Data Is Money: 16 Highest Paying Jobs in Data Science

Data scientists are one of the top three positions on Glassdoor’s list of the 50 Best Jobs in America for 2021, indicating that this field is popular and influential. However, before you decide to pursue a graduate degree in data science—investing your time, effort, and money into the program—there are a few questions you should have in mind: What professions will you qualify for with this degree? What is the job outlook in the field? And lastly, will it all be worth the investment? Choosing a career with promising job growth and satisfactory salaries is essential to ensuring that your efforts will lead to a fair return on investment.

To put all this into perspective, let’s see what data science jobs you can qualify for with such a degree and the average salaries for those positions.

What Is a Data Science Degree?

A data science degree is a program that equips students with the necessary knowledge to tackle data sets and derive meaningful information from them. This degree enables graduates to use the skills developed through its courses—such as computer programming, applied and pure mathematics, database systems, data security, and software development—to solve data-related problems, find unseen patterns, build predictive models, and make data-driven business decisions and recommendations.

Data Science Job Outlook

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the future of data science jobs is bright. Its reports predict that the number of data scientist jobs is expected to grow 19% over the next two decades, almost three times faster than the average growth rate for other jobs. Furthermore, we can expect a 27.9% increase in demand for data science skills in the workplace in the next decade, so what you learn while pursuing a data science degree will come in handy in various workplaces.

Highest Paying Jobs in Data Science

More companies are starting to work closely with data; thus the field of data science keeps growing, and new roles dealing with specific parts of data science are added. If you are wondering which entry-level data science jobs you should consider seeking, below you can read about some common job titles in data science that are worth pursuing, especially considering the salaries they offer.

1. Database manager

Database managers are responsible for managing the storage and organization of a company’s information in a system. A big part of this job involves keeping up with current database design and application developments to ensure they can successfully build and protect database systems.

Salary

The average salary for a database manager in the United States is reported to be $75,550 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $45,497 per year, whereas the highest reaches $125,453 per year.

2. Data analyst

Data analysts are responsible for helping to develop and maintain collection systems and databases. They must work on gathering data, organizing, and processing it until it is understood by the professionals of other fields who have to work with the accumulated information.

Salary

The average salary for a data analyst in the United States is reported to be $69,517 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $45,597 per year, whereas the highest reaches $105,986 per year.

3. Data warehouse manager

Data warehouse managers lead the group of workers responsible for the design and maintenance of the data warehouse systems that enable and support business intelligence activities. These professionals also oversee the process of creating database architecture.

Salary

The average salary for a data warehouse manager in the United States is reported to be $128,373 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $91,004 per year, whereas the highest reaches $181,088 per year.

4. Database developer

Database developers are responsible for creating, directing, and testing computer database programs to ensure they are efficient and can safely process large amounts of information. They also help decide what database management system best suits the client’s needs.

Salary

The average salary in the United States is reported to be $91,748 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $67,173 per year, whereas the highest reaches $125,313 per year.

5. Business intelligence analyst

Business intelligence analysts use data to help businesses make safe and reliable business decisions by collecting, cleaning, analyzing, and interpreting data to find patterns that signal an area where companies can improve themselves.

Salary

The average salary for a business intelligence analyst in the United States is reported to be $85,690 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $60,937 per year, whereas the highest reaches $120,498 per year.

6. Database administrator

Database administrators are primarily responsible for classifying and storing the company’s data. Then they also work towards securing the databases, merging them if needed, and helping restore any information that is lost through cyberattacks and hacks or incidents.

Salary

The average salary for a database administrator in the United States is reported to be $83,700 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $59,733 per year, whereas the highest reaches $117,284 per year.

7. Statistician

Statisticians help analyze and interpret numerical data precisely, and this way, they work to do more informed planning within the company and aid in decision-making with the collected information. These professionals also apply statistical and analytical techniques to the data they work with to identify trends.

Salary

The average salary for a statistician in the United States is reported to be $88,989 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $60,589 per year, whereas the highest reaches $130,702 per year.

8. Business intelligence developer

Business intelligence developers, through reporting systems, help companies access valuable information. They also examine records, analyses, and data visualizations provided from warehouse data to aid in solving company problems and in decision-making.

Salary

The average salary for a business intelligence developer in the United States is reported to be $94,743 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $68,553 per year, whereas the highest reaches $130,937 per year.

9. Infrastructure engineer

Infrastructure engineers work with digital networks, databanks, and virtual platforms to help provide insight for various situations within the company. These professionals are also responsible for the maintenance of networks and documents and for generating repair plans in case of any malfunction.

Salary

The average salary for an infrastructure engineer in the United States is reported to be $101,089 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $66,335 per year, whereas the highest reaches $154,051 per year.

10. Data scientist

Data scientists are professionals responsible for implementing the insight collected from data to find relevant patterns. As a data scientist, your responsibilities would include applying the knowledge gathered from data to the company’s systems to help identify any vulnerabilities or repetitive models that could benefit the company.

Salary

The average salary for a data scientist in the United States is reported to be $117,212 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $82,339 per year, whereas the highest reaches $166,855 per year.

11. Data modeler

Data modelers are responsible for planning, applying, and maintaining data models that measure how an organization manages data flow in a database management system. They are also responsible for creating data modeling solutions, including the application of relational, dimensional, and NoSQL databases.

Salary

The average salary for a data modeler in the United States is reported to be $94,142 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $68,643 per year, whereas the highest reaches $129,113 per year.

12. Big data engineer

Big data engineers are responsible for multiple tasks, such as designing algorithms and predictive models, building datasets for data mining, and improving data quality, reliability, and efficiency. They have to sort through and work with unorganized sets of data from numerous sources and in various formats.

Salary

The average salary for a big data engineer in the United States is reported to be $104,463 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $75,078 per year, whereas the highest reaches $145,351 per year.

13. Data architect

Data architects are responsible for evaluating a company’s data sources and then creating plans for data management systems, finding ways to make the most meaningful information available for workers, and maintaining them. They also help present visually the data management framework and transition company requirements into databases and warehouses.

Salary

The average salary for a data architect in the United States is reported to be $118,868 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $83,368 per year, whereas the highest reaches $169,484 per year.

14. Enterprise architect

Enterprise architects are responsible for supervising, maintaining, and upgrading IT networks and services, the software, and hardware. They help businesses manage their current enterprise architecture, create visualization representations of data and other assets, and implement the overall architecture models to perform all business-related activities.

Salary

The average salary for an enterprise architect in the United States is reported to be $150,782 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $108,652 per year, whereas the highest reaches $209,250 per year.

15. Machine learning engineer

Machine learning engineers are responsible for designing software to automate predictive models. They link the information from data and artificial intelligence systems to produce programs capable of functioning without direct human assistance.

Salary

The average salary for a machine learning engineer in the United States is reported to be $131,001 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $87,952 per year, whereas the highest reaches $195,120 per year.

16. Machine learning scientist

Machine learning scientists work to help design and maintain machine learning models and algorithms that will better understand software problems and help provide solutions to those problems. They have to select appropriate data representation methods and identify the factors that affect the machine learning model’s performance.

Salary

The average salary for a machine learning scientist in the United States is reported to be $137,053 per year. The lowest recorded salary for this profession is $96,960 per year, whereas the highest reaches $193,725 per year.

Data science as a field keeps growing, and so do the jobs introduced above. Nowadays, due to the pandemic, you can also find remote data science jobs and earn the sums we mentioned from the comfort of your home. Of course, salary should never be the only factor you consider when choosing your career path. Yet, you must consider your worth as an employee and ensure that the value of your work is well compensated no matter where you end up.