Want to be a Data Scientist in the US? Here’s what you need to know
2 min read
After years of limiting the amount of overseas talent available for banks’ technology and data science jobs under President Trump, the U.S. government is currently making it more straightforward for financial firms to hire international students under President Biden.
Last week, the Biden government added data science and financial analytics to the list of degrees for which international students on student visas can spend three years after graduating in the U.S. rather than the standard one year for most courses. Known as ‘optional practical training‘, the three-year waiver is now being applied more widely.
Salary figures for H1B visa holders indicate that recently graduated data science and analytics students who work for U.S. banks can expect to earn anything from $85k to $190k, depending upon their role and where they’re based. As we’ve noted previously, some of the highest salaries for technologists in finance are on offer at JPMorgan in California. Salaries are a great deal lower for entry-level quants at Wells Fargo in Charlotte.
Pay for entry level data science and technology jobs in finance
| Bank | Job Title | Salary | Location |
| JPMorgan | Software engineering analyst | $190k | Redwood California |
| JPMorgan | AI research senior associate | $169k | New York |
| JPMorgan | AI research senior associate | $140k | New York |
| JPMorgan | AI developer | $130k | New York |
| Bank of America | AVP software engineer I | $123k | New York |
| Bank of America | AVP data scientist II | $118k | Charlotte |
| JPMorgan | Associate software engineer | $115k | Jersey City |
| Bank of America | AVP quant finance analyst | $105k | Charlotte |
| JPMorgan | Quant research analyst | $95k | New York |
| Citi | Quant analyst | $95k | New York |
| Wells Fargo | Quant analyst | $85k | Charlotte |
| Citi | Business analytics intermediate analyst | $81k | New York |
As 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are being created each day, each business requires a certified and skilled professional to organize and maintain the information as well as analyze it to offer robust business solutions. The Harvard Business Review has figured data scientists as the sexiest job in the 21st century as they help significant level decision-making by identifying trends and devising solid strategies.
[USCIS to accept H-1B Cap registrations for FY 2023 on March 1, 2022]
Furthermore, data scientist jobs are also viewed as the most sought job roles in the United States by Glassdoor for four consecutive years. The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics has announced that by 2026, the demand for talented and educated data scientists will help lead to a 27.9% rise in employment. However, this enormous demand has also brought forward a significant shortage of qualified professionals.
Also now, educational institutions have approached to mitigate the shortage by revamping existing data science programs or creating new ones, with an industry-linked curriculum. This has led to a rise of data science programs to 50 by September 2020 from 13 in 2014 in the US.
