Soil / Plant Scientist
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
A Soil or Plant Scientist studies soil composition and nutrition, the impact of soil treatment practices on plant or crop growth, and soil conservation and management methods relevant to farming and forestry.
Job Outlook
There were 96 Soil / Plant Scientist job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 2319 in the United States.
In combination with other careers in the Soil / Plant Scientist industry, which includes the Soil / Plant Scientist career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2015:
Salary
Many new Soil / Plant 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 $49,683.
State
The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $50,214.
Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Soil / Plant Scientist postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $37,123.
Education and Experience
Posted Soil / Plant 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 | 13.63% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 40.32% |
| Master's Degree | 16.73% |
| Doctoral Degree | 12.55% |
| Other | 17.94% |
Posted Soil / Plant 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 | 55.7% |
| 3 to 5 years | 39.95% |
| 6 to 8 years | 2.61% |
| 9+ years | 1.74% |
Skills
Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Soil / Plant 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.
- Management (37%)
- Research (29.02%)
- Communication (24.54%)
- Detail Oriented (17.08%)
- Operations (17.03%)
- Writing (15.78%)
- Planning (13.32%)
- Problem Solving (12.03%)
- Lifting Ability (11.77%)
- Collections (10.95%)
Defining Skills
A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.
- Horticulture (27.01%)
- Biology (27.43%)
- Soil Science (49.72%)
Necessary Skills
A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.
- Pesticides (10.16%)
- Data Collection (8.9%)
- Geographic Information Systems (8.9%)
- Mulch (11.52%)
- Project Management (7.07%)
- Land Management (4.45%)
- Irrigation (Landscaping And Agriculture) (26.69%)
- Weed Control (14.75%)
- Plant Science (15.07%)
- Agriculture (16.57%)
- Mowing (10.63%)
- Landscape Maintenance (8.71%)
- Agronomy (6.93%)
- Gardening (10.3%)
- Landscaping (22.66%)
- Power Tool Operation (6.09%)
- Construction (6.23%)
- Ecology (10.07%)
- Environmental Science (10.21%)
- Pruning (20.18%)
- Herbicides (7.91%)
- Botany (28.93%)
- Fertilizers (6.65%)
- Soil Sampling (11.52%)
- Plant Identification (9.64%)
Distinguishing Skills
A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.
- Soil Chemistry (4.31%)
- Pedology (3.65%)
- Soil Genesis (3.56%)
- Soil Fertility (4.35%)
- Plant Taxonomy (4.07%)
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.
- Soil Genesis (5.61%)
- Horticulture (42.58%)
- Soil Fertility (6.86%)
- Soil Science (78.38%)
Alternative Job Titles
Sometimes employers post jobs with Soil / Plant Scientist skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:
- Horticulturist
- Soil Scientist
- Soils Technician
- Botanist
- Biological Science Technician
- Horticultural Assistant
- Plant Biological Science Technician
- Plant Science Technician
- Postdoctoral Research Associate
- Oil Technician
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.
- Nursery / Greenhouse Manager
- Conservation Scientist
- Field Biologist
- Landscaping / Grounds Supervisor
- Food / Agricultural Technician
- Farm / Nursery / Greenhouse Worker
- Forest / Conservation Technician
- Wildlife Biologist
- Food and Agricultural Scientist / Technologist
Common Employers
Here are the employers that have posted the most Soil / Plant Scientist jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.
United States
- GPAC (131)
- United States Forest Service (54)
- Natural Resources Conservation Service (46)
- University of Tennessee (44)
- Vestis (44)
- National Park Service (40)
- North Carolina State University (37)
- Actalent (32)
- Missouri Botanical Garden (30)
- Ecs (30)
North Carolina
- North Carolina State University (35)
- Duke University (4)
- Ecs (4)
- Vestis (4)
- North Carolina State Of (3)
- Syngenta Group (3)
- University of North Carolina (2)
- Ecs Southeast (2)
- The Davey Tree Expert Company (2)
- Bland Landscaping Company (2)
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!
- Agricultural Science Undergraduate Degrees
- Agriculture Data Science Graduate Certificates
- Crop Science Undergraduate Certificates
- Environmental Assessment Master's Degrees
- Environmental Assessment Graduate Certificates
- Horticultural Science Graduate Certificates
- Horticultural Science Master's Degrees
- Regulatory Science in Agriculture Graduate Certificates
- Regulatory Science in Agriculture Undergraduate Certificates
- Soil Science Undergraduate Certificates
- Soil Science Master's Degrees
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.