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Microbiologists

Occupation · SOC 19-1022.00

Investigate the growth, structure, development, and other characteristics of microscopic organisms, such as bacteria, algae, or fungi. Includes medical microbiologists who study the relationship between organisms and disease or the effects of antibiotics on microorganisms.

Also called: Bacteriologist · Clinical Laboratory Scientist (Clinical Lab Scientist) · Microbiological Analyst · Microbiologist · Clinical Microbiologist · Medical Technologist · Public Health Microbiologist · Quality Control Microbiologist (QC Microbiologist) · Research Microbiologist · Research Specialist · Cytologist · Electron Microscopist

Job family: Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations

Take this to your AI
Download .md

A source-stamped Markdown brief of this occupation — paste it into an agent, or fetch /roles/role-19-1022-00/context.md directly.

AI work map

A fast read on where AI already shows up in this occupation, where it stays a copilot, where humans remain in the loop, and what the labor market is doing. Built from observed Claude.ai conversations mapped to O*NET tasks and from published research — measures of usage and exposure, not advice or predictions that the job is going away.

Often handed to AI

Task areas most often handled directively in observed AI conversations — candidates to delegate with light review.

  • Conduct chemical analyses of substances such as acids, alcohols, and enzymes. · 0.4%
See how AI is used here →

Use as a copilot

Task areas where people work with AI — iterating, learning, or checking — staying in the loop rather than handing the task off.

  • Prepare technical reports and recommendations based upon research outcomes. · 4.6%
  • Examine physiological, morphological, and cultural characteristics, using microscope, to identify and classify microorganisms in human, water, and food specimens. · 2.3%
  • Observe action of microorganisms upon living tissues of plants, higher animals, and other microorganisms, and on dead organic matter. · 0.6%
See collaboration patterns →

Keep a human in the loop

Task areas where a human was still judged necessary in a large share of observed conversations — not a safety ruling, an observed-need signal.

  • Isolate and maintain cultures of bacteria or other microorganisms in prescribed or developed media, controlling moisture, aeration, temperature, and nutrition. · 100.0% need a human
  • Examine physiological, morphological, and cultural characteristics, using microscope, to identify and classify microorganisms in human, water, and food specimens. · 93.1% need a human
  • Conduct chemical analyses of substances such as acids, alcohols, and enzymes. · 92.7% need a human
See the boundary tasks →

59th-percentile task overlap — yet about 1,700 openings a year (+4.1% projected, BLS), and observed AI use leans 5617% copilot, not hand-off (AEI) . What exposure means →

AI & job outlook

What today's research says about this occupation's exposure to AI, how AI is actually being used in it, and where employment is headed. These are positions within published studies — measures of exposure and usage, not predictions that this job will disappear.

Exposure to current AI

Each study uses its own scale, so the raw scores are not comparable across rows — the percentile (this job's rank among all U.S. occupations with data) is the comparable figure, and sizes the bars.

Measure Rank vs all occupations Percentile Score
Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.) Moderate 64th 0.7
LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) Moderate 56th 0.7
AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) Moderate 61st 0.2

OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.1), with simple added tooling (β 0.4), and including AI-powered software (γ 0.7). Higher means more of the job's tasks could be done at least twice as fast — not that they will be automated away.

This job mostly cannot be done remotely (Dingel–Neiman) — its hands-on tasks sit outside what software-based AI reaches.

Historical automation estimate (2013)

A pre-LLM (2013) estimate of how automatable this job is by computerization and robotics. Shown for historical context only — it is not part of any current AI ranking.

Frey–Osborne probability 0.0 · 8th percentile among occupations · Low

How AI is actually used in this job

Among measured AI assistant conversations mapped to this occupation (Anthropic Economic Index, 2026-01-15), these task types came up most. These are shares of observed AI conversations — not shares of the job, of worker time, or of what could be automated.

