Skills it runs on
The capabilities O*NET rates most important for this occupation — the human ground the work is built on.
See all skills →Biologists
Occupation · SOC 19-1029.04
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 · Research Biologist · Research Scientist · Aquatic Scientist · Bioanalytical Scientist
Job family: Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations
Take this to your AI
A source-stamped Markdown brief of this occupation — paste it into an agent, or fetch
/roles/role-19-1029-04/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.
Market signal
Independent published positions, read together — not a forecast.
- About average employment outlook (+1.2% by 2034)
- 4,800 openings/yr
- High AI exposure
- Median pay $93,330/yr
- Can largely be done remotely (teleworkable)
- A reversal from 2013 — rated low automation risk then (11th), high AI task-overlap now (70th)
70th-percentile task overlap — yet about 4,800 openings a year (+1.2% projected, BLS) . 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.) High | 74th | 1.0 | |
| LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) Moderate | 60th | 0.8 | |
| AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) High | 77th | 0.2 |
OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.2), with simple added tooling (β 0.5), and including AI-powered software (γ 0.8). Higher means more of the job's tasks could be done at least twice as fast — not that they will be automated away.
Most of this job's tasks can be done remotely (Dingel–Neiman), which tends to track with higher digital and AI exposure.
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 · 11th 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.
| Study basic principles of plant and animal life, such as origin, relationship, development, anatomy, and function. | 6.9% | |
| Study aquatic plants and animals and environmental conditions affecting them, such as radioactivity or pollution. | 2.4% | |
| Teach or supervise students and perform research at universities and colleges. | 0.5% | |
| Study reactions of plants, animals, and marine species to parasites. | 0.3% | |
| Program and use computers to store, process, and analyze data. | 0.2% | |
| Collect and analyze biological data about relationships among and between organisms and their environment. | 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 · +1.2% by 2034 |
| Projected annual openings | 4,800 |
| Employment 2024 → 2034 | 63,700 → 64,500 |
“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.
Biologists sits at the 77th percentile of 427
occupations on the global GenAI task-exposure gradient
— exposure rose from 2023 to 2025. Each dot is one occupation; the
ringed one is this work. Exposure is task overlap, not automation 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.
Tasks
All 22 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.
- 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. Supplemental · importance 4.2
- Program and use computers to store, process, and analyze data. Core · importance 4.1
- Prepare technical and research reports, such as environmental impact reports, and communicate the results to individuals in industry, government, or the general public. Core · importance 4.1
- Supervise biological technicians and technologists and other scientists. Core · importance 4.1
- 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. Core · importance 4.0
- Identify, classify, and study structure, behavior, ecology, physiology, nutrition, culture, and distribution of plant and animal species. Core · importance 4.0
- Study basic principles of plant and animal life, such as origin, relationship, development, anatomy, and function. Core · importance 4.0
- Collect and analyze biological data about relationships among and between organisms and their environment. Core · importance 3.9
- Review reports and proposals, such as those relating to land use classifications and recreational development, for accuracy, adequacy, or adherence to policies, regulations, or scientific standards. Core · importance 3.9
- Study and manage wild animal populations. Supplemental · importance 3.8
- Study aquatic plants and animals and environmental conditions affecting them, such as radioactivity or pollution. Supplemental · importance 3.8
- Write grant proposals to obtain funding for biological research. Supplemental · importance 3.8
- Prepare plans for management of renewable resources. Supplemental · importance 3.8
- Teach or supervise students and perform research at universities and colleges. Supplemental · importance 3.6
- Prepare requests for proposals or statements of work. Core · importance 3.6
- Measure salinity, acidity, light, oxygen content, and other physical conditions of water to determine their relationship to aquatic life. Supplemental · importance 3.6
- Develop pest management and control measures, and conduct risk assessments related to pest exclusion, using scientific methods. Supplemental · importance 3.3
- Communicate test results to state and federal representatives and general public. Core · importance 3.3
- Develop methods and apparatus for securing representative plant, animal, aquatic, or soil samples. Core · importance 3.3
- Represent employer in a technical capacity at conferences. Core · importance 3.2
- Plan and administer biological research programs for government, research firms, medical industries, or manufacturing firms. Supplemental · importance 3.0
- Study reactions of plants, animals, and marine species to parasites. Supplemental · importance 2.7
Emerging tasks
Newer responsibilities O*NET has flagged as growing for this occupation.
