Life & Physical Science
Agricultural & Food Scientists
SOC 19-1012
Improve crops, livestock, and food safety through applied research.
The job
Median pay
$89k
$69k to $117k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Growing fast
+6.2% projected
Openings a year
1k
BLS projection
Typical education
Bachelor's
Our model
AI displacement risk
High
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
9/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
59th pct
More exposed than 59% of occupations · modeled estimate · 82nd pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
57/100
Key skills
- Reading Comprehension
- Critical Thinking
- Active Learning
- Active Listening
- Writing
- Speaking
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 2,210 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $94k |
| Texas | 840 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $91k |
| Illinois | 780 | 0.1 | 1.5× | $94k |
| Minnesota | 670 | 0.2 | 2.7× | $99k |
| New York | 660 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $94k |
| New Jersey | 630 | 0.1 | 1.8× | $104k |
| Georgia | 560 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $86k |
| Michigan | 430 | 0.1 | 1.2× | $77k |
| Massachusetts | 420 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $104k |
| Wisconsin | 410 | 0.1 | 1.7× | $83k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | 400 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $83k |
| Missouri | 390 | 0.1 | 1.6× | $106k |
| Iowa | 380 | 0.2 | 2.9× | $82k |
| Kansas | 380 | 0.3 | 3.1× | $85k |
| Colorado | 320 | 0.1 | 1.3× | $100k |
| Arkansas | 310 | 0.2 | 2.8× | $84k |
| Indiana | 300 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $69k |
| Maryland | 270 | 0.1 | 1.2× | $93k |
| Ohio | 270 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $77k |
| Oregon | 270 | 0.1 | 1.6× | $82k |
| Washington | 250 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $95k |
| Nebraska | 230 | 0.2 | 2.7× | $72k |
| North Carolina | 230 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $80k |
| Arizona | 208 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $90k~ |
| Florida | 170 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $101k |
| Kentucky | 170 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $99k |
| Washington DC | 158 | 0.2 | 2.7× | $138k~ |
| Idaho | 140 | 0.2 | 1.9× | $77k |
| Louisiana | 136 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $81k~ |
| Utah | 120 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $73k |
| Connecticut | 115 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $106k~ |
| South Carolina | 90 | 0.0 | 0.5× | $109k |
| South Dakota | 90 | 0.2 | 2.3× | $71k |
| Mississippi | 73 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $70k~ |
| Tennessee | 70 | 0.0 | 0.3× | $82k |
| Virginia | 70 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $94k |
| Hawaii | 67 | 0.1 | 1.3× | $80k~ |
| West Virginia | 65 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $74k~ |
| Alaska | 61 | 0.2 | 2.2× | $93k~ |
| Alabama | 60 | 0.0 | 0.3× | $97k |
| Delaware | 55 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $90k~ |
| New Hampshire | 53 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $86k~ |
| Nevada | 50 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $81k |
| Oklahoma | 50 | 0.0 | 0.3× | $85k |
| North Dakota | 41 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $77k~ |
| Rhode Island | 40 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $88k |
| Wyoming | 39 | 0.1 | 1.6× | $79k~ |
| Maine | 30 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $89k |
| Montana | 30 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $52k |
| New Mexico | 30 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $79k |
| Vermont | 29 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $81k~ |
Top metro areas
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ730 jobs · $104k median
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN610 jobs · $100k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA550 jobs · $91k median
- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI440 jobs · $102k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX410 jobs · $94k median
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA380 jobs · $99k median
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH370 jobs · $104k median
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA320 jobs · $108k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Agricultural & Food Scientists interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.