Examine physiological, morphological, and cultural characteristics, using microscope, to identify and classify microorganisms in human, water, and food specimens. 1.9%
Conduct chemical analyses of substances such as acids, alcohols, and enzymes. 1.5%
Observe action of microorganisms upon living tissues of plants, higher animals, and other microorganisms, and on dead organic matter. 0.5%
Research use of bacteria and microorganisms to develop vitamins, antibiotics, amino acids, grain alcohol, sugars, and polymers. 0.2%

Job outlook

Independent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment projection for 2024–2034 — a labor-market forecast, not an AI-impact forecast.

Outlook About average · +4.1% by 2034
Projected annual openings 1,700
Employment 2024 → 2034 20,700 → 21,600

“Annual openings” counts new jobs plus replacements for workers who leave the occupation, so it can be large even when growth is modest.

Where this work sits on the global GenAI gradient

The ILO's 2025 global study scores generative-AI exposure on the international ISCO-08 occupation system, not US SOC. Bridged through the published (and approximate, many-to-many) IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 crosswalk, this US occupation corresponds to the international occupation below. Exposure here means how much of the work's tasks today's AI can attempt — task overlap, not automation, adoption, or jobs lost.

40% mean task exposure (2025)
77th percentile of 427 placed occupations
+5 pts shift 2023 → 2025
International occupation (ISCO-08) Task exposure (2025) Most tasks fall in
Biologists, Botanists, Zoologists and Related Professionals · 2131 40% Gradient 2

Read the whole six-band gradient on the GenAI exposure gradient page. The crosswalk is approximate: a US occupation can map to several international ones, and the ILO scores describe the international occupation, not this exact US role.

Working with AI in this job

How people actually apply AI to this occupation's tasks, from Claude.ai (Free and Pro) conversations in the Anthropic Economic Index, 2026-01-15. This is one AI assistant's consumer sample — not all AI, not the whole workforce. Autonomy and the collaboration mix are model-rated estimates; figures below the sample floor are hidden.

Augmentation vs. automation 56.2% working with AI · 32.1% handed to AI
Most common way people use AI here Directive · AI does it; you give the instruction
Typical AI autonomy 4.0 / 5 · higher = AI acts more independently
Used for work (vs. personal / coursework) 34.8%

What people delegate to AI

The role's most common tasks in AI conversations, each tagged with how people work with the AI on it. “Usage” is the share of observed conversations, not of the job.

Task How Usage
Prepare technical reports and recommendations based upon research outcomes. Iteration 4.6%
Examine physiological, morphological, and cultural characteristics, using microscope, to identify and classify microorganisms in human, water, and food specimens. Learning 2.3%
Observe action of microorganisms upon living tissues of plants, higher animals, and other microorganisms, and on dead organic matter. Learning 0.6%
Conduct chemical analyses of substances such as acids, alcohols, and enzymes. Directive 0.4%
Isolate and maintain cultures of bacteria or other microorganisms in prescribed or developed media, controlling moisture, aeration, temperature, and nutrition. 0.3%

Where a human is still needed

Tasks where the model most often judged that a person remained necessary — a useful read on the current boundary, not a guarantee.

Isolate and maintain cultures of bacteria or other microorganisms in prescribed or developed media, controlling moisture, aeration, temperature, and nutrition. 100.0%
Examine physiological, morphological, and cultural characteristics, using microscope, to identify and classify microorganisms in human, water, and food specimens. 93.1%
Conduct chemical analyses of substances such as acids, alcohols, and enzymes. 92.7%
Observe action of microorganisms upon living tissues of plants, higher animals, and other microorganisms, and on dead organic matter. 91.5%
Prepare technical reports and recommendations based upon research outcomes. 87.7%

What people most often hand AI here

Example prompts phrased from the tasks people most often delegate to AI in this occupation (Anthropic Economic Index). Each shows the underlying measured task and its share of observed AI use. They are suggested phrasings of real tasks — starting points, not endorsed instructions.

  • Help me prepare technical reports and recommendations based upon research outcomes.

    From: Prepare technical reports and recommendations based upon research outcomes. · 4.6% of measured AI use · task iteration

  • Help me examine physiological, morphological, and cultural characteristics, using microscope, to identify and classify microorganisms in human, water, and food specimens.

