Fact of the Week: Only About One in Five U.S. Scientists and Engineers Work in R&D-Performing Occupations

Scientists and engineers are critical for research and development (R&D) activities. Technological progress would be all but impossible without the highly specialized scientific and technical knowledge these workers apply through R&D. So it might come as a surprise that in the U.S. private sector, most scientists and engineers—just under 80 percent—do not work on R&D.

In fact, most scientists and engineers work in non-R&D roles such as implementing new technologies into current production or service processes. Working in this capacity, these workers use their technical knowledge to enable firms to maximize the effectiveness of technologies, which then translates into productivity gains.