Life, Physical, and Social Science · Holland code ICR

Biologists

Research or study basic principles of plant and animal life, such as origin, relationship, development, anatomy, and functions.

Also called: Biologist, Botanist, Fisheries and Wildlife Biologist, Scientist, Aquatic Biologist, Biological Scientist, Fisheries Biologist, Marine Biologist.

O*NET 19-1029.04

At a glance

US median annual pay: $98,920; Middle half earn $76,800 to $127,670. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: Master's Degree; 55% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 5 of 5; Extensive preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Research environmental effects of present and potential uses of land and water areas, determining methods of improving environmental conditions or such outputs as crop yields.
Program and use computers to store, process, and analyze data.
Prepare technical and research reports, such as environmental impact reports, and communicate the results to individuals in industry, government, or the general public.
Supervise biological technicians and technologists and other scientists.
Develop and maintain liaisons and effective working relations with groups and individuals, agencies, and the public to encourage cooperative management strategies or to develop information and interpret findings.
Identify, classify, and study structure, behavior, ecology, physiology, nutrition, culture, and distribution of plant and animal species.
Study basic principles of plant and animal life, such as origin, relationship, development, anatomy, and function.
Collect and analyze biological data about relationships among and between organisms and their environment.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Science4.6 / 5
Reading Comprehension4.1 / 5
Writing4.1 / 5
Active Listening4.0 / 5
Speaking4.0 / 5
Critical Thinking4.0 / 5

Knowledge areas

Biology5.0 / 5
Education and Training4.2 / 5
English Language4.1 / 5
Mathematics3.6 / 5
Administration and Management3.4 / 5
Chemistry3.4 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic52
Investigative100
Artistic23
Social27
Enterprising29
Conventional58

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

palaeontologist · DE Paläontologe/Paläontologin · FR paléontologue
bioinformatics scientist · DE Bioinformatiker/Bioinformatikerin · FR bioinformaticien/bioinformaticienne
biologist · DE Biologe/Biologin · FR biologiste
aquaculture biologist · DE Biologe im Bereich Aquakultur/Biologin im Bereich Aquakultur · FR biologiste en aquaculture
microbiologist · DE Mikrobiologe/Mikrobiologin · FR microbiologiste
biophysicist · DE Biophysiker/Biophysikerin · FR biophysicien/biophysicienne

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Natural and social science professionals n.e.c. (2119)36,500 employed
Other researchers, unspecified discipline (2162)78,200 employed
Biochemists and biomedical scientists (2113)68,000 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Professionals, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€61,714
Germany	€59,529
Ireland	€56,877
Austria	€55,374
Netherlands	€53,595
Sweden	€43,567
France	€41,515
Spain	€35,735
Italy	€33,649
Portugal	€26,072
Poland	€14,380

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the higher third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +1.01. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (19-1029).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test