Employment of epidemiologists is expected to increase by 24 percent from 2010 to 2020, faster than the average for all occupations. Ongoing public health awareness, as well as an increased reliance on medical records for public health analysis, will maintain demand for epidemiologists. New legislation that will improve medical record-keeping is expected to create more opportunities for epidemiologists to track infection and demographic data.
Employment growth over the next 10 years for epidemiologists is expected to be strong in state and local governments. Governments have increased their demand for epidemiologists because the analyses that epidemiologists do are important to preventive healthcare, as well as to emergency responses.
Epidemiologists generally should have favorable opportunities. Many states report shortages of qualified workers for applied epidemiology positions.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition