Data Journalist
Impact: Societal, Informational
Data journalists combine journalistic skills with data analysis to uncover stories, visualize information, and present complex data in an accessible and engaging way for the public.
What the day looks like
- People interaction
- Moderate
- Team vs solo
- Balanced, often working in teams for large projects but also requiring individual research and analysis.
- Client facing
- Never
- Impact visibility
- High
- Travel
- Low, occasional travel for interviews or conferences.
- Schedule flexibility
- Flexible
- Remote work
- Hybrid
- Typical work hours
- 45-55 hours per week
- Stress level
- High
At a glance
- Median salary
- $75,000
- Entry-level
- $55,000
- Senior
- $110,000
- Growth by 2033
- 12%
- Demand
- Growing
- Freelance potential
- High
- Salary growth potential
- Excellent
- Typical student debt
- $30,000 - $60,000
Skills you'll use
Hard skills
- Data Analysis
- Data Visualization
- SQL
- Python/R
- Journalism Ethics
Soft skills
- Critical Thinking
- Communication
- Problem Solving
Technical complexity: High
How to get there
- Minimum education
- Bachelor's Degree
- Licensing
- No
- Years to mid-career
- 5-8 years
- Years to senior
- 10-15 years
- Career switching
- Moderate
Where this career leads
How people arrive here
Where you can go from here
Typical progression
- Senior Data Journalist, Editor, Data Editor, Investigative Reporter, Analytics Manager.
Future outlook
- Automation probability
- 15%
- AI disruption risk
- Moderate
- Demand trend
- Growing
How people feel about it
- Overall satisfaction
- 4/10
- Meaning
- 4/10
- Work-life balance
- 3.5/10
- Prestige
- 7.5/10
- Social perception
- High