Also called: Sensory Analyst, Consumer Sensory Researcher
Studies how people taste, smell, and feel products to make them better.
You run a taste test of six chocolate chip cookies with trained panelists, analyze which crunch level people prefer, and help food scientists adjust the recipe.
Estimate.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Master's degree, about 6 years after high school. Bachelor's in food science or psychology; master's common.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Food Science, Psychology, Nutrition.
Growing about average. Steady in food, beverage, and cosmetics.
Low risk for 10 years. AI helps predict flavor chemistry, but human taste and smell panels remain the instrument; demand holds steady.
Classes: Chemistry, Biology, AP Statistics, Culinary arts or FCS class.
Official data: O*NET occupation 19-1012.
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.