Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2016
19-2032 Materials Scientists
Research and study the structures and chemical properties of various natural and synthetic or composite materials, including metals, alloys, rubber, ceramics, semiconductors, polymers, and glass. Determine ways to strengthen or combine materials or develop new materials with new or specific properties for use in a variety of products and applications. Includes glass scientists, ceramic scientists, metallurgical scientists, and polymer scientists.
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 occupation:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 7,750 |
4.6 % |
$48.83 |
$101,570 |
1.5 % |
Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$23.99 |
$34.17 |
$47.80 |
$61.84 |
$75.84 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$49,890 |
$71,070 |
$99,430 |
$128,620 |
$157,750 |
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 |
2,080 |
0.31 |
$51.13 |
$106,350 |
| Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services |
760 |
0.05 |
$39.91 |
$83,020 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises |
720 |
0.03 |
$54.12 |
$112,570 |
| Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services |
480 |
0.04 |
$58.34 |
$121,340 |
| Resin, Synthetic Rubber, and Artificial Synthetic Fibers and Filaments Manufacturing |
410 |
0.44 |
$53.83 |
$111,970 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Resin, Synthetic Rubber, and Artificial Synthetic Fibers and Filaments Manufacturing |
410 |
0.44 |
$53.83 |
$111,970 |
| Scientific Research and Development Services |
2,080 |
0.31 |
$51.13 |
$106,350 |
| Paint, Coating, and Adhesive Manufacturing |
100 |
0.17 |
$47.56 |
$98,930 |
| Nonferrous Metal (except Aluminum) Production and Processing |
80 |
0.13 |
$40.98 |
$85,240 |
| Basic Chemical Manufacturing |
160 |
0.11 |
$47.08 |
$97,920 |
Top paying industries for this occupation:
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 |
1,450 |
0.09 |
1.64 |
$50.69 |
$105,430 |
| Ohio |
640 |
0.12 |
2.16 |
$43.63 |
$90,760 |
| Massachusetts |
390 |
0.11 |
2.05 |
$50.36 |
$104,750 |
| Pennsylvania |
390 |
0.07 |
1.22 |
$45.66 |
$94,970 |
| New York |
370 |
0.04 |
0.75 |
$44.56 |
$92,690 |
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) |
| Delaware |
70 |
0.16 |
2.88 |
$38.87 |
$80,860 |
| Ohio |
640 |
0.12 |
2.16 |
$43.63 |
$90,760 |
| New Mexico |
100 |
0.12 |
2.20 |
$62.77 |
$130,560 |
| New Hampshire |
70 |
0.11 |
2.05 |
$39.61 |
$82,380 |
| Massachusetts |
390 |
0.11 |
2.05 |
$50.36 |
$104,750 |
Top paying States for this occupation:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| New Mexico |
100 |
0.12 |
2.20 |
$62.77 |
$130,560 |
| Nevada |
90 |
0.07 |
1.33 |
$59.88 |
$124,550 |
| Virginia |
350 |
0.09 |
1.67 |
$55.02 |
$114,450 |
| Colorado |
150 |
0.06 |
1.10 |
$54.04 |
$112,400 |
| Minnesota |
190 |
0.07 |
1.21 |
$53.67 |
$111,640 |
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) |
| Oakland-Hayward-Berkeley, CA Metropolitan Division |
260 |
0.24 |
4.38 |
$59.87 |
$124,530 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
240 |
0.23 |
4.12 |
$63.40 |
$131,880 |
| Cleveland-Elyria, OH |
230 |
0.22 |
3.97 |
$48.17 |
$100,190 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Arlington Heights, IL Metropolitan Division |
220 |
0.06 |
1.11 |
$47.63 |
$99,070 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division |
210 |
0.08 |
1.50 |
$58.65 |
$121,980 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI |
190 |
0.10 |
1.80 |
$53.79 |
$111,870 |
| New York-Jersey City-White Plains, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division |
170 |
0.03 |
0.48 |
$43.38 |
$90,220 |
| Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine, CA Metropolitan Division |
150 |
0.10 |
1.73 |
(8) |
(8) |
| Pittsburgh, PA |
150 |
0.13 |
2.38 |
$46.71 |
$97,170 |
| Lowell-Billerica-Chelmsford, MA-NH NECTA Division |
140 |
0.93 |
16.75 |
$50.25 |
$104,520 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Lowell-Billerica-Chelmsford, MA-NH NECTA Division |
140 |
0.93 |
16.75 |
$50.25 |
$104,520 |
| Ann Arbor, MI |
90 |
0.44 |
7.94 |
$46.20 |
$96,090 |
| Lake Charles, LA |
40 |
0.39 |
7.05 |
(8) |
(8) |
| Wilmington, DE-MD-NJ Metropolitan Division |
110 |
0.32 |
5.76 |
$47.09 |
$97,950 |
| Akron, OH |
90 |
0.29 |
5.17 |
$41.32 |
$85,940 |
| Oakland-Hayward-Berkeley, CA Metropolitan Division |
260 |
0.24 |
4.38 |
$59.87 |
$124,530 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
240 |
0.23 |
4.12 |
$63.40 |
$131,880 |
| Knoxville, TN |
80 |
0.22 |
3.96 |
$34.59 |
$71,950 |
| Cleveland-Elyria, OH |
230 |
0.22 |
3.97 |
$48.17 |
$100,190 |
| Greensboro-High Point, NC |
70 |
0.19 |
3.37 |
$41.55 |
$86,420 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
240 |
0.23 |
4.12 |
$63.40 |
$131,880 |
| Oakland-Hayward-Berkeley, CA Metropolitan Division |
260 |
0.24 |
4.38 |
$59.87 |
$124,530 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division |
210 |
0.08 |
1.50 |
$58.65 |
$121,980 |
| Rochester, NY |
(8) |
(8) |
(8) |
$57.20 |
$118,970 |
| San Francisco-Redwood City-South San Francisco, CA Metropolitan Division |
130 |
0.12 |
2.25 |
$56.77 |
$118,080 |
| Nassau County-Suffolk County, NY Metropolitan Division |
70 |
0.06 |
1.04 |
$54.10 |
$112,530 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI |
190 |
0.10 |
1.80 |
$53.79 |
$111,870 |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY |
70 |
0.16 |
2.90 |
$51.36 |
$106,840 |
| Newark, NJ-PA Metropolitan Division |
40 |
0.03 |
0.59 |
$50.79 |
$105,640 |
| Baton Rouge, LA |
30 |
0.08 |
1.40 |
$50.55 |
$105,150 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:
About May 2016 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 top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.
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.
(7) The value is less than .005 percent of industry employment.
(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 OES estimates and related information:
May 2016 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2016 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2016 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2016 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2016 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2017
United States Department of Labor