- Inventory and order lab supplies.
Work activities
- Develop collaborative relationships between departments or with external organizations.
- Analyze data to identify trends or relationships among variables.
- Write computer programming code.
- Operate computers or computerized equipment.
- Conduct research of processes in natural or industrial ecosystems.
- Collect environmental data or samples.
- Identify environmental concerns.
- Research topics in area of expertise.
- Provide technical information or assistance to public.
- Communicate with government agencies.
- Classify organisms based on their characteristics or behavior.
- Examine characteristics or behavior of living organisms.
- Prepare scientific or technical reports or presentations.
- Plan biological research.
- Research environmental impact of industrial or development activities.
- Analyze chemical compounds or substances.
- Instruct college students in physical or life sciences.
- Supervise scientific or technical personnel.
- Prepare research or technical reports on environmental issues.
- Communicate results of environmental research.
- Review plans or proposals for environmental conservation.
- Prepare proposal documents or grant applications.
- Develop plans to manage natural or renewable resources.
- Develop biological research methods.
- Research diseases or parasites.
- Develop safety standards, policies, or procedures.
- Write grant proposals.
Knowledge, skills & abilities
O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).
Knowledge
| Biology | 5.0 | |
| Education and Training | 4.2 | |
| English Language | 4.1 | |
| Mathematics | 3.6 | |
| Administration and Management | 3.4 | |
| Chemistry | 3.4 | |
| Administrative | 3.2 | |
| Engineering and Technology | 3.2 | |
| Communications and Media | 3.0 |
Essential skills
| Science | 4.6 | |
| Reading Comprehension | 4.1 | |
| Writing | 4.1 | |
| Active Listening | 4.0 | |
| Speaking | 4.0 | |
| Critical Thinking | 4.0 | |
| Mathematics | 3.9 | |
| Active Learning | 3.9 | |
| Learning Strategies | 3.1 | |
| Monitoring | 3.0 |
Abilities
| Oral Comprehension | 4.1 | |
| Written Comprehension | 4.1 | |
| Written Expression | 4.1 | |
| Inductive Reasoning | 4.1 | |
| Oral Expression | 4.0 | |
| Information Ordering | 4.0 | |
| Category Flexibility | 4.0 | |
| Near Vision | 4.0 | |
| Problem Sensitivity | 3.9 | |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.9 | |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 3.9 | |
| Speech Clarity | 3.9 | |
| Speech Recognition | 3.8 | |
| Fluency of Ideas | 3.6 | |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.3 | |
| Originality | 3.1 | |
| Number Facility | 3.1 | |
| Far Vision | 3.1 |
Transferable skills
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.8 | |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.8 | |
| Social Perceptiveness | 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 43.
Tools & technology
Showing the top 40 of 56.
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.
How to get in
- Job zone
- Zone 5 — Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
- Education
- Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
- Typical entry-level education
- Bachelor's degree · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement
- Related experience
- Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.
- Preparation level
- SVP (8.0 and above) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.
What to study: Biological and Biomedical Sciences , Mathematics and Statistics , Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies , Psychology . 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.
| Master's Degree | 55.0% | |
| Bachelor's Degree | 23.4% | |
| Post-Doctoral Training | 21.6% |
Interests & work styles
The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.
Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)
| Investigative | 7.0 | |
| Conventional | 4.5 | |
| Realistic | 4.1 | |
| Enterprising | 2.8 |
Interest areas
| Life Science | 6.9 | |
| Nature/Outdoors | 4.9 | |
| Medical Science | 4.7 | |
| Mathematics/Statistics | 4.3 | |
| Public Speaking | 3.1 | |
| Animal Service | 2.9 | |
| Agriculture | 2.8 | |
| Management/Administration | 2.7 |
Work styles
| Dependability | 5.0 | |
| Attention to Detail | 4.0 | |
| Intellectual Curiosity | 3.0 | |
| Integrity | 3.0 |
Wages & employment
U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)
| 10th percentile | $54,500 |
| 25th percentile | $67,950 |
| Median (50th) | $93,330 |
| 75th percentile | $121,350 |
| 90th percentile | $159,780 |
| People employed | 59,710 |
Wages and employment are reported by BLS for the broader occupation group this specialty belongs to (SOC 19-1029), not for the specialty alone.
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 | 21,620 | $97,840 |
| Educational Services · Sector | 5,590 | $63,290 |
| Manufacturing · Sector | 4,180 | $108,160 |
| Health Care and Social Assistance · Sector | 2,440 | $91,830 |
| Wholesale Trade · Sector | 1,200 | $103,890 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector | 900 | $92,020 |
| Testing Laboratories and Services · National industry | 880 | $61,800 |
| Engineering Services · National industry | 800 | $85,560 |
| Temporary Help Services · National industry | 660 | $82,570 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises · Sector | 550 | $122,580 |
| Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities · National industry | 220 | $98,890 |
| Other Services (except Public Administration) · Sector | 200 | $64,090 |
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 | 13.34× | 880 |
| Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities · National industry | 9.35× | 220 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector | 5.18× | 21,620 |
| Engineering Services · National industry | 1.79× | 800 |
| Educational Services · Sector | 1.06× | 5,590 |
| Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting · Sector | 0.85× | 140 |
| Manufacturing · Sector | 0.85× | 4,180 |
| Temporary Help Services · National industry | 0.64× | 660 |
Related occupations
Part of the Agriculture , Energy & Natural Resources and Healthcare & Human Services career clusters.
- Molecular and Cellular Biologists · 19-1029.02 Compare →
- Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists · 19-1023.00 Compare →
- Geneticists · 19-1029.03 Compare →
- Biological Technicians · 19-4021.00 Compare →
- Microbiologists · 19-1022.00 Compare →
- Biochemists and Biophysicists · 19-1021.00 Compare →
- Soil and Plant Scientists · 19-1013.00 Compare →
- Conservation Scientists · 19-1031.00 Compare →
- Natural Sciences Managers · 11-9121.00 Compare →
- Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers · 19-2042.00 Compare →
- Bioinformatics Scientists · 19-1029.01 Compare →
- Industrial Ecologists · 19-2041.03 Compare →
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 Biologists — 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.
Adjacent roles
Occupations O*NET rates as related — the nearby moves on the map.
Paths in
How people typically prepare for this work.
- Bachelor's degree · typical entry level
- Job zone 5 — Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed · preparation tier
- Biological and Biomedical Sciences · field of study
- Mathematics and Statistics · field of study
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
Biologists show 70th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 4,800 annual U.S. openings
- Biologists rank in the 70th percentile (High 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 4,800 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 (+1.2%) from 2024 to 2034.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- Median annual pay is $93,330, across about 59,710 U.S. workers.BLS OEWS (May 2024)
Copy the whole kit
Biologists show 70th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 4,800 annual U.S. openings • Biologists rank in the 70th percentile (High 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 4,800 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 (+1.2%) from 2024 to 2034. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • Median annual pay is $93,330, across about 59,710 U.S. workers. (BLS OEWS (May 2024)) Source: Singulariki — "Biologists". https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-1029-04 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.
- 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
- BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
- Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
- “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
- AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
- ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025 International Labour Organization
- IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022 Institute for Structural Research (IBS)
- Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation academic
- Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome academic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Plain
Singulariki. "Biologists." 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-19-1029-04
APA
Singulariki. (2026). Biologists. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-1029-04
BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-role-19-1029-04,
title = {Biologists},
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-19-1029-04}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.