DOL Filings vs BLS Survey
What Employers File with DOL
This figure comes from 6,018 employer filings with the US Department of Labor under legal obligation. Employers file this salary when sponsoring workers for PERM green cards or H-1B visas.
What BLS Says the Market Pays
This figure comes from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey of 8,330 establishments. This is an independent survey-based estimate of what all workers in this occupation earn.
Salary Distribution
Top Paying Employers for Materials Scientists
Ranked by median salary from DOL filingsSalary by Metro Area
| Metro Area | Median | vs National | Filings | Employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Redwood City, CA | $113,889 | +62.7% | 10 | 4 |
| Fremont, CA | $105,000 | +50% | 25 | 15 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $103,478 | +47.8% | 10 | 4 |
| San Jose, CA | $103,000 | +47.1% | 68 | 28 |
| Santa Clara, CA | $100,526 | +43.6% | 37 | 18 |
| Palo Alto, CA | $100,340 | +43.3% | 10 | 8 |
| St. Paul, MN | $98,465 | +40.7% | 12 | 1 |
| Milpitas, CA | $97,011 | +38.6% | 72 | 11 |
| Sunnyvale, CA | $97,011 | +38.6% | 34 | 16 |
| Kingsport, TN | $95,300 | +36.1% | 10 | 1 |
| Mt. Vernon, IN | $95,200 | +36% | 12 | 1 |
| MARLBOROUGH, MA | $94,806 | +35.4% | 11 | 3 |
| Livermore, CA | $93,300 | +33.3% | 24 | 4 |
| Freeport, TX | $91,919 | +31.3% | 32 | 1 |
| Lake Jackson, TX | $91,919 | +31.3% | 12 | 1 |
| Sugar Land, TX | $91,500 | +30.7% | 17 | 7 |
| Waltham, MA | $90,760 | +29.7% | 12 | 3 |
| Irvine, CA | $90,000 | +28.6% | 13 | 8 |
| Neenah, WI | $90,000 | +28.6% | 11 | 5 |
| Menlo Park, CA | $87,600 | +25.1% | 21 | 11 |
| Wilmington, DE | $86,868 | +24.1% | 32 | 10 |
| Billerica, MA | $86,694 | +23.8% | 11 | 4 |
| Idaho Falls, ID | $86,460 | +23.5% | 22 | 3 |
| Los Alamos, NM | $86,133 | +23% | 31 | 2 |
| Corning, NY | $86,101 | +23% | 12 | 1 |
| Northboro, MA | $86,100 | +23% | 72 | 1 |
| Kennesaw, GA | $85,166 | +21.7% | 10 | 2 |
| San Diego, CA | $85,000 | +21.4% | 33 | 16 |
| Midland, MI | $83,268 | +19% | 31 | 7 |
| Boise, ID | $80,205 | +14.6% | 11 | 7 |
Salary by State
| State | Median | vs National | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Hampshire | $98,131 | -28% | 7 |
| Vermont | $90,000 | N/A | 2 |
| Minnesota | $87,828 | -23% | 42 |
| Indiana | $87,650 | -7.6% | 38 |
| Nebraska | $87,575 | N/A | 70 |
| New Mexico | $85,700 | N/A | 38 |
| Rhode Island | $85,500 | N/A | 4 |
| Delaware | $85,000 | -13.3% | 74 |
| Massachusetts | $85,000 | -28.1% | 285 |
| California | $85,000 | -35.4% | 708 |
| Oklahoma | $84,580 | -27% | 16 |
| Wyoming | $82,000 | N/A | 1 |
| Idaho | $81,103 | N/A | 38 |
| Oregon | $80,155 | -22.9% | 33 |
| West Virginia | $80,000 | N/A | 13 |
| Hawaii | $80,000 | N/A | 7 |
| Wisconsin | $80,000 | -33.6% | 41 |
| Michigan | $80,000 | -14.3% | 134 |
| New Jersey | $75,000 | -9.8% | 85 |
| Ohio | $72,000 | -29.4% | 205 |
| Connecticut | $70,000 | N/A | 63 |
| Tennessee | $68,341 | N/A | 277 |
| Arizona | $68,200 | N/A | 35 |
| Georgia | $68,071 | -16.4% | 84 |
| Virginia | $68,000 | -42.8% | 37 |
| District of Columbia | $68,000 | N/A | 7 |
| Pennsylvania | $66,750 | -35.2% | 120 |
| Texas | $66,000 | -18.1% | 297 |
| Arkansas | $65,587 | N/A | 14 |
| Maryland | $65,000 | -38.9% | 91 |
| Florida | $64,127 | -47.8% | 52 |
| New York | $63,940 | -49.1% | 420 |
| Kentucky | $63,365 | N/A | 23 |
| Nevada | $63,200 | -26.5% | 3 |
| Washington | $61,173 | -44.6% | 133 |
| Missouri | $60,004 | N/A | 40 |
| South Dakota | $58,531 | N/A | 3 |
| North Carolina | $58,500 | -38.3% | 76 |
| Maine | $58,240 | -30.1% | 1 |
| Louisiana | $58,170 | N/A | 31 |
| Illinois | $57,500 | -52.2% | 253 |
| Alabama | $56,000 | N/A | 27 |
| Colorado | $54,873 | -56.8% | 76 |
| Mississippi | $54,170 | N/A | 22 |
| North Dakota | $52,018 | N/A | 6 |
| South Carolina | $51,208 | -41.8% | 28 |
| Utah | $48,500 | -59.2% | 33 |
| Iowa | $48,447 | -49.5% | 78 |
| Kansas | $42,286 | -56.9% | 15 |
Salary Trend - DOL Data
Education Requirements
From PERM filingsFor Materials Scientists positions, 29% of PERM filings required a Bachelor's degree, 41% required a Master's degree, and 0% required no formal degree.
Education by Top Employer
Most common minimum education from PERM filings| Employer | Most Common Education | Median Salary |
|---|---|---|
| UT-BATTELLE, LLC (OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY) | Not specified | $70,008 |
| Brookhaven National Laboratory | Not specified | $65,000 |
| Northwestern University | Not specified | $49,000 |
| Saint-Gobain Ceramics & Plastics, Inc. | Master's | $86,750 |
| Iowa State University of Science and Technology | Not specified | $49,024 |
| Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory | Doctorate | $56,688 |
| The Dow Chemical Company | Doctorate | $90,524 |
| University of Maryland College Park | Not specified | $57,715 |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Not specified | $60,000 |
| UChicago Argonne LLC | Not specified | $69,508 |
Salary by Industry
Same occupation, different industries (NAICS)The highest-paying industry for Materials Scientists is Mining, Quarrying, Oil and Gas at $93,126. The lowest-paying industry with significant hiring is Educational Services at $53,908.
Frequently Asked Questions
Based on 6,018 DOL filings, the median salary for a Materials Scientists is $70,000, ranging from $52,600 to $89,523.
The 90th percentile salary is $168,500 according to BLS data.
Based on DOL filings, Redwood City, CA offers the highest median at $113,889.
DOL filing data covers positions where the employer filed for PERM green card sponsorship or an H-1B visa. These filings represent a subset of all Materials Scientists positions. We compare this data against BLS OEWS data which covers all workers in this occupation.
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