.02	2.28	$51.57	$107,270
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	51,200	18.30	2.09	$44.04	$91,610
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	47,830	7.67	0.87	$42.73	$88,890
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA	35,660	14.42	1.64	$48.35	$100,560
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	34,680	11.36	1.29	$40.49	$84,210
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	31,280	6.69	0.76	$36.33	$75,570
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	30,440	10.58	1.21	$42.33	$88,050
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA	25,270	16.91	1.93	$41.22	$85,740
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	23,610	11.68	1.33	$40.31	$83,850