Naval Architecture

What the Numbers Say About Naval Architecture

As of the March 2025 reporting window, 928 people work in the Naval Architecture occupation (OPM code 871) across federal agencies, 0.0% of the 2,289,472-strong federal civilian workforce. Headcount moved down by -1.7% from the prior period, a modest but trackable signal for anyone considering this specialized federal career path.

Naval Architecture pays $132,030 per year on average, 20.2% above the $109,869 federal civilian average, after moving up 2.7% from the prior period (a broad shift as locality pay tables and grade-level adjustments moved through the workforce). Employees in this role stay an average of 12.1 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.

The Engineering and Architecture Group family (code 8) groups Naval Architecture together with 28 other related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Naval Architecture 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.

Naval Architecture makes up 0.7% of the 142,526 employees across the Engineering and Architecture Group family, ranking #20 of 29 occupations in that family by headcount. Its average salary ranks in the top half (59th percentile) of pay among Engineering and Architecture Group occupations.