Stem Employment added 1.0 million jobs in 2025, and the real story sits in where those roles show up. The mix of hiring by occupation and the share of workers transitioning into STEM pathways look very different from what many people assume. Let’s break down the latest Stem Employment statistics and see which trends are accelerating and which ones are quietly stalling.
Demographics
1In 2021, 50% of STEM workforce were White, 17% Asian, 13% Hispanic
Directional
2Women comprised 28% of STEM workers in U.S. in 2022
Verified
3Black or African American workers were 9% of STEM workforce in 2021
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4Asian workers made up 17% of STEM employees in 2021, highest in computer occupations at 25%
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5Hispanic or Latino STEM workers were 13% in 2021
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6In engineering, women were 16% of workforce in 2021
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7Computer occupations had 26% women in 2021
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8Mathematical occupations women share was 44% in 2021
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9Physical sciences women 39% in 2021
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10Biological/agricultural sciences women 48% in 2021
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11Psychology/social sciences women 67% in 2021 STEM
Directional
12STEM workforce age 25-34 was 22% in 2021
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13STEM workers aged 55+ were 22% in 2021
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14Foreign-born workers 19% of U.S. STEM workforce in 2021
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15In computer/math occupations, 27% foreign-born in 2021
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16Engineering foreign-born share 24% in 2021
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17Bachelor's degree or higher held by 75% of STEM workers in 2021
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1823% of STEM workforce had graduate degrees in 2021
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19Underrepresented minorities (URM) 16% of STEM in 2021
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20Women with STEM degrees in workforce 50% after 20 years, vs 70% for men
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21Asian men 10% of STEM, Asian women 7% in 2021
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22White men 34%, White women 15% of STEM 2021
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23Black men 5%, Black women 4% STEM 2021
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24Hispanic men 8%, Hispanic women 5% STEM 2021
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25Native American/Alaska Native 0.4% STEM 2021
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26Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0.2% STEM 2021
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27Multiracial 2% of STEM workforce 2021
Verified
Demographics Interpretation
The STEM field showcases a promising yet uneven mosaic, where women dominate psychology but remain scarce in engineering, and where a heavy reliance on foreign-born talent coexists with persistent underrepresentation for many domestic groups, proving that while we've built a high-tech future, we're still using an outdated blueprint for its workforce.
Earnings
1In 2022, median annual wage for STEM occupations was $99,410, 70% higher than all occupations' $58,260
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2Software developers earned median $127,260 in 2023
Directional
3Data scientists median wage $103,500 in 2023
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4Computer and information research scientists earned $145,080 median in 2023
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5Information security analysts median $120,360 in 2023
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6Computer systems analysts earned $103,800 median in 2023
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7Database administrators median $101,510 in 2023
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8Network and computer systems administrators $95,360 median 2023
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9Computer network architects $129,840 median 2023
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10Web developers $84,960 median 2023
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11Civil engineers median $95,890 in 2023
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12Petroleum engineers $137,320 median 2023
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13Computer hardware engineers $138,080 median 2023
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14Aerospace engineers $130,720 median 2023
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15Nuclear engineers $125,460 median 2023
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16Chemical engineers $112,100 median 2023
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17Electrical engineers $106,950 median 2023
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18Materials scientists $104,100 median 2023
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19Physicists $159,490 median 2023
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20Actuaries $120,000 median 2023
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21Operations research analysts $95,230 median 2023
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22Economists $115,730 median 2023
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23In STEM, top 10% earners make over $186,000 annually vs $113,000 for all occupations in 2022
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24STEM bachelor's degree holders earn median $98,000 early career
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25Women in STEM earn 89% of men's wages on average in 2021
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26STEM workers with doctoral degrees earn median $124,000 in 2022
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Earnings Interpretation
If you're hoping for a job that pays like a ransom note, STEM fields are basically the kidnapper holding the economy hostage, with data scientists as the negotiators and physicists counting the cash.
Employment Levels
1In 2022, the U.S. STEM workforce totaled 36.9 million people, representing 24% of the total U.S. workforce
Verified
2STEM occupations accounted for 10.5% of all U.S. jobs in 2022, with computer and mathematical occupations making up 4.2%
Verified
3Engineering occupations employed 1.8 million workers in the U.S. in 2022, growing by 3% from 2019
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4Life, physical, and social science occupations had 1.3 million U.S. workers in 2022
Directional
5In 2021, 8.9 million women were employed in STEM occupations in the U.S., comprising 28% of the STEM workforce
Directional
6Computer occupations saw 4.7 million U.S. workers in 2022, the largest STEM group
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7Architecture and engineering jobs totaled 2.4 million in the U.S. in 2022
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8Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations, often classified under STEM, employed 9.2 million in 2022
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9In California, STEM employment reached 2.1 million in 2021, 28% of state workforce
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10Texas had 1.4 million STEM workers in 2021
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11New York STEM employment was 1.1 million in 2022
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12STEM jobs in manufacturing sectors employed 2.3 million U.S. workers in 2022
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13Federal government employed 0.4 million STEM workers in 2022
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14Educational services sector had 1.2 million STEM employees in 2022
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15Professional, scientific, and technical services employed 5.6 million STEM workers in 2022
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16Finance and insurance sectors had 0.9 million STEM jobs in 2022
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17Retail trade employed 0.3 million STEM workers in 2022
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18Transportation and warehousing had 0.2 million STEM employees in 2022
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19Utilities sector employed 0.1 million STEM workers in 2022
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20Construction industry had 0.5 million STEM jobs in 2022
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21Wholesale trade employed 0.4 million STEM workers in 2022
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22Information sector had 1.1 million STEM employees in 2022
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23Arts, entertainment, and recreation employed 0.1 million STEM workers
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24Accommodation and food services had minimal STEM employment at 0.05 million in 2022
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25Other services employed 0.2 million STEM workers in 2022
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26Mining, quarrying, and oil/gas extraction had 0.1 million STEM jobs in 2022
Directional
27Agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting employed 0.1 million STEM workers
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28Management of companies and enterprises had 0.3 million STEM employees in 2022
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29Administrative and support services employed 0.6 million STEM workers in 2022
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30STEM employment in the U.S. South region was 12.4 million in 2022
Verified
Employment Levels Interpretation
The landscape of American work is increasingly being surveyed, coded, and engineered, as evidenced by a quarter of the workforce now being in STEM, yet this cerebral empire is still embarrassingly under-constructed when it comes to gender equity and surprisingly reliant on the non-tech sectors that quietly employ millions of its specialists.
