Also called: Investigative Reporter
Spends months uncovering hidden wrongdoing through documents, data, and sources.
An investigative reporter files public records requests, builds spreadsheets of court data, and meets nervous whistleblowers. A single story can take a year and change laws.
Approximate; nonprofit newsrooms like ProPublica and big papers pay best.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Journalism degree plus years of reporting.
Ways in: 4-year college, On-the-job training. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Journalism, Political Science, Data Science.
Shrinking (about -4% over 10 years). BLS projects a 4% decline (2024-34) as newspapers shrink, though digital outlets add some jobs.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI speeds document and data analysis, but building sources and proving hidden wrongdoing stays human.
Classes: Journalism, AP Government, AP Statistics, English.
Official data: O*NET occupation 27-3023.
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.