STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 1

Executive Summary

Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workers help 

drive our nation’s innovation and competitiveness by generating new 

ideas and new companies.1 For example, workers who study or are 

employed in these fields are more likely to apply for, receive, and 

commercialize patents.2 STEM knowledge also has other benefits; while 

often very specialized, it can be transferred to a wide variety of careers, 

particularly management occupations, while increased technology in the 

workplace means that, to handle non-repetitive tasks, workers need the 

critical thinking and technical skills that come with STEM training.3

A wealth of data is produced by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of 

Labor Statistics on many aspects of the STEM economy. Using data from 

these agencies, particularly the Census Bureau’s Current Population 

Survey (CPS) and American Community Survey (ACS), allows us to look 

closely at the trends in STEM and perform a detailed analysis of wages 

and employment that goes beyond most published studies on STEM. 

This report, the first in a series of upcoming reports from OCE on the 

STEM economy, is an update of findings from our previous report, “STEM: 

Good Jobs Now and for the Future.” Future reports will update previous 

research by this office on sex, race, and ethnicity in STEM jobs, as well as 

present new findings about the geography of STEM jobs and the skills 

needed to participate in this vital sector of the economy.

 

1 Throughout this report, “STEM workers” will be used interchangeably with “workers in STEM occupations” to indicate those 

workers whose occupations are in STEM fields.

2 Thomasian, John. “Building a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Education Agenda: An Update of State Actions.” 

National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, 2011. Available at 

https://www.nga.org/files/live/sites/NGA/files/pdf/1112STEMGUIDE.PDF. 

3 Carnevale, Anthony P., Nicole Smith, and Michelle Melton. “STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics.” 

Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, 2011. Available at https://cew.georgetown.edu/cewreports/stem/.

 

U.S. Department of Commerce

Economics and Statistics Administration

Office of the Chief Economist

STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

By

Ryan Noonan

ESA Issue Brief

#02-17

March 30, 2017
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 2

Key findings for this update, which are consistent with previous research, including research done by the 

Office of the Chief Economist (OCE) are that: 

 In 2015, there were 9.0 million STEM workers in the United States. About 6.1 percent of all 

workers are in STEM occupations, up from 5.5 percent just five years earlier.

 Employment in STEM occupations grew much faster than employment in non-STEM occupations 

over the last decade (24.4 percent versus 4.0 percent, respectively), and STEM occupations are 

projected to grow by 8.9 percent from 2014 to 2024, compared to 6.4 percent growth for nonSTEM occupations. 

 STEM workers command higher wages, earning 29 percent more than their non-STEM 

counterparts in 2015. This pay premium has increased since our previous report, which found a 

STEM wage advantage of 26 percent in 2010.

 Nearly three-quarters of STEM workers have at least a college degree, compared to just over 

one-third of non-STEM workers.

 STEM degree holders enjoy higher earnings, regardless of whether they work in STEM or nonSTEM occupations. A STEM degree holder can expect an earnings premium of 12 percent over 

non-STEM degree holders, holding all other factors constant.
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 3

What is STEM?

The acronym STEM—science, technology, engineering, and math—is defined more or less broadly 

depending on the source of the definition. All definitions of STEM include core occupations in the hard 

sciences, engineering, and mathematics, but there is often less consensus about whether to include 

other positions such as educators, managers, technicians, health-care professionals, or social scientists. 

Following our previous report, our definition of STEM, which includes professional and technical support 

occupations in the fields of computer science and mathematics, engineering, and life and physical 

sciences, is slightly modified relative to the Census Bureau’s definition.4 Three management occupations 

are also included because of their clear ties to STEM.5 Because of data limitations, STEM educators are 

not included.6 Finally, one difference between our definition and the Census Bureau’s definition is that 

we elected not to include social scientists.7 

In 2015, there were 9.0 million workers in STEM jobs, or 6.1 percent of the workforce.8 To put these jobs 

into context, we divide STEM occupations into four categories: computer and math, engineering and 

surveying, physical and life sciences, and STEM managerial occupations.9

Across all levels of educational attainment, the largest group of STEM jobs is within the computer and 

math fields, which account for close to half (49 percent) of all STEM employment. Second are 

engineering and surveying occupations with 30 percent of all STEM employment, while 12 percent are in 

the physical and life sciences and 9 percent in STEM management jobs. 

