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Job outlook for science editors in the United States
Are science editor jobs in demand?
Science editor job and salary trends over time
Science editor jobs over time
Science editor job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 91 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 96 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 98 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 98 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 99 | 0.00% |
Average science editor salary over time
Science editor salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $62,220 | $29.91 | +3.3% |
| 2024 | $60,228 | $28.96 | +3.2% |
| 2023 | $58,373 | $28.06 | +1.2% |
| 2022 | $57,676 | $27.73 | +2.7% |
| 2021 | $56,145 | $26.99 | +2.1% |
Science editor jobs by state
Most common states for science editors
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 131 | 19% |
| 2 | Vermont | 623,657 | 39 | 6% |
| 3 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 317 | 5% |
| 4 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 67 | 5% |
| 5 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 51 | 5% |
| 6 | Delaware | 961,939 | 45 | 5% |
| 7 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 31 | 5% |
| 8 | New York | 19,849,399 | 710 | 4% |
| 9 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 155 | 4% |
| 10 | Idaho | 1,716,943 | 63 | 4% |
| 11 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 40 | 4% |
| 12 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 36 | 4% |
| 13 | Alaska | 739,795 | 32 | 4% |
| 14 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 30 | 4% |
| 15 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 279 | 3% |
| 16 | New Jersey | 9,005,644 | 277 | 3% |
| 17 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 191 | 3% |
| 18 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 108 | 3% |
| 19 | Nevada | 2,998,039 | 92 | 3% |
| 20 | Maine | 1,335,907 | 43 | 3% |
Most common cities for science editors
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cambridge | 1 | 1% | $72,414 |
| 2 | Dallas | 1 | 0% | $60,513 |
Science Editor job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of science editor experts
California University of Pennsylvania
University of Minnesota
Bucknell University
University of Oregon
What type of skills will young Science Editors need?
Dr. Christina Fisanick: College graduates in 2021 and beyond, need all of the skills that English programs have to offer: critical thinking, effective communication, creativity, and flexibility. New hires need to be able to adapt to workplace changes quickly and with aplomb, which requires critical thinking and problem solving and the ability to communicate those solutions to a diverse audience clearly and effectively. Those skills are refined and practiced regularly in English programs.
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Science Editors?
Thomas Reynolds: Technology is constantly changing, and the pandemic has put a wrinkle on innovations that will have an impact on the field of TWC. Yet technical writing and communication have always involved changing technologies -- it is one of the hallmarks of the field. In addition, remote work is common in technical communication, and many scholars have written about the phenomenon, including global virtual teams and distributed workplaces. In any case, technical writers and communicators learn to think about the intersection of technology with the audience.
I think that traditional notions of communicationm such as establishing a friendly, businesslike ethos and considering the very real material circumstances of audiences, will remain uppermost as graduates adapt to the technological changes. Part of this work will also involve recognizing and working to improve social injustices that employers are increasingly in need of addressing. New technologies that emerge will also be part of the landscape for graduates, and they will be eager to learn these new tools.
Sarah Bell
Senior Associate Director, CounselingBucknell University
Center for Career Advancement
How do you envision technology impacting Science Editors in the next 5 years?
Sarah Bell: As mentioned in #2, English majors go into many fields, and technology is affecting most of them now. We will likely always need creators, editors, and researchers of content, which will certainly make English majors useful in a variety of fields, due to (or in spite of) the technology advances. Experience in learning and utilizing a variety of software, platforms, and social media tools will only enhance their ability to complete their work in an effective and efficient manner in a variety of work settings.
Cristina Calhoon
Senior Career Instructor, Undergraduate AdvisorUniversity of Oregon
Department of Classics
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Science Editors?
Cristina Calhoon: Even before the pandemic, Classics-and the Humanities in general-had been coping with existential threats arising from the grafting of business models onto higher education. Administrators' exaggerated emphasis on metrics, a widespread mentality privileging "practical" skills over a more comprehensive education, and the prohibitive cost of college had forced Classics to adapt to changes.
Mergers with other departments and language programs, the fostering of distance learning and digital competence, curricula driven by large-enrollment courses in classics in English translation allowed some Classics programs to survive. The pandemic has made us rely more on the distance learning approach, but we still maintain most of our offerings. Some of our graduates are double majors, a solution I recommend when advising students who-dazzled by Classical Mythology or Archeology or other Classics courses-decide to switch from their "practical" major to Classics. Others decide to minor in Classics (Latin, Greek or Classical Civilization), because they still see great personal value in pursuing these studies.
Studying Latin or ancient Greek opens one's mind in so many different ways, all beneficial even from a "practical" standpoint: vocabulary skills, memorization, and analytical skills are necessary and transferable to any job. How does one learn to solve problems logically? By learning to organize Latin and Greek linguistic structures that work like jigsaw puzzles, unlike many modern Western languages. English is peppered with words of Latin and Greek origin, and our institutions (democracy, republic, libraries, the foundations of the western legal system, to quote just a few basic ones) are largely based on Greco-Roman ones. All this background knowledge gives our graduates a solid, comprehensive intellectual grounding and an enhanced view of our current predicament within a universal framework.