    From: Examine physiological, morphological, and cultural characteristics, using microscope, to identify and classify microorganisms in human, water, and food specimens. · 2.3% of measured AI use · learning

  • Help me observe action of microorganisms upon living tissues of plants, higher animals, and other microorganisms, and on dead organic matter.

    From: Observe action of microorganisms upon living tissues of plants, higher animals, and other microorganisms, and on dead organic matter. · 0.6% of measured AI use · learning

  • Help me conduct chemical analyses of substances such as acids, alcohols, and enzymes.

    From: Conduct chemical analyses of substances such as acids, alcohols, and enzymes. · 0.4% of measured AI use · directive

Tasks

All 14 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.

Emerging tasks

Newer responsibilities O*NET has flagged as growing for this occupation.

  • Perform tests on water, food, and the environment to detect harmful microorganisms or to obtain information about sources of pollution, contamination, or infection and interpret the results.

Work activities

Knowledge, skills & abilities

O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).

Knowledge

Biology 4.7
Chemistry 3.8
English Language 3.6
Computers and Electronics 3.6
Education and Training 3.5
Mathematics 3.3

Essential skills

Science 4.6
Reading Comprehension 4.1
Writing 4.0
Critical Thinking 4.0
Active Listening 3.9
Speaking 3.9
Active Learning 3.9
Learning Strategies 3.6
Monitoring 3.6
Mathematics 3.1

Abilities

Written Comprehension 4.3
Written Expression 4.1
Inductive Reasoning 4.1
Oral Comprehension 4.0
Oral Expression 4.0
Problem Sensitivity 4.0
Deductive Reasoning 4.0
Category Flexibility 4.0
Information Ordering 3.9
Fluency of Ideas 3.8
Flexibility of Closure 3.8
Near Vision 3.8
Speech Recognition 3.6
Selective Attention 3.5
Originality 3.1
Speech Clarity 3.1

Transferable skills

Judgment and Decision Making 3.8
Complex Problem Solving 3.6
Social Perceptiveness 3.0
Coordination 3.0
Instructing 3.0
Service Orientation 3.0
Systems Analysis 3.0
Time Management 3.0

Skills in demand

Skills employers ask for in job postings for this occupation (Lightcast), with whether each is a common or specialized skill.

Showing the top 40 of 41.

Tools & technology

Example Category
Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet software Hot technology In demand
Microsoft Office software Office suite software Hot technology In demand
Microsoft PowerPoint Presentation software Hot technology In demand
Microsoft Word Word processing software Hot technology In demand
Microsoft Access Data base user interface and query software Hot technology
Microsoft Outlook Electronic mail software Hot technology
Microsoft Windows Operating system software Hot technology
SAP software Enterprise resource planning ERP software Hot technology
Assistant Software for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Interpretation ASASI Analytical or scientific software
Basic Local Alignment Search Tool BLAST Analytical or scientific software
BD Biosciences CellQuest Analytical or scientific software
BD Biosciences CloneCyt Analytical or scientific software
Bruker Optics OPUS Analytical or scientific software
BtB Software Mycobacteriology Lab Analytical or scientific software
Codon Usage Database Analytical or scientific software
ComBase Information retrieval or search software
Computer Service & Support CLS-2000 Laboratory System Medical software
Computing Solutions LabSoft LIMS Micro Analytical or scientific software
Database management software Data base user interface and query software
DM2 Bills of Lading Analytical or scientific software
Email software Electronic mail software
FindTarget Analytical or scientific software
FramePlot Analytical or scientific software
Gene Finder Analytical or scientific software
Gene recognition software Analytical or scientific software
Genie Interactive Analytical or scientific software
Image capture and analysis software Analytical or scientific software
Laboratory information management system LIMS Analytical or scientific software
NetLims AutoLims Analytical or scientific software
Orchard Software Orchard Harvest LIS Medical software
Pathogen Modeling Program PMP Analytical or scientific software
PHYLIP Analytical or scientific software
PIBWin Analytical or scientific software
PredictProtein Analytical or scientific software
Proscan Analytical or scientific software
Protein databases Analytical or scientific software
Protein Explorer Analytical or scientific software
ProtScale Analytical or scientific software
STARLIMS Analytical or scientific software
Statistical software Analytical or scientific software

Showing the top 40 of 44.

