Occupational Employment and Wages, November 2003

15-1011 Computer and Information Scientists, Research

Conduct research into fundamental computer and information science as theorists, designers, or inventors. Solve or develop solutions to problems in the field of computer hardware and software.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
State profile for this occupation
Metropolitan area 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)
23,770 5.1 % $40.98 $85,240 1.2 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median) 		75% 90%
Hourly Wage $22.89 $30.37 $39.81 $50.52 $61.03
Annual Wage (2) $47,610 $63,170 $82,800 $105,090 $126,950

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage
Computer systems design and related services 5,870 $41.94 $87,230
Federal government (OES designation) 4,610 $37.56 $78,130
Scientific research and development services 3,480 $43.50 $90,490
Software publishers 1,220 $40.69 $84,630
Data processing and related services 860 $42.51 $88,420

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage
Commercial equip. merchant wholesalers 290 $53.90 $112,100
Electronics and appliance stores (7) $49.03 $101,980
Motion picture and video industries 50 $48.46 $100,800
Management of companies and enterprises 490 $48.37 $100,620
Magnetic media manufacturing and reproducing 50 $46.46 $96,640

State profile for this occupation: Top

States with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment
New Mexico 990 $39.18 $81,500 0.133%
Maryland 2,010 $38.62 $80,320 0.082%
Rhode Island 350 $37.31 $77,600 0.073%
District of Columbia 420 $43.42 $90,320 0.071%
Virginia 2,150 $37.80 $78,630 0.063%

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment
Massachusetts 1,110 $49.08 $102,080 0.035%
Washington 360 $48.90 $101,720 0.014%
California 4,630 $47.48 $98,770 0.032%
New Hampshire (7) $47.45 $98,690 (7)
North Carolina 260 $45.51 $94,660 0.007%

Metropolitan area profile for this occupation: Top

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Huntsville, AL MSA 320 $42.11 $87,590 0.181%
Washington, DC-MD-VA-WV PMSA 3,410 $39.65 $82,480 0.126%
Panama City, FL MSA 70 $35.07 $72,940 0.113%
San Jose, CA PMSA 860 $56.70 $117,940 0.101%
Bakersfield, CA MSA 210 $36.32 $75,540 0.092%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
San Jose, CA PMSA 860 $56.70 $117,940 0.101%
Austin-San Marcos, TX MSA 300 $52.85 $109,920 0.044%
Bloomington, IN MSA (7) $50.80 $105,660 (7)
Middlesex-Somerset-Hunterdon, NJ PMSA 450 $50.39 $104,800 0.072%
San Francisco, CA PMSA 370 $49.97 $103,930 0.038%

About November 2003 National, State, and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in every State and the District of Columbia. The top five employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable Excel files(XLS).

Percentile wage estimates show the percentage of workers in an occupation that earn less than a given wage and the percentage that earn more. 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 mean 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) Estimates not released.

All Computer and Mathematical Science Occupations

November 2003 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

November 2003 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

November 2003 Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

November 2003 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download November 2003 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped Excel files

Technical notes

 

Last Modified Date: April 19, 2005