Parallel to our list of STEM occupations, we also identify a set of STEM undergraduate degree fields that 

span computer science and mathematics, engineering, and life and physical sciences (see Appendix 

Table 2). We define STEM degree holders as persons whose primary or secondary undergraduate major 

 

4 Our STEM list contains 56 specific occupation codes (see Appendix Table 1), an increase from 50 in our 2011 report. With one 

exception, this increase merely reflects a change in the amount of occupation detail available in our primary data sources. 

However, we have added actuaries to the list of STEM jobs for this report despite their exclusion in previous work. Their 

inclusion does not substantially change our findings.

5 These occupations are computer and information systems managers, engineering managers, and natural sciences managers.

6 Although our principal data sources, the monthly Current Population Survey (CPS) and the 2009 American Community Survey 

(ACS), collect detailed information on workers’ occupations, they do not break out educators by their specific field. As a result, 

it is not possible to distinguish math and science teachers and professors from other teachers and professors. Data from the 

Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment Statistics program show that there are roughly 200,000 postsecondary 

teachers in STEM fields, and their exclusion is unlikely to materially affect our results. 

7 The Census Bureau and the National Science Foundation count social scientists among “science and engineering jobs.” 

Following Xie and Killewald, we have opted to exclude social scientists from the definition of STEM. As the authors point out, 

undergraduate degrees in social science are not closely linked to careers in social science. Using data from the American 

Community Survey, we find that, in 2015, over 97 percent of workers with social science degrees worked in non-social science 

jobs, compared to 65 percent for workers with STEM degrees. In addition, recipients of such degrees are less likely to pursue

graduate education in science (including social science), and universities produce a very large number of social science degrees 

that skew any analysis of STEM education or the STEM workforce. For more on this topic, see Xie, Yu, and Alexandra Killewald.

Is American Science in Decline? Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2012.

8 For purposes of this report, we use the primary job identified by respondents to the Current Population Survey to determine 

whether a worker is in a STEM field.

9 The distinction between “scientists” and “science occupations” is more than just semantic. “Science occupations” covers not 

just scientists but also science technicians. Likewise, engineering and surveying occupations include engineering technicians and 

drafters, and computer occupations range from computer support specialists to computer software engineers.
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 4

was in a STEM field. Following similar logic to that used in our occupation selection, we exclude 

business, healthcare, and social science majors. The largest group of STEM degrees among workers are 

the physical and life sciences, accounting for 40 percent of all STEM degrees, followed closely by 

engineering degrees (38 percent). Computer and math degrees make up the remaining 22 percent.

STEM Employment and Worker Earnings

In 2015, 9.0 million people, or 1 in 16 workers, held STEM jobs. Although STEM employment currently 

makes up only a small fraction of total U.S. employment, it has been growing and continues to grow 

rapidly. In our previous report, we found that STEM employment grew 7.9 percent from 2000 to 2010, 

or 0.8 percent per year. In contrast, employment in non-STEM jobs grew just 2.6 percent over this 

period, for an annual growth rate of 0.3 percent per year. Since then, employment growth in STEM has 

accelerated to 1.7 percent per year over the past five years, a two-fold increase from the pre-recession 

period. Much of this growth is likely due to the economic recovery, as non-STEM occupations have 

grown by 0.6 percent annually over the same time period, also double their pre-recession rate (see 

Figure 1). 

24.4%

8.9%

4.0%

6.4%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

2005-2015 growth 2014-2024 projected growth

Figure 1. Recent and Projected Growth in STEM and Non-STEM 

STEM employment

Non-STEM employment

-STEM Employment

Source: OCE calculations using Current Population Survey public-use microdata files of annual merged outgoing rotation groups from 

the National Bureau of Economic Research, and esimates from the Employment Projections Program of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

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The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) produces employment projections that allow us to provide 

predictions about how different occupations will grow over time. 10 Our previous report stated that 

STEM jobs were expected to grow 17.0 percent from 2008 to 2018, compared to just 9.8 percent for 

non-STEM jobs. While there are three years remaining in that projection window, STEM jobs have 

increased by 14.0 percent since 2008, while non-STEM jobs have grown only 1.7 percent. 

