Mathematics
Basic skill · O*NET work requirement
Using mathematics to solve problems.
In the O*NET occupational database, Mathematics is a skill that work requires. O*NET rates how important it is (1–5) and what level of it a job needs (0–7) for every U.S. occupation. It is rated as important (3 or higher) in 237 of 894 occupations.
Breadth here means how widely O*NET rates this skill as important across occupations — not that it is rare, high-paying, or currently in employer demand.
Occupations that rely most on Mathematics
Ranked by O*NET importance to the occupation (1–5). Bars are sized against the 1–5 scale; the level column is what depth of the skill the job needs (0–7).
Showing the top 40 of 237 occupations where this is important.
How AI is used by roles that need Mathematics
This skill is not itself "being automated" — but we can look at the roles for which O*NET rates it important and ask how those people actually use AI. This rolls the Anthropic Economic Index per-role signal up across those roles (importance-weighted). 72.6% of the 237 roles where this is important carry observed AI-usage data (172 roles).
Across those roles, 49.8% of AI conversations are people working with AI and 30.3% hand a task to AI , with an average autonomy of 3.67 / 5.
| Collaboration pattern | Share | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| directive | 27.8% | AI does it; you give the instruction |
| task iteration | 25.2% | you and AI go back and forth |
| learning | 21.4% | you ask AI to explain or teach |
| validation | 3.2% | you do it; AI checks your work |
| feedback loop | 2.5% | AI does it, then adjusts from your feedback |
Roles behind this signal
The roles where this skill is most important and that also have the most AEI data. "Works with AI" is the role's share of conversations that augment rather than automate.
| Occupation | Importance | Works with AI | Autonomy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.1 | 63.2% | 4.0/5 |
| Mathematical Science Teachers, Postsecondary | 4.3 | 65.0% | 3.0/5 |
| Atmospheric, Earth, Marine, and Space Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.4 | 66.3% | 4.0/5 |
| Economics Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.3 | 65.7% | 3.3/5 |
| Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.9 | 67.0% | 4.0/5 |
| Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.0 | 66.2% | 3.5/5 |
| Physics Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.6 | 65.9% | 4.0/5 |
| Psychology Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.0 | 66.2% | 4.0/5 |
| Forestry and Conservation Science Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.0 | 65.3% | 4.0/5 |
| Chemistry Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.3 | 66.0% | 4.0/5 |
| Environmental Science Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.0 | 66.3% | 4.0/5 |
| Business Teachers, Postsecondary | 3.0 | 61.5% | 3.0/5 |
Source: Anthropic Economic Index (2026-01-15-v4-plus-2025-03-27-v2) over a sample of Claude.ai Free and Pro conversations — not all AI tools and not the whole workforce. Shares are of observed conversations, weighted by how important this skill is to each role; some conversations are left unclassified by Anthropic's taxonomy, so shares need not sum to 100.
Industries that concentrate this
Where Mathematics matters most across the economy. Employment reach is the share of an industry's workers in occupations that significantly rely on Mathematics (O*NET importance ≥ 3 of 5). Concentration compares that reach to the national average industry, so a value above 1× means the requirement is more pervasive here than across the economy as a whole.
Nationally, about 15.5% of workers are in occupations that significantly rely on Mathematics (measured across 67 industries).
Sectors with the most such workers
| Sector | Workers | Employment reach |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 4,278,900 | 39.7% |
| Finance and Insurance | 3,233,750 | 51.9% |
| Construction | 2,165,600 | 26.7% |
| Manufacturing | 1,964,770 | 15.4% |
| Educational Services | 1,707,660 | 12.5% |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 1,575,980 | 6.8% |
| Accommodation and Food Services | 1,280,860 | 9.0% |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 1,074,980 | 38.3% |
| Retail Trade | 1,047,940 | 6.7% |
| Wholesale Trade | 867,910 | 14.4% |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 735,900 | 8.1% |
| Real Estate and Rental and Leasing | 631,920 | 26.7% |
Industries where it is most concentrated
| Industry | Level | Concentration | Employment reach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engineering Services | National industry | 4.13× | 64.0% |
| Electrical Contractors and Other Wiring Installation Contractors | National industry | 3.72× | 57.7% |
| Pharmacies and Drug Retailers | National industry | 3.63× | 56.2% |
| Finance and Insurance | Sector | 3.35× | 51.9% |
| Insurance Agencies and Brokerages | National industry | 3.24× | 50.2% |
| Testing Laboratories and Services | National industry | 3× | 46.5% |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | Sector | 2.56× | 39.7% |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | Sector | 2.47× | 38.3% |
| Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities | National industry | 2.45× | 37.9% |
| Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers | National industry | 1.9× | 29.5% |
| Construction | Sector | 1.72× | 26.7% |
| Real Estate and Rental and Leasing | Sector | 1.72× | 26.7% |
Reach is a measure of how widespread a requirement is across an industry's workforce, not how intensively any individual uses it. Sector worker counts come from BLS OEWS employment; the significance threshold and tool use come from O*NET. Industries shown by concentration are filtered to a real worker base so a tiny specialty cannot top the list on rounding.
Related skills, knowledge & abilities
Capabilities required by many of the same occupations — a measure of which skills, knowledge and abilities tend to travel together, not a judgment of similarity.
| Capability | Type | Shared occupations |
|---|---|---|
| Mathematical Reasoning | Ability | 214 |
| Number Facility | Ability | 192 |
| Systems Evaluation | Cross-functional skill | 179 |
| Systems Analysis | Cross-functional skill | 188 |
| Mathematics | Knowledge | 227 |
| Fluency of Ideas | Ability | 208 |
| Science | Basic skill | 109 |
| Computers and Electronics | Knowledge | 201 |
| Writing | Basic skill | 228 |
| Originality | Ability | 174 |
| Active Learning | Basic skill | 222 |
| Written Expression | Ability | 230 |
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
- Census NAICS 2022 U.S. Census Bureau
- Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Singulariki. "Mathematics." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; Census NAICS 2022; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27). Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/skills/mathematics
Singulariki. (2026). Mathematics. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/skills/mathematics
@misc{singulariki-mathematics,
title = {Mathematics},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; Census NAICS 2022; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27). Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/skills/mathematics}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.