Microbiology federal employee pay and staffing
This page shows how large the Microbiology series is across government, what the average pay looks like, and which agencies employ the biggest share of people in this occupation.
March 2025 workforce snapshot. The Microbiology occupation series had 1,940 employees with an average salary of $140,441.
1,940 employees in this occupation series
$140,441 average pay
Biological Sciences Group occupation family
Food and Drug Administration largest agency for this occupation
What this page helps you check
Use this page when you want to see where a federal occupation is concentrated, which agencies employ the most people in it, and what the average pay looks like across government.
Occupation family
Microbiology is reported under the Biological Sciences Group family in the latest OPM summary.
Agencies that employ the most Microbiology staff
These are the agencies with the biggest reported headcount in this occupation series.
| Agency | Department | Employees | Total salary expense | Average pay | Share of occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Food and Drug Administration | Department of Health and Human Services | 474 | $70,045,529 | $147,775 | 24.4% |
| Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | Department of Health and Human Services | 402 | $51,639,471 | $128,456 | 20.7% |
| Agricultural Research Service | Department of Agriculture | 239 | $31,151,801 | $130,342 | 12.3% |
| National Institutes of Health | Department of Health and Human Services | 158 | $28,046,984 | $177,513 | 8.1% |
| Food Safety and Inspection Service | Department of Agriculture | 92 | $11,294,201 | $122,763 | 4.7% |
| Defense Health Agency | Department of Defense | 84 | $13,032,902 | $155,154 | 4.3% |
| Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service | Department of Agriculture | 50 | $5,251,476 | $105,030 | 2.6% |
| Environmental Protection Agency | Independent or mixed | 23 | $3,354,067 | $145,829 | 1.2% |
| United States Army Futures Command | Department of Defense | 17 | $2,176,561 | $128,033 | 0.9% |
| Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences | Department of Defense | 14 | $2,500,624 | $178,616 | 0.7% |
| Defense Threat Reduction Agency | Department of Defense | 11 | $1,784,123 | $162,193 | 0.6% |
| Veterans Health Administration | Department of Veterans Affairs | 11 | $1,461,416 | $132,856 | 0.6% |
Common pay plans for Microbiology
This shows the pay plans most commonly attached to this occupation series in the latest OPM summary.
| Pay plan | Employees | Average pay | Share of occupation |
|---|---|---|---|
| GS | 1,205 | $134,340 | 62.1% |
| RG | 169 | $140,662 | 8.7% |
| DB | 101 | $150,589 | 5.2% |
| RF | 45 | $227,441 | 2.3% |
| AD | 43 | $177,284 | 2.2% |
| RS | 12 | $251,664 | 0.6% |
Occupation totals come from the latest OPM FedScope Employment Summary Data (March 2025).