Chemists & materials scientists

Detailed Occupation

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2024 Workforce

105k

Average Age

41.6

Average Salary

$101,150

Average Male Salary

$106,274

Average Female Salary

$92,987

About

Chemists & materials scientists are most often employed by the Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing industry. The average yearly wage for Chemists & materials scientists was $101,150 in 2024.

The locations that employ the most Chemists & materials scientists are San Diego County (Central)--San Diego City (Central/Mira Mesa & University Heights) PUMA, CA, Central Montgomery County--Gaithersburg & Rockville PUMA, MD, and Philadelphia City (Central) PUMA, PA. The locations with a relatively high concentration of Chemists & materials scientists are San Diego County (Central)--San Diego City (Central/Mira Mesa & University Heights) PUMA, CA, Middlesex County (Northwest)--North Piscataway & South Plainfield PUMA, NJ, and San Lorenzo, Juncos & Las Piedras PUMA, PR.

Photo by U.S. Army RDECOM

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Employment

Employment and salary information for the Chemists & materials scientists workforce. Chemists & materials scientists workforce in 2024 was 105,497 people, of which 38.6% were women and 61.4% were men. Chemists & materials scientists are paid most in San Mateo County (South & West)--San Mateo (South) & Half Moon Bay Cities PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in San Diego County (Central)--San Diego City (Central/Mira Mesa & University Heights) PUMA, CA.

Employment Over Time

Metric

Grouping

64,813

Male Workforce

± 6.25k

40,684

Female Workforce

± 4.95k

The Chemists & materials scientists workforce in 2024 was 105,497 people (38.6% women and 61.4% men). This implies an average annual growth of 25.1% between 2014 (84,352) and 2024 (105,497).

Employment by Location

Level

Metric

This map shows the states in the United States shaded by average wage for Chemists & materials scientists.

During 2024, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were New Mexico ($142,583), District of Columbia ($135,036), and Massachusetts ($125,809).

Yearly Wage Ranking

$101,150

AVERAGE WAGE

#78 in the ranking (2014)

$69,878

NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE

For all occupations across the US

In 2024, Chemists & materials scientists earned an average of $101,150, $31,273 more than the average national salary of $69,878

The graph shows the ranking of Chemists & materials scientists in relation to all Detailed Occupation in 2014.

In 2024, Chemists & materials scientists had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.328, which is lower than the national average of 0.474. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Chemists & materials scientists (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

The graphic shows the distribution of average salaries by buckets for Chemists & materials scientists compared to the entire workforce in the country.

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Chemists & materials scientists and on wages for those in the field. Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing is the industry that employs the most Chemists & materials scientists, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Chemists & materials scientists, by average wage, is Engine, turbine, & power transmission equipment manufacturing ($264,782).

Occupations by Industries

Metric

Value

105k

2024 Workforce

± 7,972

−3.67%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 11%

This graphic shows the share of Chemists & materials scientists employed by various industries. Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing employs the largest share of Chemists & materials scientists at 38.8%, followed by Scientific research & development services with 26.7% and Industrial & miscellaneous chemicals with 25.9%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Chemists & materials scientists in the US. The workforce of Chemists & materials scientists in 2024 was 105,497 people, with 38.6% woman, and 61.4% men. The average age of male Chemists & materials scientists in the workforce is 42.8 and of female Chemists & materials scientists is 39.8, and the most common race/ethnicity for Chemists & materials scientists is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Chemists & materials scientists in 2024 was 105,497 people, with 38.6% woman, and 61.4% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 25 to 29 years (17,812 people), 30 to 34 years (17,320 people), and 35 to 39 years (12,247 people). Among them they concentrated 45% of the total workforce.

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2024, 11.4% of Chemists & materials scientists workers were Hispanic and 88.6% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (44.3%), Puerto Rican (26.9)%, and All Other Spanish/Hispanic/Latino (6.04)%

You can review this information by gender using the selectors above.

Races

In 2024, 63.8% of the Chemists & materials scientists workforce were White, of which 36.2% were women and 63.8% men. Other races that concentrated a significant number of workers were Asian (16.7%) and Two or More Races (8.07%).

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices for Chemists & materials scientists from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Chemists & materials scientists is Physical Sciences but the most specialized major according to RCA in 2024 were Physical Sciences.

Among the necessary skills for Chemists & materials scientists, Science stands, but the revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Chemists & materials scientists need more than the average amount of Science.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

Type of Majors

Degree

The most common majors achieved by Chemists & materials scientists in 2024 (counting all academic degrees) were Physical Sciences (45,298 people), Biology (18,378 people), and Engineering (7,399 people).

You can review this information for different academic grades by modifying the option selected in the selector above.

Education Levels

Metric

The main educational levels achieved by the Chemists & materials scientists workers were Bachelors Degree (56,574 people), Graduate Degree (40,427 people), and Some college (2,664 people).

The graphic shows the Chemists & materials scientists workforce by gender and educational level.

Skills

Chart

Value

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Chemists & materials scientists from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Chemists & materials scientists need many skills, but most especially Science, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking.