Also called: Registration Specialist (U.S. Copyright Office)
Works at the U.S. Copyright Office in the Library of Congress reviewing claims to copyright for books, songs, software, art, and films.
A copyright examiner might review a video game, a song, and a sculpture in one day, deciding whether each contains enough original creativity to register and writing to applicants about problems. Lately they're also wrestling with AI-generated works.
Federal GS pay in Washington, D.C. Estimate.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's degree; many have a law degree or library science background.
Ways in: 4-year college, Professional school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: English, Music, Art History, Library Science.
Growing about average. Small, stable federal office.
Medium risk in 5 years, high in 10. AI can pre-screen claims and flag problems; deciding what counts as human creativity, especially vs AI-made work, stays human.
Classes: AP English Literature, Art or music, Computer science, AP U.S. Government.
Official data: O*NET occupation 23-2099.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.