The most recent projections from BLS cover a period from 2014 to 2024 and expect job growth to be 

slower across the economy, for a total increase of 6.5 percent over the ten-year window rather than the 

2008 projection of 10.1 percent growth. While non-STEM job growth is expected to be slightly higher 

(6.4 percent), STEM job growth is expected to be much slower (8.9 percent).

From 2014 to 2024, BLS projects that all three broad categories of STEM jobs will see slowdowns in 

growth compared to its previous projections. While computer and math occupations are projected to 

grow a strong 13.1 percent, that is a sharp drop from the 22.2 percent growth projected in 2008. 

Architecture and engineering occupations are expected to grow 2.7 percent (down from 10.3 percent 

projected in 2008), and physical and life sciences occupations are expected to grow 7.4 percent (down 

from 19.0 percent).

Table 1. Average Hourly Earnings of Full-Time Private Wage and Salary Workers in STEM 

Occupations by Educational Attainment, 2015

Average hourly earnings Difference

STEM Non-STEM Dollars Percent

High school diploma or less $27.53 $16.21 $11.32 69.8%

Some college or associate degree $30.79 $19.09 $11.70 61.3%

Bachelor's degree only $39.28 $28.34 $10.94 38.6%

Graduate degree $45.37 $35.16 $10.21 29.0%

Source: OCE calculations using Current Population Survey public-use microdata.

Workers in STEM occupations earn more on average than their counterparts in other jobs, regardless of 

their educational attainment. The STEM earnings differential is greatest on a percentage basis for those 

with a high school diploma or less in comparison to their counterparts in a non-STEM field. On average, 

they earned $27.53 per hour, $11.32 more per hour than those in other occupations in 2015. It should 

be noted, however, that fewer than 10 percent of STEM workers have a high school diploma or less. 

Those with graduate degrees in a STEM job earned more than $45 per hour, over $10 more per hour on 

average than those with non-STEM jobs.

The comparison of wage premiums raises several questions, including to what extent the STEM-earnings 

premium reflects other characteristics of workers, such as age, and how premiums have evolved over 

time. A regression analysis – which controls for a variety of demographic, geographic, and other worker 

characteristics – helps to address these questions. Using Current Population Survey public-use 

microdata for 1994-2015, we regressed the log of earnings against a list of characteristics that typically 

 

10 BLS’s Employment Projections Program’s homepage is http://www.bls.gov/emp and detailed occupational projections are 

available at http://www.bls.gov/emp/ep_table_106.htm
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have been found to be related to earnings, including age, marital status, race, ethnicity, educational 

attainment, region, industry, and whether a worker is in a STEM occupation.11 

Table 2. Regression-based Hourly Earnings Premiums for STEM Workers, 2015

Overall 29.3%

Less than a bachelor’s degree 38.0%

Bachelor's degree only 27.6%

Graduate degree 14.9%

Source: OCE calculations using Current Population Survey public-use microdata.

After controlling for this set of characteristics, the overall regression-based STEM premium was 29 

percent in 2015, up from our previous report’s finding of 26 percent in 2010 and 18 percent in 1994. By 

education level, the earning premium remains noteworthy, most predominantly for workers with less 

than a college degree. In 2015, workers in STEM jobs with less than a bachelor’s degree enjoyed a large 

premium (nearly 40 percent) compared with non-STEM workers with the same education level, even 

after taking other influences on earnings into account.12 The regression-based premiums in 2015 were 

slightly less for workers with a bachelor’s (28 percent) or graduate degree (15 percent), and somewhat 

closer to the premiums found in the simple comparison (without a regression adjustment).13 STEM 

earnings premiums have also shown persistence over time and have generally increased since the mid1990s particularly for workers with less than a graduate degree (see Figure 2).

