Biological Science Technician

What the Numbers Say About Biological Science Technician

Federal agencies employ 5,597 people in the Biological Science Technician occupation (OPM code 404), accounting for 0.2% of the total federal civilian workforce of 2,289,472 for the March 2025 reporting window. Headcount in this occupation moved down by -22.4% versus the prior period, a useful gauge for job seekers on USAJOBS trying to assess whether this role is expanding government-wide or contracting under hiring freezes and attrition.

The average salary for Biological Science Technician is $55,254 per year, placing it 49.7% below the overall federal civilian average of $109,869. Salaries moved up by 3.9% from the prior period, a broad shift as locality pay tables and grade-level adjustments moved through the workforce. Average length of service in this role is 8.6 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.

Biological Science Technician sits inside the Biological Sciences Group family (code 4), which contains 31 related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Biological Science Technician postings should also review these sibling occupations, since federal hiring managers often cross-post positions across closely related codes when recruitment is difficult. All figures here come directly from OPM FedScope Employment Cubes, the same official source referenced in federal workforce planning, budget justifications, and GAO reports.

Within the Biological Sciences Group family, Biological Science Technician is one of the top 31 occupations by headcount (#3), accounting for 8.0% of the family's combined 69,668 employees. Its average salary ranks in the bottom half (16th percentile) of pay among Biological Sciences Group occupations.