Mathematicians: Career Overview
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.
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The Daily Work of Mathematicians Take On?
The core tasks performed by mathematicians include:
- 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.
Skills and Knowledge
Successful mathematicians rely on a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Top Skills
The abilities that matter most in this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Core Knowledge
Other Mathematicians Job Titles
This career also goes by job titles like:
- Agent-Based Modeler
- Algebraist
- Applied Mathematician
- Cipher Expert
- Computational Mathematician
- Computational Scientist
- Cryptanalyst
- Cryptographer
Job Outlook
There are about 101,262 mathematicians working in the United States today. Demand is forecast to grow by +8.5% over the projection horizon.
Mathematicians Pay
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $66,238 |
| Hourly median | $31.85 |
| 10th percentile | $41,758 |
| 25th percentile | $53,998 |
| 75th percentile | $78,479 |
| 90th percentile | $90,719 |
Compensation varies based on experience, location, and industry.
Pay by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $154,480 |
| California | $143,890 |
| Virginia | $142,150 |
| Washington | $137,180 |
| Maryland | $128,940 |
| Illinois | $127,290 |
| Colorado | $108,500 |
| Florida | $105,370 |
| Nevada | $102,900 |
| New York | $98,620 |
| Ohio | $96,780 |
| New Jersey | $96,620 |
| Michigan | $63,430 |
Where Mathematicians Earn the Most
Earnings for mathematicians vary by region. These regions lead on median pay:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southeast | $135,394 | 29.3% | 5.75 |
| Far Western US | $134,288 | 30.5% | 2.39 |
| Middle Atlantic | $116,364 | 26.3% | 2.78 |
| Rocky Mountains | $108,500 | 3.6% | 1.41 |
| Great Lakes | $91,854 | 10.2% | 0.92 |
Top Metro Areas
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | WA | $176,000 | 110 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | DC | $160,510 | 220 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | CA | $149,150 | 40 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | IL | $127,290 | 60 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV | NV | $102,900 | 50 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | NY | $91,290 | 150 |
Industry Breakdown
The bulk of mathematicians are concentrated in the following sectors:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Educational Services | 440 | $63,430 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 390 | $137,180 |
| Manufacturing | 160 | $146,440 |
Mathematicians work in the following industries:
Tech Stack
- Graphics or photo imaging software: Adobe Photoshop (hot technology)
- Operating system software: Apple macOS (hot technology)
- Content workflow software: Atlassian JIRA (hot technology)
- Operating system software: Bash (hot technology)
- Development environment software: C (hot technology)
- Object or component oriented development software: C# (hot technology)
- Object or component oriented development software: C++ (hot technology)
- Web platform development software: Cascading style sheets CSS (hot technology)
- Enterprise application integration software: Extensible markup language XML (hot technology)
- Web platform development software: Hypertext markup language HTML (hot technology)
- Analytical or scientific software: IBM SPSS Statistics (hot technology)
- Web platform development software: JavaScript (hot technology)
Work Environment
Daily working conditions for mathematicians is shaped by the following characteristics:
- Freedom to Make Decisions
- Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
Getting Started in This Career
This occupation sits in Extensive Preparation Needed (Job Zone 5), reflecting the level of preparation typically expected.
Related Careers
Similar Occupations
- Financial Quantitative Analysts (Supplemental)
- Computer and Information Research Scientists (Primary-Short)
- Software Developers (Supplemental)
- Operations Research Analysts (Primary-Long)
- Statisticians (Primary-Short)
- Biostatisticians (Primary-Long)
- Data Scientists (Primary-Short)
- Bioinformatics Technicians (Primary-Long)
Top Programs to Study For This Career
Future mathematicians often complete programs in:
Mathematics and Statistics
15 programs across 4 majors
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
3 programs across 3 majors
Biological and Biomedical Sciences
1 programs across 1 majors
Philosophy and Religious Studies
1 programs across 1 majors
References
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 15-2021.00 (Mathematicians).
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