 

11 More specifically, the earnings regressions control for age (up to a fourth degree polynomial of age), gender, marital status, 

race and Hispanic origin, nativity and citizenship, metropolitan area, region, union representation, major industry, whether a 

worker is in a STEM occupation, time, and STEM occupation status interacted with time. We used separate regressions for each 

level of educational attainment.

12 For the regression analysis, we combined workers that had completed some college, high school, or less into a single “less 

than a bachelor’s degree” category because of small sample concerns.

13 One caveat with these results is that the STEM premium may also capture other unidentified factors that systematically 

distinguish STEM workers from other workers. STEM workers may have more in common than just their career fields, such as a 

similar work ethic or affinity, and the STEM premium could reflect the net impact of those unidentified common characteristics 

as well as the pure premium from working in a STEM job. 
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

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STEM Jobs and STEM Degrees

The analysis so far has focused on STEM jobs, but conversations about policy in this area often focus on 

STEM education. One source of information to analyze the link between STEM jobs and STEM education, 

at least at the post-high school level, is the American Community Survey, which collects information on 

college-educated individuals’ undergraduate majors. When examining the relationship between STEM 

education and STEM jobs, the following patterns emerge.14

First, a STEM degree is the typical path to a STEM job, as more than two-thirds (69 percent) of the 6.0 

million STEM workers with at least a four-year college degree majored in a STEM field.15 However, this 

does not necessarily mean that STEM workers’ degrees are in the same STEM field as their jobs. For 

example, only 34 percent of college-educated computer and math workers have a degree in computer 

science or math while 27 percent majored in the physical or life sciences or engineering. 

 

14 Following standard practice, when discussing college graduates, we limit our attention to those individuals who are at least 

25 years old.

15 As mentioned earlier, a person whose primary or secondary major was in a STEM field is counted as having a STEM 

undergraduate degree. To avoid double-counting those with two STEM majors, we used the primary major to determine the 

type of degree in those cases. Approximately 0.4 percent of all workers have at least a four-year degree with two STEM majors.

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

1994 1997 2000 2003 2006 2009 2012 2015

Source: OCE calculations using Current Population Survey public-use microdata files of annual merged outgoing rotation 

groups from the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Note: These estimates are for private wage and salary workers age 25 and over.

Figure 2. Regression-based Hourly Earnings Premiums for STEM Workers

1994-2015

Less than a bachelor's degree

Total

Bachelor's degree

Graduate degree
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Second, there are many more workers with a STEM degree (11.9 million) than there are workers in 

STEM occupations. Thus, in addition to STEM jobs, STEM degrees also open the door to many other 

career opportunities. Almost two-thirds of the workers with a STEM undergraduate degree work in a 

non-STEM job.16 Life and physical science majors are the STEM degree holders most likely to work in 

non-STEM jobs; 83 percent of these graduates are employed outside of STEM fields. (Note that “nonSTEM” occupations include the 27 percent of graduates who work as healthcare practitioners or 

technicians and the 11 percent who work in education.) In math, there is a strong pipeline into 

education jobs, as more than one-fifth (23 percent) of math majors go on to work in education.

Table 3. Employment of Workers Age 25 and Over with a Bachelor’s Degree or Higher, by 

STEM Occupation and STEM Undergraduate Degree, 2015

Employed persons in thousands 

Total

STEM degree

Non-STEM 

Total Computer Math Engineering degree

Physical 

and life 

sciences

Total 47,971 11,316 1,807 702 4,326 4,480 36,655

STEM employment 5,693 3,918 977 186 1,973 781 1,775

Computer and math 2,773 1,702 806 137 573 185 1,071

Engineering 1,603 1,346 58 19 1,162 107 258

Physical and life 

sciences 753 537 10 13 70 445 215

STEM manager 563 333 104 17 168 43 230

Non-STEM employment 42,278 7,398 830 516 2,353 3,699 34,880

Source: OCE calculations using American Community Survey public-use microdata.

