Physical Scientist

What Does a Professional in this Career Do?

A Physical Scientist studies and conducts research in one of many specialized areas within the natural sciences including biology, chemistry and physics.

Job Outlook

There were 33 Physical Scientist job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 1267 in the United States.

In combination with other careers in the Physical Scientist industry, which includes the Physical Scientist career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2015:

Salary

Many new Physical Scientist jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.

National

The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $116,161.

State

The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $116,161.

Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Physical Scientist postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $100,310.

Education and Experience

Posted Physical Scientist jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.

Education Level	Percentage
Associate's Degree	0%
Bachelor's Degree	57.85%
Master's Degree	27.47%
Doctoral Degree	43.49%
Other	3.08%

Posted Physical Scientist jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.

Years of Experience	Percentage
0 to 2 years	88.63%
3 to 5 years	7.09%
6 to 8 years	1.07%
9+ years	3.21%

Skills

Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Physical Scientist positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.

Baseline Skills

A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.

Mathematics (59.12%)
Management (50.91%)
Research (48.93%)
Planning (34.49%)
Communication (26.76%)
Writing (24.7%)
Operations (20.28%)
Leadership (20.21%)
Coordinating (14.21%)
Investigation (11.44%)

Defining Skills

A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.

Physical Science (78.63%)
Chemistry (27.16%)
Electronics (71.75%)
Physics (35.71%)
Mechanics (71.84%)

Necessary Skills

A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.

Materials Science (3.6%)
Engineering Statics (6.79%)
Data Processing (2.01%)
C++ (Programming Language) (2.85%)
Auditing (3.69%)
Agriculture (6.37%)
Artificial Intelligence (8.38%)
Thermodynamics (10.56%)
Biology (16.35%)
Python (Programming Language) (8.38%)
Performance Appraisal (12.74%)
Computer Science (12.66%)
Curriculum Development (7.88%)
Fluid Mechanics (9.81%)
Hydrology (17.02%)
Data Analysis (14%)
Integral Calculus (15.76%)
Machine Learning (8.05%)
Geophysics (5.62%)
Hydraulics (9.81%)
Geology (16.68%)
Procurement (5.95%)
Mathematical Sciences (8.21%)
Project Management (16.93%)
MATLAB (4.11%)
Writing Systems (12.24%)
Scientific Studies (9.64%)
Scientific Methods (9.56%)
Soil Mechanics (9.72%)
Time Study (7.38%)
Research And Development (6.87%)

Salary Boosting Skills

A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed.

Physical Science (85.74%)
Physics (38.94%)

Alternative Job Titles

Sometimes employers post jobs with Physical Scientist skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:

Supervisory Physical Scientist
Interdisciplinary Scientist
General Engineer/Physical Scientist
Scientist
Technical Application Scientist
Life Scientist
Interdisciplinary Environmental Engineer/Physical Scientist/Natural Resources Specialist
Oceanographer
Atmospheric Scientist

Similar Occupations

If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.

Common Employers

Here are the employers that have posted the most Physical Scientist jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.

United States

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (92)
United States Department of Energy (85)
Geological Survey (73)
Environmental Protection Agency (71)
Outlier (58)
U.S Geological Survey Western Ecological Research Center (54)
United States Government (36)
United States Navy (31)
U.S Environmental Protection Agency (30)
WayUp (24)

North Carolina

Environmental Protection Agency (7)
U.S Environmental Protection Agency (5)
North Carolina State University (3)
Outlier (2)
North Carolina State Of (2)
Actalent (1)
Integrity Consulting (1)
University of North Carolina (1)
United States Department of the Interior (1)
United States Government (1)

NC State Programs Relevant to this Career

If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!

All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.

Science and Research