Career Profile: Economists

Salary and Outlook

According to the US Department of Labor, there are 16,900 people employed as economists in the United States. The median annual salary is $105,630. Entry level employees earn approximately $62,460 per year and senior employees earn approximately $193,690 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

• Study the socioeconomic impacts of new public policies, such as proposed legislation, taxes, services, and regulations.
• Formulate recommendations, policies, or plans to solve economic problems or to interpret markets.
• Explain economic impact of policies to the public.
• Provide advice and consultation on economic relationships to businesses, public and private agencies, and other employers.
• Forecast production and consumption of renewable resources and supply, consumption, and depletion of non-renewable resources.
• Develop economic guidelines and standards, and prepare points of view used in forecasting trends and formulating economic policy.
• Testify at regulatory or legislative hearings concerning the estimated effects of changes in legislation or public policy, and present recommendations based on cost-benefit analyses.
• Provide litigation support, such as writing reports for expert testimony or testifying as an expert witness.
• Study economic and statistical data in area of specialization, such as finance, labor, or agriculture.
• Conduct research on economic issues, and disseminate research findings through technical reports or scientific articles in journals.
• Compile, analyze, and report data to explain economic phenomena and forecast market trends, applying mathematical models and statistical techniques.
• Supervise research projects and students' study projects.
• Teach theories, principles, and methods of economics.

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