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Economist

Economist profiles score highest on Analyzing and Exploring. This page covers what the work involves, what the trait profile looks like, what it pays, and where the fit tends to break.

Score your fit for this role See the trait profile

Median pay: $124,720per year, U.S. BLS 2025
Entry education: Graduate or professional degreetypical for the occupation

SOURCE · O*NET 19-3011.00 and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Figures are national and vary widely by state and setting.

What the work involves

Conduct research, prepare reports, or formulate plans to address economic problems related to the production and distribution of goods and services or monetary and fiscal policy. May collect and process economic and statistical data using sampling techniques and econometric methods.

Skills rated most important

Critical Thinking78

Mathematics78

Reading Comprehension78

Active Listening75

Judgment and Decision Making75

Work context

Spend Time Sitting93

Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams86

Indoors, Environmentally Controlled81

Contact With Others63

Spend Time Standing23

Spend Time Walking or Running8

Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled2

Spend Time Bending or Twisting Your Body1

Spend Time Climbing Ladders, Scaffolds, or Poles0

Spend Time Keeping or Regaining Balance0

Spend Time Kneeling, Crouching, Stooping, or Crawling0

O*NET importance and frequency ratings, 0–100.

The trait profile

Where Economist profiles sit on the eleven Haliscope traits, derived from O*NET’s published interest and work-style data.

Analyzing98

Exploring80

Organizing59

Persevering55

Safety-Seeking50

Influencing49

Law-Abiding45

Creating25

Helping24

Harmonizing20

Operating8

Who it fits, and who it doesn’t

Strong signals

High Analyzing. Measures your drive to understand systems and solve problems. High scorers are knowledge-seeking, strategic thinkers who enjoy investigating and finding solutions.
High Organizing. Measures your preference for structure, detail, and systematic processes. High scorers excel at creating order, optimizing workflows, and maintaining precision.
High Exploring. Measures your openness to new experiences and curiosity about the unknown. High scorers seek novelty, enjoy experimentation, and value the journey itself.
High Persevering. Measures your persistence and resilience in the face of challenges. High scorers push through obstacles, maintain long-term focus, and value grit as both means and end.
High Law-Abiding. Measures your commitment to ethics, rules, and fairness. High scorers value honesty, follow procedures, and prefer environments with clear moral guidelines.
Moderate Creating. Measures your inclination toward original thinking and artistic expression. High scorers generate innovative ideas and find rigid structure limiting.

Friction points

Low Analyzing. Measures your drive to understand systems and solve problems. High scorers are knowledge-seeking, strategic thinkers who enjoy investigating and finding solutions.
Low Organizing. Measures your preference for structure, detail, and systematic processes. High scorers excel at creating order, optimizing workflows, and maintaining precision.
Low Exploring. Measures your openness to new experiences and curiosity about the unknown. High scorers seek novelty, enjoy experimentation, and value the journey itself.
Low Persevering. Measures your persistence and resilience in the face of challenges. High scorers push through obstacles, maintain long-term focus, and value grit as both means and end.
Low Law-Abiding. Measures your commitment to ethics, rules, and fairness. High scorers value honesty, follow procedures, and prefer environments with clear moral guidelines.

These are what the occupation’s profile says, not a hiring criterion. Haliscope is not validated for hiring or screening, and none of these is disqualifying — they are where a fit most often breaks.

Getting in

Entry education: Graduate or professional degree.

Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.

O*NET Job Zone descriptions, U.S. Department of Labor.

Exposure to AI

How much of this work AI can already do, and how much AI tools help the people doing it, is scored task by task in the AI Risk Index.

Will AI replace Economist?

Is this profile yours?

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