Economist
Economists build the models and forecasts governments and businesses use to work out what markets and policy are doing and what happens next.
- Median salary
- $148,800
4.1%vs last year, before tax
- People employed
- 4,600
2.2%vs last year
- Projected growth
- +26%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Moderate
- automation risk
- Average hours
- 43/wk
+3h vs all jobs
- Shortage status
- Not in shortage
national
Economists work in treasuries and central banks, in the major banks and consultancies, and in universities, where the analysis is usually tied to a decision about interest rates, a budget or a market. What separates the role from data analysis is the starting point: an economist tends to begin with economic theory and build an argument about cause and effect, rather than working with a dataset someone else has framed. Postgraduate study is common, with about 53% of the workforce holding a qualification at that level.
How much do economists earn?
The median full-time salary for an economist is $148,800 per annum, before tax, up $31,200 since 2018.
Pay depends heavily on the employer: public sector roles follow published classification scales, while banks, consultancies and resources companies pay more for similar analysis. A postgraduate qualification and a few years of specialist experience move it up, and economists who shift into management or commercial strategy earn above the analytical range. Contract and consulting rates can run higher again, though they come without the superannuation and leave loading of a salaried public sector job.
What does an economist do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Building and stress-testing models against each new release of inflation, wages or employment data
- Writing briefing papers that translate technical analysis for non-economist decision-makers
- Estimating the flow-on effects of a tax or interest rate change across industries or regions
- Testing assumptions with colleagues before a forecast goes out the door
- Presenting findings to executives, ministers or clients who will act on them
What skills do economists need?
Employers look for economic modelling, statistical modelling, data analysis, backed by R fluency and strong written communication.
Specialist skills
- Economic modelling
- Statistical modelling
- Data analysis
Software and tools
- R
- Python
- Stata
- Excel
General skills
- Written communication
- Presenting and data storytelling
- Problem solving
Is the job growing?
About 4,600 people work as economists in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 26% over the decade to 2035. That's very strong growth. Few roles in Australia are expanding this fast, and it points to solid demand for years to come.
How do you become an economist?
Here's the path most economists take, step by step.
- 1Start with an economics degree
A Bachelor of Economics, or a commerce degree with an economics major, covers microeconomics, macroeconomics and econometrics, and it is the base every employer expects.
- 2Build the quantitative toolkit
Learn econometrics and a programming language such as R, Python or Stata, because most economist roles involve working with data rather than only writing about it.
- 3Add honours, a master's or a doctorate
Postgraduate study is common in this field and often what separates applicants for graduate economist programs, while a doctorate is mainly needed for research and university roles.
- 4Apply for a graduate program or research assistant role
Treasury, the Reserve Bank, the ABS, the Productivity Commission and large consultancies run structured graduate intakes, which are paid and rotate you through different areas of analysis.
- 5Develop a specialisation
Inflation, labour markets, competition, health and tax each have their own data and literature, and depth in one area is what makes you useful to a team.
Ready to apply as an economist?
Whether you're working toward becoming an economist or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can an economist move to?
Moving into Policy and Planning Manager typically comes with the biggest pay rise, worth $4,300 a year more on average.
| Move to | Typical pay change | Overlap | Retraining |
|---|---|---|---|
| Policy and Planning Manager Economists bring economic analysis and policy evaluation to planning manager roles, though management and government credentials may need updating.Known move | +$4,300 | 9% | requalify |
| University Lecturer Economists bring research and quantitative expertise to lecturing, but academic roles usually require a doctorate and teaching experience.Known move | +$3,200 | 8% | requalify |
| Management Consultant Economic modelling and market analysis carry into management consulting, while consulting methods and business credentials often need formal study.Known move | −$21,700 | 9% | requalify |
| Data Scientist Economists bring statistical modelling and causal inference to scientific modelling work, adding programming and machine learning tools. | −$24,000 | 53% | short course |
| Demographer Demographic analysis and population modelling build on economic methods, with additional study in demographic techniques. | −$53,100 | 53% | short course |
Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.
Who works as an economist?
The typical economist is 35 years old; 64% are men, 90% work full-time, and full-timers average 43 hours a week.
- 35
- Median age
- 36%
- Female share
- 90%
- Full-time
- +3h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being an economist?
The job runs on a calendar set elsewhere: quarterly data releases, budget season and central bank meetings all arrive with deadlines attached, and a model that took weeks can be rebuilt in a day when the figures surprise. Much of the work is argument as much as arithmetic, because a forecast is only as good as the assumptions behind it and colleagues will test them. It suits people who enjoy explaining why something happened and can hold a line under questioning.