As discussed above, STEM workers earn significantly more than their non-STEM counterparts, but what 

about the earnings of STEM degree holders who do not necessarily work in STEM jobs? Using the 2015 

American Community Survey public-use microdata, calculations of the regression-adjusted earnings 

premium of college-educated workers with a STEM degree show that they all receive an earnings 

premium relative to other college graduates, whether or not the STEM degree holders end up in a STEM 

job.17 Likewise, college graduates, regardless of their major, enjoy an earnings premium for having a 

STEM job. The earnings premium for having a STEM job regardless of major or a STEM degree regardless 

of occupation is quite similar, at 16 percent and 12 percent, respectively. Still, a much larger payoff 

tends to come when a STEM major goes on to work in a STEM job, as their earnings (all else equal) are 

about 31 percent higher than those of non-STEM majors working in non-STEM jobs.

 

16 By contrast, about 5 percent of workers with a non-STEM undergraduate degree work in STEM fields, with the majority 

(about 60 percent) working in computer and math occupations. The most common majors among non-STEM degree holders 

who work in STEM are business management, general business, psychology, economics, management information systems, 

English language and literature, finance, political science, and communications.

17 These regressions controlled for whether a worker is in a STEM occupation, whether a worker has a STEM degree (regardless 

of occupation), age, sex, marital status, race, ethnicity, place of birth, citizenship, educational attainment, region, and industry. 

Because these regressions are intended to capture the return to a four-year college degree with a STEM major, we restricted 

our analysis to workers at least 25 years old with at least a four-year college degree.
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 9

STEM Joblessness

In addition to higher earnings, workers in STEM occupations on average experience lower 

unemployment rates than workers in other fields (see Figure 3).18 The unemployment rate for STEM 

workers rose from 1.9 percent in 2007 to 5.2 percent in 2009 before falling back to 2.5 percent in 2015. 

The unemployment rate for non-STEM workers rose from 4.8 percent in 2007 to 9.5 percent in 2009 and 

then continued to increase to almost 10 percent in 2010. As of 2015, the non-STEM unemployment rate 

has fallen to 5.5 percent, but this is still more than double the STEM unemployment rate. 

Some of the difference in unemployment rates between STEM and non-STEM workers reflects 

differences in educational attainment. On balance, workers with a higher educational level tend to 

experience lower unemployment, and STEM workers tend to be better educated. Looking at workers 

with a bachelor’s degree or graduate degree, one finds less of a difference in unemployment rates 

between STEM and non-STEM workers than for those with less education. During the latest recession, 

 

18 In the Current Population Survey, occupations are assigned to persons based on their most recent work experience; for 

workers who are unemployed, this is the occupation of the job they had when they were last employed. As a result, 

unemployment rates by occupation are sometimes referred to as the “experienced unemployment rate.” Thus, if we define 

USTEM as the number of unemployed persons whose most recent job was in a STEM occupation and ESTEM as the number of 

persons currently employed in a STEM occupation, then the STEM unemployment rate is calculated as USTEM / (ESTEM + USTEM).

0%

1%

2%

3%

4%

5%

6%

7%

8%

9%

10%

1994 1997 2000 2003 2006 2009 2012 2015

Source: OCE calculations using Current Population Survey public-use microdata files of annual merged outgoing rotation 

groups from NBER.

Note: The estimates are for the civilian labor force age 16 and over. Shading indicates recession.

Figure 3. Unemployment Rates in STEM and Non-STEM Occupations, 

1994-2015

Non-STEM

STEM
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 10

the unemployment rate for both college-educated STEM and non-STEM workers reached 4.8 percent in 

2009 before diverging again, reaching 2.5 percent for STEM workers and 2.8 percent for non-STEM 

workers in 2015 (see Figure 4).19 As discussed in our previous report, the 2001 recession, featuring the 

crash of the dot-com bubble, had a much larger impact on college-educated STEM workers than on their 

non-STEM counterparts.

Educational Attainment of STEM Workers

One of the more distinguishing characteristics of STEM workers is their educational attainment. Nearly 

three-quarters (72 percent) of STEM workers have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to just over 

one-third (34 percent) of other workers age 16 and over (see Figure 5). Among the four STEM 

occupational groups, the physical and life sciences have the highest-educated workforce, with more 

than 40 percent holding a graduate degree – about double the share for computer, math, and 

engineering jobs.

