Often handed to AI
Task areas most often handled directively in observed AI conversations — candidates to delegate with light review.
- Identify and troubleshoot equipment problems. · 0.4%
Quality Control Analysts
Occupation · SOC 19-4099.01
Conduct tests to determine quality of raw materials, bulk intermediate and finished products. May conduct stability sample tests.
Also called: Lab Technician (Lab Tech) · QA Auditor (Quality Assurance Auditor) · QA Tech (Quality Assurance Technician) · Quality Control Technician (QC Tech) · Lab Analyst · Laboratory Analyst · Microbiology Lab Analyst · QA Lab Tech (Quality Assurance Lab Technician) · Quality Control Analyst (QC Analyst) · Quality Control Lab Technician (QC Lab Tech) · Chemistry Quality Control Analyst (Chemistry QC Analyst) · Chemistry Quality Control Technician (Chemistry QC Technician)
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-19-4099-01/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.
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.
- Identify and troubleshoot equipment problems. · 95.0% need a human
- Compile laboratory test data and perform appropriate analyses. · 68.4% need a human
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 →Market signal
Independent published positions, read together — not a forecast.
- About average employment outlook (+3.5% by 2034)
- 10,600 openings/yr
- Moderate AI exposure
- Median pay $60,130/yr
- Work is mostly on-site (not teleworkable)
- Both the 2013 computerization estimate and today's AI exposure rank this high
60th-percentile task overlap — yet about 10,600 openings a year (+3.5% 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.) Moderate | 59th | 0.5 | |
| LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) High | 69th | 0.8 | |
| AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) Moderate | 56th | 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.
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 0.6 · 52nd percentile among occupations · Moderate
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.
| Compile laboratory test data and perform appropriate analyses. | 1.2% | |
| Calibrate, validate, or maintain laboratory equipment. | 0.5% | |
| Identify and troubleshoot equipment problems. | 0.4% |
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 · +3.5% by 2034 |
| Projected annual openings | 10,600 |
| Employment 2024 → 2034 | 83,200 → 86,200 |
“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 2 occupations below. Exposure here means how much of the work's tasks today's AI can attempt — task overlap, not automation, adoption, or jobs lost.
Quality Control Analysts sits at the 47th percentile of 427
occupations on the global GenAI task-exposure gradient
— exposure eased from 2023 to 2025. Each dot is one occupation; the
ringed one is this work. Exposure is task overlap, not automation or jobs lost.
26% mean task exposure (2025)
47th percentile of 427 placed occupations
−6 pts shift 2023 → 2025
| International occupation (ISCO-08) | Task exposure (2025) | Most tasks fall in |
|---|---|---|
| Chemical and Physical Science Technicians · 3111 | 26% | Not exposed |
| Physical and Engineering Science Technicians Not Elsewhere Classified · 3119 | 26% | Not exposed |
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.
| Most common way people use AI here | Feedback loop · AI does it, then adjusts from your feedback |
| Typical AI autonomy | 3.5 / 5 · higher = AI acts more independently |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Identify and troubleshoot equipment problems. | Feedback loop | 0.4% |
| Compile laboratory test data and perform appropriate analyses. | — | 0.4% |
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.
| Identify and troubleshoot equipment problems. | 95.0% | |
| Compile laboratory test data and perform appropriate analyses. | 68.4% |
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 identify and troubleshoot equipment problems.From: Identify and troubleshoot equipment problems. · 0.4% of measured AI use · feedback loop
-
Help me compile laboratory test data and perform appropriate analyses.From: Compile laboratory test data and perform appropriate analyses. · 0.4% of measured AI use
Tasks
All 26 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.