What people like
- Your analysis reaches real decisions. A briefing can shift a budget line or a pricing call within weeks, which is quicker feedback than most research work gets.
- The questions are genuinely open. Working out how a wage increase flows through to prices, or how a tax change lands on small business, means there is no ready answer to copy.
- You work with people who test your reasoning. Colleagues read the same data closely and will find the weak assumption in a model, which keeps the standard high and improves the analysis.
- The toolkit travels. Statistical modelling and causal inference carry into data science, consulting and policy work without starting from scratch.
What people find hard
- The data calendar sets your deadlines. Consumer price and labour force figures land on fixed days, so the days around a release are long and the work cannot slide.
- Being wrong where people noticed. A forecast written months earlier can be quoted back at you when the economy moves the other way, and you end up explaining the assumptions rather than the number.
- The decision is not always yours. Ministers, boards and clients sometimes take a different path for reasons that never appear in the model, and you rarely see how the whole decision was made.
- A long way in. Postgraduate study is the norm here, so the first proper economist role often comes after a bachelor degree plus another year or two of study.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ economists?
Public Administration and Safety employs the largest share of economists, followed by Professional, Scientific and Technical Services.
Top employing industries
- 1Public Administration and Safety
- 2Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
- 3Education and Training
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Postgraduate | 52.7% | |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor degree | 43.1% | |
| Year 12 or below | 2.7% | |
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 0.7% | |
| Certificate III/IV | 0.5% |
Will AI replace economists?
Economists sit in the moderate range: the quantitative side is increasingly automated, while the judgement and explanation are not. Software now handles most of the estimation and data preparation, and language models can turn out a presentable first draft of a data release summary. What those tools do not do is decide which question is worth answering, choose assumptions that will survive scrutiny, or sit in front of a minister and defend them.
Share of typical working time by exposure level
- Running standard forecasts and modelsSoftware handles the estimation and much of the scenario work, but choosing the specification and judging whether the output is plausible stays with the analyst.30%moderate
- Writing first-draft commentaryA language model can summarise a data release in seconds, which shifts the value to interpretation and to catching the caveats a generalist draft gets wrong.25%moderate
- Briefing decision-makers and defending assumptionsAnswering a minister's or a board's challenge to your assumptions depends on context, history and being accountable for the call, which is not something a tool carries.25%low
- Cleaning and preparing dataPulling series from the ABS, the Reserve Bank and market feeds into a consistent shape is largely scripted now, though someone still has to notice when a series changes definition.20%high
Moves least exposed to AI
These career moves from economist work are rated low for AI exposure:
- Management Consultant
Some skill overlap (9%), requalify to get there, and a low automation-risk profile.
Common questions about becoming an economist
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do economists earn in Australia?
Economists earn $148,800 per year before tax at the median, as a guide rather than a figure for any one job. The sector you work in moves pay more than anything else, so a public sector analyst and a bank economist with the same title can be on quite different packages.
How do you become an economist?
Study economics at university, usually to honours or master's level, and build statistical and programming skills alongside it. Graduate programs at Treasury, the Reserve Bank and the ABS, or research assistant roles at universities, are the usual first paid jobs in the field.
Are economists in demand in Australia?
Economists are currently not in shortage, and employment is projected to grow 26% over the decade to 2035. Roles cluster in government, the banks and large consultancies, so openings tend to follow their budgets rather than the wider labour market.
Will AI replace economists?
Automation already handles much of the data preparation and standard estimation, and language models can produce a readable first draft of a data release summary. What is left to the economist is deciding which question matters, choosing defensible assumptions and explaining why the numbers came out as they did.
What can economists move into?
Policy and planning management and management consulting are the closest moves, using the same modelling and briefing skills, with policy and planning manager roles paying $4,300 more and consulting roles $21,700 less. Data science shares 53% of the skills and pays $24,000 less. Each move needs some retraining, usually formal study for the management roles and a short course for data science.
What hours do economists work?
Full-time economists average 43 hours a week, and the load is uneven: budget season and major data releases bring long days, while quieter weeks sit closer to standard office hours. The rhythm follows the data calendar rather than your own schedule.
Related roles
- Policy and Planning Manager
- Management Consultant
- University Lecturer
- Data Scientist
- Demographer
- Policy Officer
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