Salary and Outlook
According to the US Department of Labor, there are 33,500 people employed as computer and information research scientists in
the United States.
The median annual salary is $131,490.
Entry level employees earn approximately $74,210 per year and senior employees earn approximately $208,000
(or more)
per year.
Estimates do not include other potential benefits such as health insurance, overtime, or retirement benefits that may be offered by employers.
Job Duties
- Conduct logical analyses of business, scientific, engineering, and other technical problems, formulating mathematical models of problems for solution by computers.
- Evaluate project plans and proposals to assess feasibility issues.
- Participate in multidisciplinary projects in areas such as virtual reality, human-computer interaction, or robotics.
- Consult with users, management, vendors, and technicians to determine computing needs and system requirements.
- Develop and interpret organizational goals, policies, and procedures.
- Develop performance standards, and evaluate work in light of established standards.
- Maintain network hardware and software, direct network security measures, and monitor networks to ensure availability to system users.
- Direct daily operations of departments, coordinating project activities with other departments.
- Participate in staffing decisions and direct training of subordinates.
- Approve, prepare, monitor, and adjust operational budgets.
- Analyze problems to develop solutions involving computer hardware and software.
- Apply theoretical expertise and innovation to create or apply new technology, such as adapting principles for applying computers to new uses.
- Assign or schedule tasks to meet work priorities and goals.
- Meet with managers, vendors, and others to solicit cooperation and resolve problems.
- Design computers and the software that runs them.