Operations Research

What the Numbers Say About Operations Research

0.3% of the federal civilian workforce (2,289,472 employees total, March 2025) works in the Operations Research occupation (OPM code 1515): 5,862 people, headcount down -0.1% 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.

Average tenure in Operations Research runs 11.8 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career. Pay averages $140,821 per year, 28.2% above the $109,869 federal civilian average and up 2.2% from the prior period, a broad shift as locality pay tables and grade-level adjustments moved through the workforce.

The Mathematics and Statistics Group family (code 15) groups Operations Research together with 9 other related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Operations Research 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 Mathematics and Statistics Group family, Operations Research is one of the top 10 occupations by headcount (#2), accounting for 22.1% of the family's combined 26,507 employees. Its average salary ranks in the top half (60th percentile) of pay among Mathematics and Statistics Group occupations.