How many hours do computer scientists work?

• The organization they work for (type and size)

• The current project they are working on

• The specific demands of their role

There are also other factors that can contribute to variance in work schedules amongst computer scientists, including:

• Computer scientists in the private sector

Most Computer scientists working in the private sector work for at least 40 hours per week, and sometimes more. Some computer scientists in this sector have to put in overtime hours due to a project they are working on. This may also cause them to work outside of the traditional 9am to 5pm schedule.

When working on tight deadlines or very important projects computer scientists can find themselves working extra early or extra late.

• Computer scientists in the public sector

Computer scientists who work in the public sector, like ones that work for government agencies, often have more stable and predictable work schedules. These tend to be around 40 hours or slightly more per week. Emergency situations can see these computer scientists working outside of their normal schedule or committing to overtime work hours.

• Traveling computer scientists

Some computer scientists have to travel for their job and this can impact their daily work schedules and amount of hours they work in different ways. Sometimes computer scientists might be required to work long hours or weekends when traveling to work on a project. This is because many computer scientists' projects have strict deadlines that must be met.

• Freelance Computer scientists

Freelance computer scientists tend to have the most flexible work schedules of any type of computer scientist. These professionals take on different projects from clients and can choose their work schedules to a certain degree. But this also means they might have to work longer hours and more hours in general to meet a particular client's demands.