- Conduct routine and non-routine analyses of in-process materials, raw materials, environmental samples, finished goods, or stability samples. Core · importance 4.4
- Interpret test results, compare them to established specifications and control limits, and make recommendations on appropriateness of data for release. Core · importance 4.3
- Calibrate, validate, or maintain laboratory equipment. Core · importance 4.3
- Ensure that lab cleanliness and safety standards are maintained. Core · importance 4.2
- Perform visual inspections of finished products. Core · importance 4.2
- Complete documentation needed to support testing procedures, including data capture forms, equipment logbooks, or inventory forms. Core · importance 4.2
- Compile laboratory test data and perform appropriate analyses. Core · importance 4.2
- Identify and troubleshoot equipment problems. Core · importance 4.1
- Write technical reports or documentation, such as deviation reports, testing protocols, and trend analyses. Core · importance 4.1
- Investigate or report questionable test results. Core · importance 4.1
- Monitor testing procedures to ensure that all tests are performed according to established item specifications, standard test methods, or protocols. Core · importance 4.0
- Identify quality problems and recommend solutions. Core · importance 3.9
- Participate in out-of-specification and failure investigations and recommend corrective actions. Core · importance 3.9
- Receive and inspect raw materials. Core · importance 3.9
- Train other analysts to perform laboratory procedures and assays. Core · importance 3.8
- Serve as a technical liaison between quality control and other departments, vendors, or contractors. Core · importance 3.8
- Supply quality control data necessary for regulatory submissions. Core · importance 3.8
- Write or revise standard quality control operating procedures. Core · importance 3.6
- Participate in internal assessments and audits as required. Core · importance 3.6
- Perform validations or transfers of analytical methods in accordance with applicable policies or guidelines. Core · importance 3.6
- Prepare or review required method transfer documentation including technical transfer protocols or reports. Supplemental · importance 3.6
- Review data from contract laboratories to ensure accuracy and regulatory compliance. Supplemental · importance 3.5
- Develop and qualify new testing methods. Supplemental · importance 3.5
- Evaluate analytical methods and procedures to determine how they might be improved. Core · importance 3.4
- Coordinate testing with contract laboratories and vendors. Supplemental · importance 3.2
- Evaluate new technologies and methods to make recommendations regarding their use. Supplemental · importance 2.9
Work activities
- Train personnel in technical or scientific procedures.
- Evaluate quality of materials or products.
- Develop collaborative relationships between departments or with external organizations.
- Conduct financial or regulatory audits.
- Maintain laboratory or technical equipment.
- Advise others on the development or use of new technologies.
- Inspect areas for compliance with sanitation standards.
- Develop testing routines or procedures.
- Coordinate activities with suppliers, contractors, clients, or other departments.
- Prepare operational reports.
- Establish standards for products, processes, or procedures.
- Prepare information or documentation related to legal or regulatory matters.
- Verify accuracy of data.
- Determine appropriate methods for data analysis.
- Conduct quantitative failure analyses of operational data.
- Monitor operational procedures in technical environments to ensure conformance to standards.
- Analyze test results.
- Interpret research or operational data.
- Advise others on business or operational matters.
- Evaluate new technologies or methods.
- Record research or operational data.
- Calibrate scientific or technical equipment.
- Apply mathematical principles or statistical approaches to solve problems in scientific or applied fields.
- Test quality of materials or finished products.
Knowledge, skills & abilities
O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).
Knowledge
| Mathematics | 4.2 | |
| Production and Processing | 4.0 | |
| Chemistry | 3.7 | |
| English Language | 3.7 | |
| Administrative | 3.3 | |
| Computers and Electronics | 3.3 |
Transferable skills
Abilities
| Written Comprehension | 4.0 | |
| Near Vision | 4.0 | |
| Oral Comprehension | 3.9 | |
| Written Expression | 3.9 | |
| Oral Expression | 3.8 | |
| Problem Sensitivity | 3.6 | |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.6 | |
| Inductive Reasoning | 3.4 | |
| Far Vision | 3.3 | |
| Information Ordering | 3.1 | |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 3.1 | |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.1 | |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.1 | |
| Selective Attention | 3.1 | |
| Speech Recognition | 3.1 | |
| Speech Clarity | 3.1 | |
| Category Flexibility | 3.0 |
Essential skills
| Reading Comprehension | 3.8 | |
| Monitoring | 3.8 | |
| Active Listening | 3.4 | |
| Writing | 3.3 | |
| Critical Thinking | 3.3 | |
| Speaking | 3.1 | |
| Active Learning | 3.1 | |
| Mathematics | 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 51.
Tools & technology
Showing the top 40 of 50.
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 3 — Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
- Education
- Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
- Typical entry-level education
- Associate's degree · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement
- Related experience
- Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
- Preparation level
- SVP (6.0 to < 7.0) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.
