Also called: At-Sea Observer
Rides on commercial fishing boats for weeks to record what's caught, making sure fishing rules are followed.
Lives aboard a fishing boat in Alaska, sorting and counting catch on a rolling deck, measuring fish, and logging data by satellite—sometimes for a month straight.
Estimate; pay includes sea-day bonuses.
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 in biology or natural science plus NOAA observer training.
Ways in: 4-year college, On-the-job training. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Biology, Fisheries Science, Marine Biology.
Growing about average (about 3% over 10 years). Estimate.
Medium risk in 5 years, high in 10. Boat cameras with AI catch-counting are replacing human observers on many fleets; fewer seagoing observer jobs.
Classes: Biology, Statistics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 19-4021.
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.