 

19 Using a regression similar to that used to determine the wage premium for STEM jobs and STEM degrees, we find that, in 

2015, STEM degree holders were approximately 5 percent less likely to be unemployed than comparable college graduates with 

non-STEM degrees. This result matches fairly closely with a simple comparison of the unemployment rates between workers in 

STEM and non-STEM occupations, with STEM unemployment approximately 10 percent lower than non-STEM unemployment.

0%

1%

2%

3%

4%

5%

6%

1994 1997 2000 2003 2006 2009 2012 2015

Source: OCE calculations using Current Population Survey public-use microdata files of annual merged outgoing rotation 

groups from NBER.

Note: The estimates are for the civilian labor force age 16 and over. Shading indicates recession.

Figure 4. Unemployment Rates in STEM and Non-STEM Occupations, 

Workers with a Bachelor's Degree or Higher, 1994-2015

Non-STEM

STEM
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Nonetheless, because STEM includes professionals as well as workers in support jobs, we find that a 

number of STEM workers have less than a four-year college degree; 20 percent have completed an 

associate degree or at least some college, and 7 percent have a high school diploma or less. While 

opportunities exist for STEM workers with lower education levels, the proportion of these workers has 

declined somewhat since 2010, when those with some college but less than a bachelor’s degree made 

up 23 percent of the STEM workforce and those with a high school diploma or less made up 9 percent. 

Nevertheless, the education level and other characteristics of workers who currently hold jobs does not 

necessarily provide information about the skills needed to hold unfilled or future jobs. Whether due to 

skills shortages, a changing environment, or an aging workforce, the skills hiring managers seek for new 

positions in an occupation may differ from the skills of workers who are already employed in that 

occupation. An upcoming OCE report will look more closely at data from the U.S. Department of Labor’s 

O*NET database to examine the skills required for participation in the STEM workforce.

Conclusion

Although still relatively small in number, the STEM workforce has an outsized impact on a 

nation’s competitiveness, economic growth, and overall standard of living. STEM workers drive 

innovation (as measured by patents), and they have the flexible skills needed for the modern 

economy. At a time when firms across the economy cite difficulty matching skilled workers to 

job openings, the ability of STEM workers to adapt to new circumstances and processes makes 

them highly sought after. For workers, STEM jobs are linked to lower unemployment and higher 

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Figure 5: Percent Distribution of Educational Attainment by STEM and 

Non-STEM Employment, 2015

Graduate degree Bachelor's degree Some college or associate degree High school or less

Source: OCE calculations using Current Population Survey publicuse microdata files of annual merged outgoing rotation groups 

from the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Note: The estimates are for all employed persons age 16 and over.
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 12

wages, regardless of educational background or other factors. Strengthening the workforce 

training pipeline into STEM jobs can provide benefits to both businesses and workers.

Analysis of data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey and Current 

Population Survey provides new insights into the growing STEM workforce that is central to our 

economic vitality. This report takes a wide-angle approach to STEM jobs and STEM degrees in order to 

provide an overview of their impact. Future work in this series will dig deeper into the wealth of 

information provided by the American Community Survey, as well as other troves of government 

statistics, to update previous research on such topics as gender, race, and ethnicity in the STEM 

economy. New research will use that data to provide a look at the geography of STEM jobs in the United 

States and the skills needs of the current and future STEM workforce.
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 13

Appendix Table 1. Detailed STEM occupations and Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes

