Computer Scientist / Researcher
Career Area: Information Technology
Occupation Group: Software Development
Salary
Percentile wages tell how much a certain percentage of an overall population in a geographic area or within a given industry or field makes. The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
An example would be the 25th percentile, 25 percent of workers employed in that occupation earn less and 75 percent earn more than the estimated wage value. At the 75th percentile, 75 percent of workers employed in that occupation earn less and 25 percent earn more than the estimated wage value.
A typical Computer Scientist / Researcher earns the following wages (national and state):
State
The average salary in North Carolina for those pursuing this career is $93,488
National
The average salary in the United States for those pursuing this career is $94,079
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
Conducts research and studies complex problems in computing. Develops computer algorithms that provide the foundation for advances in technology. May study computer hardware architecture, robotics or software, and collaborate with electrical engineers and other computer professionals.
Employment Trends
The job demand and job growth statistics shown here were derived from job posts over the past year. Expected job growth projections are extrapolated from year-over-year job post listing history.
Job demand and job growth is expected at the following rates:
| Location | Growth | |
|---|---|---|
| North Carolina | 271 | +14.3% |
| Nationwide | 10285 | +16.5% |
Skills
A professional in this position typically utilizes the following skills in the course of everyday work in this exciting and challenging field:
Baseline Skills
The following are baseline skills every Computer Scientist / Researcher is expected to have in order to experience success in this field:
- Research: Experience performing creative and systematic work to understand a product, market, or customer, either before building a new solution, or to troubleshoot an existing issue
- Communication Skills: The ability to convey information to another effectively and efficiently.
- Teamwork / Collaboration: Experience working in collaborative efforts with a team to achieve a common goal or to complete a task in the most effective and efficient way.
- Problem Solving: Problem solving consists of using generic or ad hoc methods, in an orderly manner, for finding solutions to problems.
- Writing: Experience expressing business messages effectively in written form. This may include planning drafting and revising as necessary.
Specialized Skills
These skills are specific to working in this career:
- Python: Python is a widely used high-level programming language for general-purpose programming, created by Guido van Rossum and first released in 1991.
- Machine Learning: Machine learning is the subfield of computer science that, according to Arthur Samuel, gives computers the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed. Samuel, an American pioneer in the field of computer gaming and artificial intelligence, coined the term machine learning in 1959 while at IBM. Evolved from the study of pattern recognition and computational learning theory in artificial intelligence, machine learning explores the study and construction of algorithms that can learn from and make predictions on data such algorithms overcome following strictly static program instructions by making data-driven predictions or decisions, through building a model from sample inputs.
- C++: C++ (pronounced cee plus plus ) is a general-purpose programming language.
- Software Development: Software development is the process of computer programming, documenting, testing, and bug fixing involved in creating and maintaining applications and frameworks resulting in a software product.
- Experiments: An experiment is a procedure carried out to support, refute, or validate a hypothesis.
Distinguishing Skills
Any Computer Scientist / Researcher that possesses the following skills will stand out against the competition:
- Computer Engineering: Computer engineering is a discipline that integrates several fields of electrical engineering and computer science required to develop computer hardware and software.
- Natural Language Processing: Natural language processing (NLP) is a field of computer science, artificial intelligence and computational linguistics concerned with the interactions between computers and human (natural) languages, and, in particular, concerned with programming computers to fruitfully process large natural language corpora.
- Bioinformatics: Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary field that develops methods and software tools for understanding biological data.
- Graphics Processing Units (GPU): Working experience of Graphics Processing Units (GPU). A graphics processing unit (GPU) is a specialized electronic circuit designed to rapidly manipulate and alter memory to accelerate the creation of images in a frame buffer intended for output to a display device. GPUs are used in embedded systems, mobile phones, personal computers, workstations, and game consoles.
- Image Processing: In imaging science, image processing is processing of images using mathematical operations by using any form of signal processing for which the input is an image, a series of images or a video, such as a photograph or video frame; the output of image processing may be either an image or a set of characteristics or parameters related to the image.
Experience
This position typically requires the following level of experience. The numbers presented in the pie charts below were derived from actual job posts over the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Experience Required | % |
| 0 to 2 years | 29% |
| 3 to 5 years | 42% |
| 6 to 8 years | 17% |
Many of the programs offered through NC State are designed for working professionals who need additional credentials to enhance existing work experience.
Students who do not have the expected level of experience may wish to look into internship and employment opportunities.
Common Job Titles
It is possible to find work in this field in positions commonly listed as the following job titles:
- Computer Scientist
- Staff Scientist
- Research Engineer
- Computer Scientist - Development Programs - Entry/Mid-Level
- Staff Data Scientist
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