CCollegeMatcher

Mathematicians

US occupation · SOC 15-2021

Job titles people report: Agent-Based Modeler, Computational Mathematician, Computational Scientist, Cryptographer, Cryptographic Vulnerability Analyst, Mathematician, Research Computing Specialist, Research Scientist, Researcher

Pay and outlook

Median annual wage, May 2025
$126,710
Half earn more, half earn less
Middle half earn
$88,570 – $157,020
25th to 75th percentile
People employed, May 2025
2,030
Wage and salary jobs (OEWS)
Projected change, 2025–35
+0.6%
Growing slower than all jobs (0% to under 3.5%)
Openings a year (projected)
100
New jobs plus replacing people who leave
Typical education to enter
Master's degree
BLS
  • All figures are for the United States as a whole. Pay varies a lot by state and city.
  • Wages are for everyone working in the occupation in May 2025, at every career stage. They are not starting salaries or figures for new graduates.
  • Growth and openings are BLS projections for 2025–35. They are estimates, not promises. Openings include jobs that open up when people retire or change occupation, not just new jobs.

What the work involves

Conduct research in fundamental mathematics or in application of mathematical techniques to science, management, and other fields. Solve problems in various fields using mathematical methods.

Main tasks

  • Mentor others on mathematical techniques.
  • Maintain knowledge in the field by reading professional journals, talking with other mathematicians, and attending professional conferences.
  • Develop new principles and new relationships between existing mathematical principles to advance mathematical science.
  • Disseminate research by writing reports, publishing papers, or presenting at professional conferences.
  • Assemble sets of assumptions, and explore the consequences of each set.
  • Perform computations and apply methods of numerical analysis to data.
  • Address the relationships of quantities, magnitudes, and forms through the use of numbers and symbols.
  • Conduct research to extend mathematical knowledge in traditional areas, such as algebra, geometry, probability, and logic.

Description and tasks from the O*NET® 31.0 Database.

Getting in

Typical education to enter (BLS)
Master's degree
O*NET Job Zone 5
Extensive preparation
Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Interests it suits

The strongest of the six O*NET interest types for this occupation, highest first. The short glosses are ours.

  • Investigative: research, analysis and solving problems with ideas
  • Conventional: organising information, records and procedures
  • Artistic: creating, designing and self-expression

Fields of study that lead here

From the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk, which links 20 programmes to this occupation. A link means the programme prepares people for this kind of work. It doesn't mean the programme is required, or that it's the only route.

Biology & Life Sciences

  • Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology, Other

Find colleges that fit you with our matcher: choose Biology & Life Sciences at the Major step.

Where many students take biology & life sciences

Ordered by the field's share of degrees awarded times undergraduate enrolment (College Scorecard), among colleges with at least 1,000 undergraduates. Online universities are included. It's a rough measure of how big the programme is. It says nothing about quality. The share counts every programme in the field, not only the ones linked to this career.

Mathematics & Statistics

  • Mathematics, General
  • Algebra and Number Theory
  • Analysis and Functional Analysis
  • Geometry/Geometric Analysis
  • Topology and Foundations
  • Mathematics, Other
  • Applied Mathematics, General
  • Computational Mathematics
7 more programmes
  • Computational and Applied Mathematics
  • Financial Mathematics
  • Mathematical Biology
  • Applied Mathematics, Other
  • Mathematical Statistics and Probability
  • Mathematics and Statistics
  • Mathematics and Statistics, Other

Find colleges that fit you with our matcher: choose Mathematics & Statistics at the Major step.

Where many students take mathematics & statistics

Ordered by the field's share of degrees awarded times undergraduate enrolment (College Scorecard), among colleges with at least 1,000 undergraduates. Online universities are included. It's a rough measure of how big the programme is. It says nothing about quality. The share counts every programme in the field, not only the ones linked to this career.

Philosophy & Religion

  • Logic

Find colleges that fit you with our matcher: choose Philosophy & Religion at the Major step.

Where many students take philosophy & religion

Ordered by the field's share of degrees awarded times undergraduate enrolment (College Scorecard), among colleges with at least 1,000 undergraduates. Online universities are included. It's a rough measure of how big the programme is. It says nothing about quality. The share counts every programme in the field, not only the ones linked to this career.

Other fields

Our college matcher doesn't offer this field as a major, so we can't suggest colleges for it here.

Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies

  • Mathematics and Computer Science
  • Mathematical Economics
  • Mathematics and Atmospheric/Oceanic Science

Related careers

Related occupations from the O*NET database, in its order.

← All careers

Sources

This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CollegeMatcher has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET 31.0 Database · CC BY 4.0

Changes: we show the core tasks in the O*NET database with the highest importance ratings (up to eight, in that order), the top three O*NET interest types by score, and shortened Job Zone names. Titles, descriptions and task text are unchanged.

Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Projections, typical entry education and training: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–35. Fields of study: NCES and BLS CIP 2020–SOC 2018 Crosswalk. All public domain. OEWS · Employment Projections · CIP–SOC crosswalk