Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations
Job family · SOC major group
Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations is one of the 23 SOC major groups — the top level of the U.S. Standard Occupational Classification, the official scheme every detailed occupation rolls up to. It contains 66 occupations employing about 2,265,730 people, with a median wage of $84,730 across its occupations. BLS projects employment in this family to change +4.3% between 2024 and 2034 , with roughly 233,000 openings a year.
Occupation groups in this family
This family divides into 5 SOC minor groups — tighter clusters of related occupations. Ranked by U.S. employment.
- Life Scientists · 18 occupations · $86,320
- Life, Physical, and Social Science Technicians · 16 occupations · $57,915
- Physical Scientists · 13 occupations · $97,450
- Social Scientists and Related Workers · 17 occupations · $100,340
- Occupational Health and Safety Specialists and Technicians · 2 occupations · $71,175
Occupations in this family
Ranked by U.S. employment (BLS OEWS May 2024). Projected change is BLS 2024–34; AI exposure is the OpenAI "GPTs are GPTs" human beta rating (share of an occupation's tasks where an LLM with tools could cut the time to do them by at least half).
| Occupation | Median pay | Employment | 2024–34 | AI exposure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists | $100,590 | 156,300 | +8.7% | 57% |
| Occupational Health and Safety Specialists | $83,910 | 128,430 | +12.5% | 36% |
| Climate Change Policy Analysts | $80,060 | 84,930 | +4.4% | 71% |
| Environmental Restoration Planners | $80,060 | 84,930 | +4.4% | 71% |
| Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health | $80,060 | 84,930 | +4.4% | 71% |
| Industrial Ecologists | $80,060 | 84,930 | +4.4% | 71% |
| Chemists | $84,150 | 83,250 | +4.9% | 40% |
| Biological Technicians | $52,000 | 76,190 | +3.5% | 27% |
| Clinical and Counseling Psychologists | $95,830 | 72,190 | +11.2% | 51% |
| Life, Physical, and Social Science Technicians, All Other | $60,130 | 71,400 | +3.5% | 47% |
| Quality Control Analysts | $60,130 | 71,400 | +3.5% | 47% |
| Remote Sensing Technicians | $60,130 | 71,400 | +3.5% | 47% |
| School Psychologists | $86,930 | 63,830 | +0.7% | 58% |
| Bioinformatics Scientists | $93,330 | 59,710 | +1.2% | 38% |
| Biological Scientists, All Other | $93,330 | 59,710 | +1.2% | 38% |
| Biologists | $93,330 | 59,710 | +1.2% | 38% |
| Geneticists | $93,330 | 59,710 | +1.2% | 38% |
| Molecular and Cellular Biologists | $93,330 | 59,710 | +1.2% | 38% |
| Chemical Technicians | $57,790 | 55,640 | +3.7% | 39% |
| Urban and Regional Planners | $83,720 | 43,040 | +3.4% | 58% |
| Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health | $49,490 | 39,390 | +4.0% | 42% |
| Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other | $100,340 | 36,970 | -1.7% | 66% |
| Transportation Planners | $100,340 | 36,970 | -1.7% | 66% |
| Biochemists and Biophysicists | $103,650 | 34,520 | +5.8% | 44% |
| Social Science Research Assistants | $58,040 | 32,940 | +4.4% | 62% |
| Occupational Health and Safety Technicians | $58,440 | 31,450 | +8.5% | 42% |
| Forest and Conservation Technicians | $54,310 | 31,080 | -3.2% | 33% |
| Conservation Scientists | $67,950 | 25,590 | +3.4% | 48% |
| Park Naturalists | $67,950 | 25,590 | +3.4% | 48% |
| Range Managers | $67,950 | 25,590 | +3.4% | 48% |
| Physical Scientists, All Other | $117,960 | 22,580 | +0.6% | 45% |
| Remote Sensing Scientists and Technologists | $117,960 | 22,580 | +0.6% | 45% |
| Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers | $99,240 | 22,510 | +3.2% | 48% |
| Physicists | $166,290 | 21,340 | +4.0% | 64% |
| Microbiologists | $87,330 | 19,760 | +4.1% | 31% |
| Forensic Science Technicians | $67,440 | 19,450 | +12.8% | 19% |
| Clinical Neuropsychologists | $117,580 | 17,790 | +4.3% | 28% |
| Neuropsychologists | $117,580 | 17,790 | +4.3% | 28% |
| Psychologists, All Other | $117,580 | 17,790 | +4.3% | 28% |
| Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists | $72,860 | 16,920 | +1.6% | 52% |
| Soil and Plant Scientists | $71,410 | 16,600 | +5.4% | 63% |
| Economists | $115,440 | 15,880 | +1.2% | 78% |
| Environmental Economists | $115,440 | 15,880 | +1.2% | 78% |
| Food Scientists and Technologists | $85,310 | 14,370 | +6.5% | 50% |
| Agricultural Technicians | $46,790 | 14,340 | +4.3% | 50% |
| Precision Agriculture Technicians | $46,790 | 14,340 | +4.3% | 50% |
| Food Science Technicians | $49,430 | 14,200 | +4.8% | 29% |
| Epidemiologists | $83,980 | 11,460 | +16.2% | 56% |
| Geological Technicians, Except Hydrologic Technicians | $48,390 | 9,710 | +1.5% | 30% |
| Foresters | $70,660 | 9,650 | +1.2% | 37% |
| Atmospheric and Space Scientists | $97,450 | 8,780 | +0.7% | 61% |
| Materials Scientists | $104,160 | 8,330 | +4.9% | 52% |
| Anthropologists and Archeologists | $64,910 | 8,070 | +3.7% | 52% |
| Survey Researchers | $63,380 | 7,720 | -5.2% | 84% |
| Life Scientists, All Other | $87,800 | 7,320 | +3.7% | — |
| Nuclear Monitoring Technicians | $104,240 | 5,990 | -7.7% | 32% |
| Nuclear Technicians | $104,240 | 5,990 | -7.7% | 32% |
| Political Scientists | $139,380 | 5,950 | -3.1% | 54% |
| Hydrologists | $92,060 | 5,720 | -0.1% | 53% |
| Historians | $74,050 | 3,140 | +2.2% | 50% |
| Sociologists | $101,690 | 2,950 | +3.6% | 62% |
| Hydrologic Technicians | $58,570 | 2,940 | -2.1% | 53% |
| Animal Scientists | $79,120 | 2,470 | +5.8% | 84% |
| Astronomers | $132,170 | 1,560 | +2.2% | 42% |
| Geographers | $97,200 | 1,380 | -3.1% | 38% |
| Industrial-Organizational Psychologists | $109,840 | 1,050 | +6.3% | 59% |
AI exposure across this family
Two published studies estimate how exposed each occupation is to AI. The OpenAI "GPTs are GPTs" study rates the share of an occupation's tasks an LLM (with tools) could speed up by half or more; averaged across this family it is 49% — 84th percentile of the 23 families. The independent Felten/Raj/Seamans AI Occupational Exposure index averages 0.90 here.
Exposure measures where AI could assist tasks — it is not a prediction that these jobs will be automated. High exposure often means augmentation (faster work), and many high-exposure occupations are also projected to grow.
Sources for this page
Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.
- O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
- AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Singulariki. "Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/job-families/life-physical-and-social-science-occupations
Singulariki. (2026). Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/job-families/life-physical-and-social-science-occupations
@misc{singulariki-life-physical-and-social-science-occupations,
title = {Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans. Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/job-families/life-physical-and-social-science-occupations}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.