Data scientist represents the "hottest job" in the U.S., according to an analysis published in Bloomberg May 18.
Job postings for data scientists rose 75 percent on Indeed.com since 2015. Job searches for data scientist roles have also increased, rising 65 percent during the past three years. Major companies also offer additional benefits and have streamlined the hiring processes to attract data scientists to their firms.
Equifax, for example, shortened its hiring process to avoid having candidates be potentially recruited from other firms. One data science applicant, who was interviewed by Equifax on a Friday, received an offer by the following Monday, according to Bloomberg.
"The word on the street is there's definitely a shortage of people who can do data science," Daniel Gutierrez, managing editor of the journal insideBIGDATA, told Bloomberg. "A lot of people are transitioning from other fields like economics, psychology, mathematics, because they see the field is exploding and there's money to be made."
In part because of the low supply of trained data science professionals, these positions tend to bring in a high salary — the typical data scientist is paid an estimated $119,000 per year. Employees with data science PhDs can expect even higher salaries, often as high as $300,000, if they accept a position at a consulting firm, Bloomberg reports.
To access Bloomberg's article, click here.