Occupation salary profile

Animal Scientists

SOC 19-1011 BLS OEWS May 2025 H-1B LCAs, last 12 months

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

National median · BLS
$68,940
▼ -12.87% YoY
H-1B sponsor median
$63,565
▼ -2.21% YoY · 118 LCAs
Average salary · BLS
$88,350
Mean annual wage
U.S. employment
3,100
Jobs (BLS)
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Enter your pay and a location to see where you stand against BLS and H-1B pay, your estimated take-home pay, and your purchasing power.

Pay range for Animal Scientists

Annual base pay at each percentile. BLS covers all U.S. workers in this occupation; H-1B covers 118 certified Labor Condition Applications filed by sponsoring employers in the last 12 months.

Percentile All U.S. workers (BLS) H-1B sponsored
10th — entry pay$44,350$50,386
25th$49,770$56,132
Median (50th)$68,940$63,565
75th$103,300$75,000
90th — top pay$166,000$100,600
H-1B sponsors pay a median of $63,565 for Animal Scientists — 7.8% below the BLS national median of $68,940.

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Based on hrs/week × weeks/year = 2,080 hrs
Projections 2025–2035

Job outlook for Animal Scientists

BLS projects employment of animal scientists to grow 5.8% from 2025 to 2035, faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations. About 200 openings are projected each year, on average, from new jobs and from replacing workers who retire or move to other occupations.

Jobs 2025 → 2035
3,400 → 3,600
+200 jobs
Projected change
+5.8%
All occupations: +3.5%
Openings per year
200
Average, 2025–2035
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree
No related experience required
Self-employed
4.6% of workers (2025)
Preparation needed (O*NET Job Zone 5)
Extensive Preparation Needed. 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).
Fastest-growing jobs → Best-paying jobs that need a bachelor's degree →

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–2035 · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook →

H-1B sponsored pay

Pay by H-1B wage level

Employers assign every H-1B filing a Department of Labor prevailing-wage level, from Level I (entry) to Level IV (fully competent). Pay rises steeply with level.

H-1B median $63,565
Change vs prior year -2.21%
After inflation (CPI-U) -5.18%
Wage level LCAs Share P25 Median P75
Level I 67 56.8% $51,730 $59,842 $60,973
Level II 28 23.7% $65,875 $71,000 $77,375
Level III 13 11% $85,000 $93,900 $114,213
H-1B job titles

Salaries by job title in Animal Scientists

The 1 most-filed job titles inside SOC 19-1011, from 118 H-1B filings. Seniority words and level numbers are grouped (“Senior Data Engineer II” counts as Data Engineer). Tap a title for its full range, wage levels and the exact titles employers used.

Job title LCAs Share P25 Median P75 YoY
Animal Scientist 35 29.66% $60,938 $60,938 $72,000 +10.8%

Titles are cleaned from the employer's own LCA text (codes and typos removed, nothing invented). Rows need 10+ filings in this SOC.

Skills & tools

Skills needed for Animal Scientists

How important each skill and knowledge area is for this job, rated by O*NET on a 1–5 scale from surveys of workers and occupational analysts.

Top skills
  • Reading Comprehension4.1
  • Complex Problem Solving4.0
  • Critical Thinking4.0
  • Judgment and Decision Making4.0
  • Science4.0
  • Writing4.0
  • Active Learning3.9
  • Active Listening3.9
  • Speaking3.9
  • Monitoring3.8
Top knowledge areas
  • Biology4.6
  • Mathematics4.1
  • English Language4.1
  • Chemistry4.0
  • Food Production3.8
  • Education and Training3.5
  • Customer and Personal Service3.4
  • Computers and Electronics3.4
Software and technology used
Autodesk AutoCADESRI ArcGIS softwareMicrosoft AccessMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft Office softwareMicrosoft PowerPointMicrosoft WordOracle PeopleSoftSASStructured query language SQLTableauBest Linear Unbiased Prediction BLUPCowculatorCOWGAMEDAGRISDatabase softwareDeoxyribonucleic acid DNA sequence analysis softwareDomestic Animal Diversity Information Service DAD-IS

Highlighted = in demand: frequently listed in employer job postings for this occupation (O*NET).

Source: O*NET 31.0 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.

About the job

What animal scientists do

  • Study nutritional requirements of animals and nutritive values of animal feed materials.
  • Write up or orally communicate research findings to the scientific community, producers, and the public.
  • Develop improved practices in feeding, housing, sanitation, or parasite and disease control of animals.
  • Advise producers about improved products and techniques that could enhance their animal production efforts.
  • Conduct research concerning animal nutrition, breeding, or management to improve products or processes.
  • Study effects of management practices, processing methods, feed, or environmental conditions on quality and quantity of animal products, such as eggs and milk.
  • Research and control animal selection and breeding practices to increase production efficiency and improve animal quality.
  • Determine genetic composition of animal populations and heritability of traits, using principles of genetics.
Also called
Animal NutritionistAnimal ScientistBeef Cattle NutritionistResearch ScientistAnimal Nutrition ConsultantBeef Cattle SpecialistCompanion Animal NutritionistDairy Nutrition ConsultantDairy Research NutritionistScientist
More job titles for this occupation (17)
Animal AnatomistAnimal BehavioristAnimal BiologistAnimal GeneticistBacteriologistBehavioristDairy BacteriologistDairy Nutrition SpecialistDairy ScientistNutrition PartnerNutrition SpecialistPoultry ScientistSericulturistSwine Extension Field SpecialistSwine Genetics ResearcherSwine NutritionistSwine Specialist

Source: O*NET 31.0 (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0). These are general job titles, not H-1B filings; for titles employers actually filed, see “Job titles” above.