In 2023, NIH continued to hire candidates that represent the diverse range of professions to support biomedical research and the health and well-being of people across the globe.
The NIH Workforce
Occupations were classified into the three workforce categories based on their occupational series and position title.
Scientific
Occupations that directly lead or conduct basic or clinical research at the NIH or provide scientific oversight for extramural research. Examples of occupations classified as Scientific include, but are not limited to, biologists, chemists, health scientific administrators and medical officers.
Health and Research
Occupations that directly support the basic and clinical research conducted at NIH. Many of these occupations are allied health professions. Examples of occupations classified as Health and Research Related include, but are not limited to, nurses, pharmacists, biological lab technicians, and patient care technicians.
Infrastructure
Infrastructure occupations include all occupations not classified as Scientific or Health and Research Related. These occupations undergird the scientific enterprise. Examples of occupations classified as Infrastructure include, but are not limited to, accountants, engineers, secretaries and program analysts.
| Category | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Scientific | 49% |
| Infrastructure | 40% |
| Health and Research | 11% |
OHR supports the NIH workforce through the delivery of over 70 services and it’s important the OHR workforce continues to grow with the NIH workforce.
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+3.8%NIH Workforce Growth in 2023*
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+10.1%OHR Workforce Growth in 2023*
* First time reported this year.
NIH Workforce Demographics
The following illustrations provide a snapshot into our workforce demographics in 2023. We use this information and related data to measure developmental progress over time.
| Self-identified Race | Percentage of Workforce |
|---|---|
| White | 51.32% |
| Asian | 20.74% |
| Black or African American | 20.54% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 5.17% |
| Two or more race groups | 1.42% |
| American Indian or Alaska Native | 0.7% |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander | 0.11% |
Note: Data for employees represented in this reporting are self-identified; those classified in the five racial groups and two or more race group are all non-Hispanic or non-Latino. Hispanic or Latino employees are included in that category regardless of their race selection(s). To maintain confidentiality and protect individual identification from deductive disclosure risk, values of less than four are suppressed for reporting purposes. Total calculations shown may not match that derived from detailed data presented due to rounding.
| Gender | Percentage of Workforce |
|---|---|
| Female | 60.5% |
| Male | 39.5% |
Since 2022, NIH has increased in:
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+1.0%Hiring women
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+0.7%Asian populations
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+1.1%Hispanic or Latino
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+0.4%Individuals that identify as two or more race group
NIH employees self-report disability status and this information helps us further understand and support the needs of our workforce.
In 2023, 12.7% of employees self-identified as having a targeted or non-targeted disability.
| Disability Type | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Non-Targeted Disability | 10.3% |
| Targeted Disablity | 2.4% |
Non-Targeted Disability
Employee reports some type of disability.
Targeted Disability
This is a subset of a reportable disability which includes severe disabilities such as total blindness, deafness, and missing extremities.
Positions Supported by OHR
OHR provides full support over the course of the employee lifecycle to 12 of 17 different types of positions at the NIH.
- Title 5 - GS
- Title 5 - WG
- Title 38
- SES, SL, Title 42 Executive
- Staff/Senior Clinical or Scientist
- Commissioned Corps
- Clinical or Research Fellow
- SSO or SPL-2
- Tenure Track & Tenured Investigator
- Senior Biomedical Research Service
- Title 42 Undergrad Scholarship Program (UGSP)
- Summer Intern
- Contractors
- Visiting Fellow
- Guest Research
- Volunteer & Special Volunteer
- IRTA & CRTA
** The NIH Civil Program supports contractors and other non-FTE staff.
Distributed Workforce
The NIH has six main research campus in the continental United States as indicated by pin drops below in Maryland, North Carolina, Montana, and Arizona.
