Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2020
19-0000 Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations (Major Group)
Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations 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 Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations
Industry profile for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations
Geographic profile for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations
National estimates for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 1,296,060 |
0.7 % |
$ 38.15 |
$ 79,360 |
0.4 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 17.76 |
$ 24.05 |
$ 33.54 |
$ 47.60 |
$ 63.64 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 36,930 |
$ 50,020 |
$ 69,760 |
$ 99,010 |
$ 132,370 |
Industry profile for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Scientific Research and Development Services |
197,820 |
26.29 |
$ 44.44 |
$ 92,430 |
| Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation) |
144,220 |
6.93 |
$ 42.00 |
$ 87,350 |
| Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools |
125,010 |
4.12 |
$ 30.63 |
$ 63,710 |
| Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
94,070 |
1.74 |
$ 33.86 |
$ 70,420 |
| State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
87,790 |
3.99 |
$ 31.60 |
$ 65,730 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Scientific Research and Development Services |
197,820 |
26.29 |
$ 44.44 |
$ 92,430 |
| Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing |
44,030 |
14.77 |
$ 39.42 |
$ 81,990 |
| Chemical Manufacturing (3251, 3252, 3253, and 3259 only) |
26,700 |
7.43 |
$ 35.67 |
$ 74,190 |
| Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation) |
144,220 |
6.93 |
$ 42.00 |
$ 87,350 |
| Chemical Manufacturing (3255 and 3256 only) |
9,340 |
5.47 |
$ 32.89 |
$ 68,400 |
Top paying industries for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
Geographic profile for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
188,940 |
11.50 |
1.23 |
$ 43.66 |
$ 90,800 |
| Texas |
103,830 |
8.58 |
0.92 |
$ 36.32 |
$ 75,550 |
| New York |
68,440 |
7.87 |
0.85 |
$ 39.00 |
$ 81,110 |
| Massachusetts |
55,850 |
16.67 |
1.79 |
$ 44.76 |
$ 93,110 |
| Pennsylvania |
50,410 |
9.15 |
0.98 |
$ 36.31 |
$ 75,530 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| District of Columbia |
24,340 |
35.42 |
3.80 |
$ 53.70 |
$ 111,700 |
| Alaska |
6,700 |
22.62 |
2.43 |
$ 37.48 |
$ 77,950 |
| Montana |
8,480 |
18.62 |
2.00 |
$ 28.92 |
$ 60,160 |
| Maryland |
44,020 |
17.45 |
1.87 |
$ 46.08 |
$ 95,840 |
| Wyoming |
4,410 |
16.84 |
1.81 |
$ 31.37 |
$ 65,250 |
Top paying states for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| District of Columbia |
24,340 |
35.42 |
3.80 |
$ 53.70 |
$ 111,700 |
| Maryland |
44,020 |
17.45 |
1.87 |
$ 46.08 |
$ 95,840 |
| Massachusetts |
55,850 |
16.67 |
1.79 |
$ 44.76 |
$ 93,110 |
| New Jersey |
41,230 |
10.90 |
1.17 |
$ 43.74 |
$ 90,980 |
| California |
188,940 |
11.50 |
1.23 |
$ 43.66 |
$ 90,800 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| 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 |
72,700 |
8.23 |
0.88 |
$ 43.02 |
$ 89,480 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
62,720 |
20.75 |
2.23 |
$ 52.76 |
$ 109,740 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
48,800 |
8.38 |
0.90 |
$ 43.50 |
$ 90,480 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
48,610 |
18.68 |
2.01 |
$ 45.59 |
$ 94,820 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
40,600 |
17.42 |
1.87 |
$ 51.53 |
$ 107,190 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
33,040 |
11.13 |
1.19 |
$ 42.07 |
$ 87,500 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
32,180 |
7.38 |
0.79 |
$ 37.98 |
$ 78,990 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
29,670 |
11.00 |
1.18 |
