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The differences between optical scientists and computational physicists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an optical scientist and a computational physicist. Additionally, an optical scientist has an average salary of $83,856, which is higher than the $61,519 average annual salary of a computational physicist.
The top three skills for an optical scientist include system design, zemax and optical design. The most important skills for a computational physicist are C++, technical support, and DOE.
| Optical Scientist | Computational Physicist | |
| Yearly salary | $83,856 | $61,519 |
| Hourly rate | $40.32 | $29.58 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 43,029 | 865 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 43% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Optical scientists and computational physicists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Optical Scientist | Computational Physicist | |
| Average salary | $83,856 | $61,519 |
| Salary range | Between $52,000 And $132,000 | Between $28,000 And $133,000 |
| Highest paying City | Boston, MA | Bethesda, MD |
| Highest paying state | Connecticut | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Meta | Applied Materials |
| Best paying industry | Technology | - |
There are a few differences between an optical scientist and a computational physicist in terms of educational background:
| Optical Scientist | Computational Physicist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 43% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Most common major | Physics | Physics |
| Most common college | Harvard University | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor |
Here are the differences between optical scientists' and computational physicists' demographics:
| Optical Scientist | Computational Physicist | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.7% Female, 9.3% | Male, 84.6% Female, 15.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 1.9% Unknown, 3.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.4% Asian, 12.8% White, 73.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 0.8% Unknown, 3.3% Hispanic or Latino, 6.7% Asian, 7.9% White, 80.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 24% | 24% |