What to study: Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting and Related Protective Services , Physical Sciences , Science Technologies/Technicians , Social 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.
| High School Diploma | 37.8% | |
| Bachelor's Degree | 27.9% | |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 10.2% | |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 9.6% | |
| Some College Courses | 8.8% | |
| Less than a High School Diploma | 5.7% |
Interests & work styles
The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.
Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)
| Conventional | 6.0 | |
| Investigative | 4.9 | |
| Realistic | 4.1 | |
| Enterprising | 2.6 |
Interest areas
| Physical Science | 4.6 | |
| Mathematics/Statistics | 3.4 | |
| Medical Science | 3.4 | |
| Life Science | 3.3 | |
| Engineering | 2.9 | |
| Mechanics/Electronics | 2.5 | |
| Information Technology | 2.2 | |
| Physical/Manual Labor | 2.0 |
Work styles
| Dependability | 4.0 | |
| Attention to Detail | 3.0 | |
| Cautiousness | 2.6 | |
| Integrity | 2.2 |
Wages & employment
U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)
| 10th percentile | $37,310 |
| 25th percentile | $46,270 |
| Median (50th) | $60,130 |
| 75th percentile | $77,990 |
| 90th percentile | $101,870 |
| People employed | 71,400 |
Wages and employment are reported by BLS for the broader occupation group this specialty belongs to (SOC 19-4099), 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Educational Services · Sector | 21,830 | $60,130 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector | 16,840 | $62,460 |
| Manufacturing · Sector | 8,800 | $62,990 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector | 5,980 | $46,750 |
| Temporary Help Services · National industry | 5,050 | $46,270 |
| Health Care and Social Assistance · Sector | 4,050 | $59,370 |
| Testing Laboratories and Services · National industry | 2,040 | $48,470 |
| Wholesale Trade · Sector | 1,210 | $60,980 |
| Engineering Services · National industry | 1,180 | $72,900 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises · Sector | 730 | $64,720 |
| Finance and Insurance · Sector | 670 | $61,600 |
| Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities · National industry | 570 | $51,010 |
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 | 25.85× | 2,040 |
| Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities · National industry | 20.25× | 570 |
| Temporary Help Services · National industry | 4.11× | 5,050 |
| Educational Services · Sector | 3.46× | 21,830 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector | 3.38× | 16,840 |
| Engineering Services · National industry | 2.2× | 1,180 |
| Manufacturing · Sector | 1.49× | 8,800 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector | 1.43× | 5,980 |
Related occupations
Part of the Education career cluster.
- Quality Control Systems Managers · 11-3051.01 Compare →
- Validation Engineers · 17-2112.02 Compare →
- Industrial Engineers · 17-2112.00 Compare →
- Chemical Technicians · 19-4031.00 Compare →
- Calibration Technologists and Technicians · 17-3028.00 Compare →
- Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians · 17-3026.00 Compare →
- Food Science Technicians · 19-4013.00 Compare →
- Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers · 15-1253.00 Compare →
- Chemists · 19-2031.00 Compare →
- Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers · 51-9061.00 Compare →
- Penetration Testers · 15-1299.04 Compare →
- Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians · 17-3027.00 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 Quality Control Analysts — 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.
- Associate's degree · typical entry level
- Job zone 3 — Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed · preparation tier
- Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting and Related Protective Services · field of study
- Physical Sciences · field of study
Zoom out
On the global GenAI exposure gradient this work sits around the 47th percentile of 427 international occupations.
Write a report on thisheadline · factoids · citation
Quality Control Analysts show 60th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 10,600 annual U.S. openings
- Quality Control Analysts rank in the 60th 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 10,600 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 (+3.5%) from 2024 to 2034.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- Median annual pay is $60,130, across about 71,400 U.S. workers.BLS OEWS (May 2024)
Copy the whole kit
Quality Control Analysts show 60th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 10,600 annual U.S. openings • Quality Control Analysts rank in the 60th 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 10,600 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 (+3.5%) from 2024 to 2034. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • Median annual pay is $60,130, across about 71,400 U.S. workers. (BLS OEWS (May 2024)) Source: Singulariki — "Quality Control Analysts". https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-4099-01 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. "Quality Control Analysts." 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-19-4099-01
APA
Singulariki. (2026). Quality Control Analysts. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/roles/role-19-4099-01
BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-role-19-4099-01,
title = {Quality Control Analysts},
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-19-4099-01}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.