Occupation SOC code Occupation SOC code

Computer and math occupations

 Computer scientists and systems analysts 15-10XX  Network systems and data communications 

analysts 15-1081

 Computer programmers 15-1021  Actuaries 15-2011

 Computer software engineers 15-1030  Mathematicians 15-2021

 Computer support specialists 15-1041  Operations research analysts 15-2031

 Database administrators 15-1061  Statisticians 15-2041

 Network and computer systems 

administrators 15-1071  Miscellaneous mathematical science occupations 15-2090

Engineering and surveying occupations

 Surveyors, cartographers, and 

photogrammetrists 17-1020  Materials engineers 17-2131 

 Aerospace engineers 17-2011  Mechanical engineers 17-2141 

 Agricultural engineers 17-2021

 Mining and geological engineers, including 

mining safety engineers

17-2151 

 Biomedical engineers 17-2031  Nuclear engineers 17-2161

 Chemical engineers 17-2041  Petroleum engineers 17-2171

 Civil engineers 17-2051  Engineers, all other 17-2199

 Computer hardware engineers 17-2061  Drafters 17-3010

 Electrical and electronic engineers 17-2070  Engineering technicians, except drafters 17-3020

 Environmental engineers 17-2081  Surveying and mapping technicians 17-3031

 Industrial engineers, including health and 

safety 17-2110  Sales engineers 41-9031

 Marine engineers and naval architects 17-2121 

Physical and life sciences occupations

 Agricultural and food scientists 19-1010  Physical scientists, all other 19-2099 

 Biological scientists 19-1020  Agricultural and food science technicians 19-4011

 Conservation scientists and foresters 19-1030  Biological technicians 19-4021

 Medical scientists 19-1040  Chemical technicians 19-4031

 Astronomers and physicists 19-2010  Geological and petroleum technicians 19-4041

 Atmospheric and space scientists 19-2021  Nuclear technicians 19-4051

 Chemists and materials scientists 19-2030 

 Other life, physical, and social science 

technicians 19-40XX

 Environmental scientists and geoscientists 19-2040 

STEM managerial occupations

 Computer and information systems managers 11-3021  Natural sciences managers 11-9121

 Engineering managers 11-9041
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Appendix Table 2. Detailed STEM undergraduate majors

Computer majors

 Computer and information 

systems

 Computer science  Computer administration 

management and security

 Computer programming and 

data processing  Information sciences  Computer networking and telecommunications

Math majors

 Mathematics  Statistics and decision science  Mathematics and computer 

science

 Applied mathematics

Engineering majors

 General engineering  Environmental engineering  Petroleum engineering

 Aerospace engineering  Geological and geophysical 

engineering  Miscellaneous engineering

 Biological engineering  Industrial and manufacturing 

engineering  Engineering technologies

 Architectural engineering  Materials engineering and 

materials science

 Engineering and industrial 

management

 Biomedical engineering  Mechanical engineering  Electrical engineering technology

 Chemical engineering  Metallurgical engineering  Industrial production 

technologies

 Civil engineering  Mining and mineral 

engineering

 Mechanical engineering related 

technologies

 Computer engineering  Naval architecture and marine 

engineering

 Miscellaneous engineering 

technologies

 Electrical engineering  Nuclear engineering  Military technologies

 Engineering mechanics physics 

and science

Physical and life sciences majors

 Animal sciences  Genetics  Physical sciences

 Food science  Microbiology  Astronomy and astrophysics

 Plant science and agronomy  Pharmacology  Atmospheric sciences and 

meteorology

 Soil science  Physiology  Chemistry

 Environmental science  Zoology  Geology and earth science

 Biology  Miscellaneous biology  Geosciences

 Biochemical sciences  Nutrition sciences  Oceanography

 Botany  Neuroscience  Physics

 Molecular biology  Cognitive science and 

biopsychology

 Nuclear, industrial radiology, and 

biological technologies

 Ecology
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 15

Acknowledgments 

The author would like to thank the following persons who provided comments, 

suggestions, and other contributions to this report. Any errors in the report are solely 

the authors’ responsibility. 

Robert Rubinovitz, Deputy Chief Economist

David Langdon, Economist

David Beede, Economist

William Hawk, Economist
STEM Jobs: 2017 Update

Office of the Chief Economist  Economics and Statistics Administration  Page 16

Suggested citation: 

Noonan, Ryan. Office of the Chief Economist, Economics and Statistics Administration, U.S. Department 

of Commerce. (March 30, 2017). STEM Jobs: 2017 Update (ESA Issue Brief # 02-17). Retrieved from 

http://www.esa.gov/reports/stem-jobs-2017-update. 

U.S. Department of Commerce

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