Management occupations · SOC 11-9121 · Illinois

Natural sciences managers in Illinois

Natural sciences managers in Illinois earned a median of $159,670 a year in May 2025, below the $167,220 national median for the occupation. Illinois employs 2,810 of them, 0.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the state. Most people entering the occupation nationally do so with a bachelor's degree.

Data snapshot: August 21, 2026

Median annual pay in Illinois

$159,670

Below the $167,220 national median for this occupation

Median hourly pay in Illinois

$76.77

Published separately by BLS, not calculated from the annual figure.

Middle half earn between

$115,190 – $208,440

The 25th to 75th percentile of everyone in the occupation in this state

Employed in Illinois

2,810

0.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the state

Concentration vs national

0.66×

less concentrated here than nationally

Pay rank

#8 of 48

Among the states and DC that released an estimate for this occupation

Typical entry education (U.S.)

Bachelor's degree

What natural sciences managers actually earn in Illinois

The full published wage distribution, not one averaged figure. Pay inside a single occupation varies more by experience, employer and setting than most salary pages admit.

10th percentile
$85,210
25th percentile
$115,190
Median
$159,670
75th percentile
$208,440
90th percentile
$281,660

How Illinois compares

  • Against the rest of the country. $159,670 in Illinois against $167,220 nationally for the same occupation, which puts Illinois 8th of the 48 jurisdictions that released an estimate. Neither figure is adjusted for cost of living, so a higher median does not by itself mean more money left over.
  • Against other work in Illinois. $159,670 against $51,960, the median across every occupation in the state — 207% above it.
  • How much of this work is here. The occupation is less concentrated here than nationally (0.66× the national share of employment), 26th of 48 for concentration. Concentration describes where the work is, not how easy it is to be hired.

Where natural sciences managers are paid most

The highest published medians for this occupation. Before reading it as a place to move, note that these are not cost-of-living adjusted and that the states paying most are often the ones where everything costs most.

How people get into this work

What the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports as typical for entry nationally. Typical is a measurement of the people already doing the work, not a rule: some enter with less and some with more.

Typical entry education

Bachelor's degree

Work experience needed

5 years or more

On-the-job training

None

Illinois licensing is not in these figures.

Many occupations, including most of health care, teaching, law, accountancy and the skilled trades, require a state licence, certification or registration before you can work. Illinois sets its own, and none of it is part of the federal dataset above, so CampusPin cannot tell you whether this occupation is licensed here. Check the Illinois licensing board before committing to a route, because where an occupation is licensed that requirement, not the typical credential, is the real gate.

What people study to get here, and where in Illinois

Fields the federal CIP-to-SOC crosswalk associates with this occupation, ordered by how many credentials U.S. colleges conferred in each — a measure of how many people take a route, never of how good it is. Studying any of these does not lead only here, and this occupation is entered from other fields too.

Biology88,302 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

46 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24see which ones, and what they cost.

Mathematics25,320 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

46 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24see which ones, and what they cost.

Chemistry19,189 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

42 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Physics12,782 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

31 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Neuroscience11,504 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

14 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24see which ones, and what they cost.

Applied Mathematics10,979 credentials conferred nationally, mostly graduate degrees

12 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24see which ones, and what they cost.

Biochemistry9,674 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

24 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24see which ones, and what they cost.

Statistics9,597 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

10 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24see which ones, and what they cost.

Data Science7,707 credentials conferred nationally, mostly graduate degrees

9 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Geology5,691 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

10 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24see which ones, and what they cost.

Biotechnology3,750 credentials conferred nationally, mostly graduate degrees

5 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24see which ones, and what they cost.

Microbiology2,351 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

3 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Marine Biology2,329 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees
Zoology1,913 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

2 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Biostatistics1,538 credentials conferred nationally, mostly graduate degrees

2 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Meteorology1,341 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

4 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Molecular Biology1,232 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees
Astronomy875 credentials conferred nationally, mostly bachelor's degrees

3 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Botany763 credentials conferred nationally, mostly graduate degrees

3 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Oceanography569 credentials conferred nationally, mostly graduate degrees
Pharmacology481 credentials conferred nationally, mostly graduate degrees

3 colleges in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Geophysics197 credentials conferred nationally, mostly graduate degrees

1 college in Illinois reported awarding credentials in this field in 2023-24.

Toxicology150 credentials conferred nationally, mostly graduate degrees

This lists colleges that reported conferring credentials in this field to the federal IPEDS completions collection, in both 2022-23 and 2023-24. It does not confirm that any of them is currently admitting students to the program, and a college can appear here after deciding to close it. Confirm with the institution before it affects where you apply.

Colleges in Illinois

Pay is one half of the decision. What it costs to get qualified is the other, and it is the half that varies most between two colleges in the same state.

Source & methodology

State wage and employment figures are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 release. National median pay, projections and typical entry education are from the BLS Employment Projections programme (2024 wages). Both are public domain; credit BLS.

Wages are May 2025 estimates from the federal Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, which asks employers what they pay everyone currently working in the occupation — experienced and new alike. They are not starting salaries, not the earnings of recent graduates, and not adjusted for cost of living, which matters when comparing one state against another. Self-employed workers are not surveyed.

Suggested citation

CampusPin. (2026). Natural sciences managers in Illinois, pay and employment. Retrieved from https://campuspin.com/careers/natural-sciences-managers/in/illinois

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