Animal Scientists

Median salary

$68,940

Average salary

$88,350

Employment

3,100

Projected growth

5.8% growth

Annual openings

200

Typical entry education

Bachelor's degree

What Animal Scientists Do

Conduct research in the genetics, nutrition, reproduction, growth, and development of domestic farm animals.

See full salary breakdown & percentiles →

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience: None
On-the-job training: None
Self-employed: 2.3%

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

How Much Preparation Does This Take?

Job Zone 5 of 5

Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed

Experience: Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience.
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).
Job training: Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.

Source: O*NET Job Zones.

Key Knowledge Areas

Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.

Biologyimportance 4.6/5
Mathematicsimportance 4.1/5
English Languageimportance 4.1/5
Chemistryimportance 4.0/5
Food Productionimportance 3.8/5
Education and Trainingimportance 3.5/5
Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 3.4/5
Computers and Electronicsimportance 3.4/5

Work Environment

What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.

E-Mail5.0/5
Telephone Conversations4.7/5
Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.5/5
Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals4.4/5
Freedom to Make Decisions4.4/5
Importance of Being Exact or Accurate4.3/5

Careers With Similar Skills

Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.

Environmental Engineers98% skill match
Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists97% skill match
Soil and Plant Scientists97% skill match
Microbiologists97% skill match
Industrial Engineers96% skill match
Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians96% skill match
Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists96% skill match
Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors96% skill match

Transferable Skills

Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.

Complex Problem Solvingimportance 4.0/5
Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 4.0/5
Systems Analysisimportance 3.8/5
Systems Evaluationimportance 3.3/5
Time Managementimportance 3.3/5
Social Perceptivenessimportance 3.1/5
Coordinationimportance 3.1/5
Persuasionimportance 3.0/5

Software & Technologies

Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.

Hot Technologies

Other Software Used

Best Linear Unbiased Prediction BLUP
COWGAME
Cowculator
DAGRIS
Database software
Deoxyribonucleic acid DNA sequence analysis software
Domestic Animal Diversity Information Service DAD-IS
Email software

Work Style

Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.

Intellectual Curiosity
Innovation
Attention to Detail
Dependability
Achievement Orientation
Integrity
Perseverance

Career Interests

This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.

InvestigativeHigh
RealisticHigh
ConventionalMedium
EnterprisingLow
SocialLow
ArtisticLow

This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

Where This Career Is Most Concentrated

Metro areas where animal scientists make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).

1Madison, WI27.22× national avg
2Lincoln, NE26.44× national avg
3Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV2.56× national avg
4Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD1.06× national avg

Possible Career Moves

A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.

Soil and Plant ScientistsLateral Move
MicrobiologistsLateral Move
Food Scientists and TechnologistsLateral Move
Zoologists and Wildlife BiologistsLateral Move

See the full career path from Animal Scientists →

Related Education Programs

Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.