Work context

How characteristic each condition is of the job, on O*NET's 1–5 context scale (higher = more present in day-to-day work). Each condition links to how it varies across all occupations.

E-Mail 5.0
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled 4.8
Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams 4.7
Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets 4.7
Importance of Being Exact or Accurate 4.6
Telephone Conversations 4.2
Time Pressure 4.1
Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team 4.1
Exposed to Disease or Infections 4.0
Freedom to Make Decisions 4.0
Health and Safety of Other Workers 3.9
Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals 3.9
Exposed to Contaminants 3.9
Consequence of Error 3.9
Contact With Others 3.8
Importance of Repeating Same Tasks 3.7
Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results 3.6
Exposed to Hazardous Conditions 3.5
Frequency of Decision Making 3.5
Spend Time Sitting 3.5
Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls 3.5
Work Outcomes and Results of Other Workers 3.3
Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions 3.3
Coordinate or Lead Others in Accomplishing Work Activities 3.3
Written Letters and Memos 3.3
Physical Proximity 3.2
Deal With External Customers or the Public in General 3.0
Level of Competition 2.9
Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable 2.8
Spend Time Standing 2.8
Conflict Situations 2.7
Public Speaking 2.6
Exposed to Hazardous Equipment 2.6
Wear Specialized Protective or Safety Equipment such as Breathing Apparatus, Safety Harness, Full Protection Suits, or Radiation Protection 2.6
Degree of Automation 2.5
Dealing With Unpleasant, Angry, or Discourteous People 2.5
Pace Determined by Speed of Equipment 2.0
Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled 2.0
Exposed to Minor Burns, Cuts, Bites, or Stings 1.9
Spend Time Walking or Running 1.9

How to get in

Job zone
Zone 4 — Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
Education
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Typical entry-level education
Bachelor's degree · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement
Related experience
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Preparation level
SVP (7.0 to < 8.0) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.

What to study: Agriculture, Agriculture Operations, and Related Sciences , Biological and Biomedical Sciences . Fields of study crosswalked to this occupation (NCES CIP–SOC), not a requirement.

Education of current workers

Share of people in this occupation at each level of education.

Bachelor's Degree 63.6%
Master's Degree 13.6%
Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) 9.1%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate 9.1%
Post-Doctoral Training 4.5%

Interests & work styles

The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.

Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)

Investigative 7.0
Realistic 5.3
Conventional 3.9

Interest areas

Life Science 7.0
Medical Science 6.5
Health Care Service 4.0
Physical Science 2.9
Mathematics/Statistics 2.9
Information Technology 2.1

Work styles

Dependability 7.0
Attention to Detail 6.0
Integrity 5.0
Cautiousness 4.0
Intellectual Curiosity 3.0
Innovation 2.3
Achievement Orientation 2.1

Wages & employment

U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)

$51k10th$64k25th$87kMedian$121k75th$151k90th
Annual wages by percentile — U.S. (BLS OEWS). The light band spans the 10th–90th percentile; the darker band is the middle half (25th–75th); the line is the median.
21k202422k2034 (proj.)+4.1% · About average
Projected U.S. employment, 2024–2034 (BLS Employment Projections). A labor-market forecast for the occupation, not an AI-impact forecast.
10th percentile $51,220
25th percentile $63,920
Median (50th) $87,330
75th percentile $120,750
90th percentile $150,650
People employed 19,760

Industries that employ this occupation

Where these workers are employed, by number of jobs (national, BLS OEWS). Pay shown is the occupation's national median, not industry-specific.