Maryland: 3 locations
Montana: 1 location
Arizona: 1 location
North Carolina: 1 location
OHR hires and services employees geographically dispersed across the United States ensuring our workforce includes members of underrepresented communities as a result of increased remote work opportunities in the Federal Government.
| State | NIH Staff |
|---|---|
| Maryland | 16857 |
| North Carolina | 721 |
| Virginia | 317 |
| Montana | 246 |
| District Of Columbia | 143 |
| Florida | 96 |
| Arizona | 77 |
| California | 76 |
| Pennsylvania | 75 |
| Texas | 75 |
| Georgia | 61 |
| New York | 48 |
| Massachusetts | 47 |
| West Virginia | 47 |
| Colorado | 37 |
| New Jersey | 36 |
| Illinois | 30 |
| Michigan | 26 |
| Ohio | 25 |
| Washington | 24 |
| Connecticut | 21 |
| Louisiana | 20 |
| Alabama | 18 |
| Tennessee | 18 |
| South Carolina | 17 |
| Missouri | 13 |
| Kansas | 12 |
| Kentucky | 10 |
| Minnesota | 10 |
| Oregon | 10 |
| Delaware | 9 |
| Indiana | 8 |
| Utah | 8 |
| New Mexico | 7 |
| Maine | 6 |
| Nevada | 6 |
| Iowa | 5 |
| Mississippi | 5 |
| New Hampshire | 5 |
| Rhode Island | 5 |
| Wisconsin | 5 |
| Arkansas | 4 |
| Hawaii | 4 |
| Vermont | 3 |
| Wyoming | 3 |
| Idaho | 2 |
| Oklahoma | 2 |
| Puerto Rico | 2 |
| Alaska | 1 |
| Nebraska | 1 |
| North Dakota | 0 |
| South Dakota | 0 |
Did You Know: NIH’s research expands well beyond the beltway. NIH provides grant funding across the United States furthering the reach of our research.
Workforce Planning
OHR’s role in supporting employees throughout the entire employee lifecycle expands beyond recruitment and onboarding. OHR works closely with the Institutes and Centers to understand their workforce needs as they continue to change and evolve. Retirement eligibility data helps the NIH prepare for the future and allows OHR to proactively recruit and retain a highly skilled and diverse workforce.
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11.3Average Number of Years at NIH
Decrease of 0.3 years since 2022
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6.4Average Number of Years Past Retirement Eligibility
No change since 2022
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20.2%NIH Workforce Eligible to Retire Now
Decrease of 0.8% since 2022
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35.9%NIH Workforce Eligible to Retire in 5 Years
Decrease of 1.1% since 2022
Workforce data shows that even though staff are technically eligible to retire, it is not unusual for NIH employees to stay past their eligibility date. In fact, approximately one-third of NIH employees who can retire now have been eligible for retirement for over 6.4 years, which is the average timing for all NIH actual retirements over the past 10 years. This chart shows the average years past retirement eligibility for each workforce category.
| Group | Years past initial eligibility |
|---|---|
| Scientific | 7.3 years |
| Infrastructure | 5.7 years |
| Health and Research | 5.1 years |
| Average of all groups | 6.4 years |
20,474 NIH Total Headcount
| Scientific | Infrastructure | Health and Research |
|---|---|---|
| 49% | 40% | 11% |
3,976 Eligible to Retire Now
| Scientific | Infrastructure | Health and Research |
|---|---|---|
| 55% | 37% | 8% |
Of those Eligible to Retire Now (above), 55% are scientific, 37% are infrastructure, and 8% are health and research. The categories shift slightly for those Eligible to Retire over 5 Years (below) to 52% scientific, 29% infrastructure, and 9% health and science. This chart represents the cumulative number of staff eligible to retire over the next 5 years. Both data points are projections based on retirement eligibility data and are in line with typical attrition for the NIH.
7,081 Eligible to Retire Over the Next 5 Years
OHR leverages all of our available workforce data to support workforce planning for our Institute and Center (IC) customers. Retirement eligibility data, as well as many other data points, allow OHR and the NIH to ensure we continue to build and support the workforce necessary to support the mission of the NIH.
Note: All data as of 01/01/24