Series 1310

Physics

Physicists who research and apply physics, such as optics, acoustics, electronics, and nuclear physics, often in defense research labs. Most jobs are with the Navy.

Plain-language description based on the OPM series definition.

1300 Physical Sciences Group · General Schedule

See open 1310 jobs on USAJOBS Compare with another series Back to Series Directory

At a glance

Job postings, last 12 months: 207
Open now: 13
Trend (last 3 months vs. 3 before): Falling (-14%)
Demand score: 73/100
Remote opportunity score: 62/100
Veteran opportunity score: 99/100

What these scores mean

Grades and pay

Typical grades

DP-4 to DP-5

Most common promotion potential: DP-5

DP pay plan, used by 22% of this series' postings.

Typical posted salary range

$124,085 to $192,331 per year

Median of the yearly salary ranges in posted announcements.

Who can apply

Share of job postings in the last 12 months, by who the announcement was open to.

Open to the public: 49%
Federal employees and other special groups only: 51%
Listed a veterans hiring path: 50%
Telework eligible (open now): 62%
Fully remote (open now): 0%

Who is hiring and where

Top hiring departments

Department of the Navy (132)
Department of Commerce (31)
Department of the Air Force (15)
Department of the Army (12)
Department of Defense (7)

Top states

Maryland (66)
California (36)
District of Columbia (27)
Colorado (18)
Virginia (15)

Hiring patterns

Based on job announcements since Mar 2017. How patterns are calculated

When this series usually posts jobs

Postings usually peak in August and are lowest in December.

Typical postings for series 1310 by calendar month, compared with an average month
Month	Compared with an average month
January	9% below average
February	About average
March	About average
April	About average
May	About average
June	About average
July	7% above average
August	16% above average
September	About average
October	About average
November	8% below average
December	14% below average

Postings by fiscal year

The federal fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30. Fiscal years 2025 and 2026 include the government-wide hiring freeze that began in January 2025.

Job announcements for series 1310 by fiscal year
Fiscal year	Postings
FY 2018	315
FY 2019	349
FY 2020	382
FY 2021	429
FY 2022	462
FY 2023	544
FY 2024	488
FY 2025	205
FY 2026	185

Postings by month, last 12 months

Job announcements for series 1310 opened each month
Month	Postings
Dec 2025	7
Jan 2026	7
Feb 2026	12
Mar 2026	15
Apr 2026	19
May 2026	25
Jun 2026	18
Jul 2026	29
Aug 2026	30
Sep 2026	16
Oct 2026	16
Nov 2026 (month to date)	13

1301 General Physical Science 1,161 postings in 12 months
1320 Chemistry 270 postings in 12 months
1350 Geology 166 postings in 12 months
1311 Physical Science Technician 126 postings in 12 months
1306 Health Physics 114 postings in 12 months

About this data

Job numbers come from the USAJOBS API: 244,223 job announcements opened from December 1, 2025 to November 15, 2026, plus 12,260 announcements open on November 15, 2026. Canceled announcements are not counted. Series descriptions summarize the OPM Handbook of Occupational Groups and Families.

These figures describe posted job announcements, not hiring outcomes. Always read the official announcement and its qualification requirements before applying. How the scores are calculated.