Industry Workers National median pay
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector 8,170 $89,710
Manufacturing · Sector 4,410 $81,590
Testing Laboratories and Services · National industry 1,650 $55,100
Educational Services · Sector 1,330 $64,170
Health Care and Social Assistance · Sector 1,010 $108,970
Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector 360 $58,490
Management of Companies and Enterprises · Sector 350 $97,990
Temporary Help Services · National industry 280 $51,220
Wholesale Trade · Sector 240 $83,690
Engineering Services · National industry $77,460
Veterinary Services · National industry $85,950

Where this work is most concentrated

Industries where this occupation is far more common than in the economy as a whole. The location quotient is how many times more concentrated it is here (a value of 5 means five times its economy-wide share).

Industry Concentration Workers
Testing Laboratories and Services · National industry 75.56× 1,650
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector 5.92× 8,170
Manufacturing · Sector 2.7× 4,410
Management of Companies and Enterprises · Sector 0.97× 350
Temporary Help Services · National industry 0.82× 280
Educational Services · Sector 0.76× 1,330
Health Care and Social Assistance · Sector 0.34× 1,010
Wholesale Trade · Sector 0.31× 240

Part of the Agriculture and Energy & Natural Resources career clusters.

Exposure quadrant: AI task-overlap percentile vs Median pay Microbiologists sits at the 59th percentile of AI task-overlap and the 75th percentile of median pay, placed here against 8 adjacent occupations on the same two axes. Lower overlap · higher pay Higher overlap · higher pay Higher overlap · lower pay Lower overlap · lower pay Microbiologists Biological Technicians Biochemists and Biophysicists AI task-overlap percentile → ↑ Median pay
AI task-overlap percentile (horizontal) vs. median-pay percentile (vertical), across all scored occupations. This occupation is highlighted; related occupations are plotted alongside it. Overlap measures shared tasks with AI, not automation.

Side-by-side comparisons place two occupations’ pay, preparation, skills, and AI exposure on the same page — same data, same scale, no forecast.

What you can do with this

Options the data surfaces for Microbiologists — not advice or a forecast. Each is a real cross-link you can follow into the evidence.

Skills that travel

Capabilities this work builds that are used across many other occupations.

Paths in

How people typically prepare for this work.

Zoom out

On the global GenAI exposure gradient this work sits around the 77th percentile of 427 international occupations.

Write a report on thisheadline · factoids · citation

Microbiologists show 59th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 1,700 annual U.S. openings

  • Microbiologists rank in the 59th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated.Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE
  • The occupation is projected to see about 1,700 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
  • BLS projects employment to be about average (+4.1%) from 2024 to 2034.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
  • Median annual pay is $87,330, across about 19,760 U.S. workers.BLS OEWS (May 2024)
  • Of the AI use actually observed for this work, 56% looks like augmentation (drafting, iterating, checking) rather than hands-off automation — from a Claude.ai usage sample, not a census.2026-01-15-v4-plus-2025-03-27-v2
Copy the whole kit
Microbiologists show 59th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 1,700 annual U.S. openings

• Microbiologists rank in the 59th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated. (Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE)
• The occupation is projected to see about 1,700 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34)
• BLS projects employment to be about average (+4.1%) from 2024 to 2034. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34)
• Median annual pay is $87,330, across about 19,760 U.S. workers. (BLS OEWS (May 2024))
• Of the AI use actually observed for this work, 56% looks like augmentation (drafting, iterating, checking) rather than hands-off automation — from a Claude.ai usage sample, not a census. (2026-01-15-v4-plus-2025-03-27-v2)

Source: Singulariki — "Microbiologists". https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-1022-00
Note: AI task overlap measures what today's AI can attempt, not automation, job loss, or a forecast.

AssetsShare imageMethodology & sourcesPress & newsroomThe newsroom

Every line is built only from figures this page already shows and cites. AI task overlap means what today's AI can attempt — not automation, job loss, or a forecast.

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.

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

Cite this page
Plain

Singulariki. "Microbiologists." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-1022-00

APA

Singulariki. (2026). Microbiologists. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-1022-00

BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-role-19-1022-00,
  title  = {Microbiologists},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-1022-00}
}

Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.

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