$ 42.00 |
$ 87,360 |
| San Diego-Carlsbad, CA |
25,170 |
17.98 |
1.93 |
$ 41.69 |
$ 86,720 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
23,940 |
6.67 |
0.72 |
$ 35.38 |
$ 73,580 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Midland, MI |
1,210 |
39.09 |
4.20 |
$ 44.48 |
$ 92,520 |
| Corvallis, OR |
1,240 |
35.29 |
3.79 |
$ 31.09 |
$ 64,670 |
| Fairbanks, AK |
1,070 |
34.74 |
3.73 |
$ 34.79 |
$ 72,360 |
| Boulder, CO |
6,280 |
34.63 |
3.72 |
$ 49.37 |
$ 102,690 |
| College Station-Bryan, TX |
3,680 |
33.95 |
3.64 |
$ 24.90 |
$ 51,790 |
| Athens-Clarke County, GA |
2,850 |
33.64 |
3.61 |
(8) |
(8) |
| Idaho Falls, ID |
2,270 |
33.04 |
3.55 |
$ 33.13 |
$ 68,920 |
| Ithaca, NY |
1,480 |
32.23 |
3.46 |
$ 33.13 |
$ 68,910 |
| Kennewick-Richland, WA |
3,650 |
32.04 |
3.44 |
$ 43.75 |
$ 90,990 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill, NC |
9,730 |
31.40 |
3.37 |
$ 38.94 |
$ 80,990 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
62,720 |
20.75 |
2.23 |
$ 52.76 |
$ 109,740 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
40,600 |
17.42 |
1.87 |
$ 51.53 |
$ 107,190 |
| Boulder, CO |
6,280 |
34.63 |
3.72 |
$ 49.37 |
$ 102,690 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT |
2,140 |
5.68 |
0.61 |
$ 49.25 |
$ 102,440 |
| Trenton, NJ |
6,660 |
28.89 |
3.10 |
$ 46.86 |
$ 97,460 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
14,190 |
12.86 |
1.38 |
$ 46.60 |
$ 96,930 |
| Norwich-New London-Westerly, CT-RI |
1,250 |
11.28 |
1.21 |
$ 45.92 |
$ 95,500 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
48,610 |
18.68 |
2.01 |
$ 45.59 |
$ 94,820 |
| Pine Bluff, AR |
350 |
12.44 |
1.34 |
$ 45.56 |
$ 94,770 |
| Vallejo-Fairfield, CA |
1,790 |
13.44 |
1.44 |
$ 44.68 |
$ 92,940 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| Nonmetropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Northern New Mexico nonmetropolitan area |
4,000 |
51.30 |
5.51 |
$ 55.44 |
$ 115,310 |
| Southwest Montana nonmetropolitan area |
3,120 |
23.00 |
2.47 |
$ 29.32 |
$ 60,990 |
| North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area |
2,580 |
26.60 |
2.85 |
$ 27.09 |
$ 56,340 |
| Alaska nonmetropolitan area |
2,570 |
25.70 |
2.76 |
$ 36.05 |
$ 74,980 |
| Kansas nonmetropolitan area |
2,500 |
6.60 |
0.71 |
$ 31.27 |
$ 65,040 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
| Nonmetropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Northern New Mexico nonmetropolitan area |
4,000 |
51.30 |
5.51 |
$ 55.44 |
$ 115,310 |
| Northwestern Idaho nonmetropolitan area |
2,130 |
31.69 |
3.40 |
$ 23.39 |
$ 48,640 |
| North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area |
2,580 |
26.60 |
2.85 |
$ 27.09 |
$ 56,340 |
| Alaska nonmetropolitan area |
2,570 |
25.70 |
2.76 |
$ 36.05 |
$ 74,980 |
| Central Oregon nonmetropolitan area |
1,430 |
24.71 |
2.65 |
$ 25.97 |
$ 54,020 |
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations:
About May 2020 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia.
The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median.
More about percentile wages.
(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.
(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours;
for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.
(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.
(8) Estimate not released.
(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration.
A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.
Other OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2020 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2020 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2020 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2020 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2020 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2021
United States Department of Labor