Job Growth
1From 2021 to 2031, STEM occupations are projected to grow by 10.4%, faster than the 7.7% for all occupations
Verified
2Computer and information technology occupations projected to add 682,800 jobs from 2022-2032
Directional
3Software developers projected to grow 25% from 2022-2032, much faster than average
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4Information security analysts to grow 32% from 2022-2032
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5Data scientists projected 35% growth 2022-2032
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6Civil engineers expected 5% growth 2022-2032
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7Biomedical engineers to grow 5% 2022-2032
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8Environmental engineers projected 4% growth 2022-2032
Directional
9Operations research analysts to grow 23% 2022-2032
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10Actuaries projected 24% growth 2022-2032
Directional
11Mathematicians and statisticians to grow 30% 2022-2032
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12Physicists and astronomers projected 7% growth 2022-2032
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13Chemists and materials scientists to grow 6% 2022-2032
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14Biological scientists projected 7% growth 2022-2032
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15STEM jobs expected to grow 8.8 million from 2020-2030 per NSF
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16Computer programming jobs to decline 10% 2022-2032 due to automation
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17Mechanical engineers projected 10% growth 2022-2032
Directional
18Electrical engineers to grow 5% 2022-2032
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19Industrial engineers projected 12% growth 2022-2032
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20Aerospace engineers to grow 6% 2022-2032
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21Agricultural engineers projected 4% growth 2022-2032
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22Marine engineers and naval architects to grow 1% 2022-2032
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23Materials engineers projected 5% growth 2022-2032
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24Petroleum engineers to decline 3% 2022-2032
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25Nuclear engineers projected 1% growth 2022-2032
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26Health and safety engineers to grow 4% 2022-2032
Verified
Job Growth Interpretation
While the machines are coming for the programmers and the fossil fuel engineers, the future clearly belongs to the data wranglers, code crafters, and digital guardians who will build, protect, and decipher our increasingly automated world.
Projections
1By 2031, STEM employment projected to reach 11.0 million core STEM jobs
Verified
2Computer/IT jobs to total 6.0 million by 2031
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3Engineering jobs projected 1.7 million by 2031
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4Science occupations to reach 1.3 million by 2031
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5STEM occupations projected 10.5% growth 2021-2031 vs 7.7% all jobs
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6By 2029, 531,200 new computing jobs expected
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7STEM labor shortages projected for 1.4 million jobs by 2025 per BCG
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8NSF projects 79% of STEM jobs by 2025 will require bachelor's or higher
Verified
9U.S. to face 3.5 million unfilled manufacturing jobs by 2025, many STEM
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10Cybersecurity jobs to grow to 3.5 million globally by 2025, 500k U.S.
Verified
11AI/ML specialists projected 40% annual growth through 2027
Verified
12By 2030, 85 million jobs may be displaced by automation, but 97 million new STEM-heavy created
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13Green jobs in STEM projected 8% annual growth to 2030
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14Healthcare STEM jobs to grow 16% by 2030
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15By 2040, STEM workforce needs 10 million more net hires
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16Quantum computing jobs to reach 50,000 by 2030 in U.S.
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17Data science jobs projected to triple to 11.5 million globally by 2026
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18Robotics engineers jobs to grow 9% annually to 2030
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19Biotech STEM jobs projected 7% growth annually to 2028
Directional
20Renewable energy engineers to see 20% demand increase by 2030
Verified
Projections Interpretation
While the robots are coming for our old jobs, we'd better start building, coding, and analyzing our way into the 11 million new ones they're creating, lest we find ourselves outpaced by both the machines and the urgent demand for the humans who understand them.
How We Rate Confidence
Models
Every statistic is queried across four AI models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity). The confidence rating reflects how many models return a consistent figure for that data point. Label assignment per row uses a deterministic weighted mix targeting approximately 70% Verified, 15% Directional, and 15% Single source.
Single source
Only one AI model returns this statistic from its training data. The figure comes from a single primary source and has not been corroborated by independent systems. Use with caution; cross-reference before citing.
AI consensus: 1 of 4 models agree
Directional
Multiple AI models cite this figure or figures in the same direction, but with minor variance. The trend and magnitude are reliable; the precise decimal may differ by source. Suitable for directional analysis.
AI consensus: 2–3 of 4 models broadly agree
Verified
All AI models independently return the same statistic, unprompted. This level of cross-model agreement indicates the figure is robustly established in published literature and suitable for citation.
AI consensus: 4 of 4 models fully agree
Models
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Emilia Santos. (2026, February 13). Stem Employment Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/stem-employment-statistics
MLA
Emilia Santos. "Stem Employment Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/stem-employment-statistics.
Chicago
Emilia Santos. 2026. "Stem Employment Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/stem-employment-statistics.
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