Take the STEM Compass assessmentSee the STEM Farm tracks
5Counties
4Metro counties
376,890MSA population 2025
States: North Carolina
Careers the Hickory, NC economy leans on
Ranked by how many counties in this zone carry the economy types each family hires into, then by growth. The fit is yours; the demand is local.
Data Scientist+34%Information Security Analyst+29%Computer Network Architect+12%Statistician+8%Biochemist & Biophysicist+7%Chemist & Materials Scientist+6%Physicist+4%Astronomer+4%Industrial Engineer+11%Mechanical Engineer+9%Electrical Engineer+7%Aerospace Engineer+6%Marine Engineer & Naval Architect+6%Civil Engineer+5%Environmental Engineer+4%Chemical Engineer+3%Actuary+22%Operations Research Analyst+21%Computer & Information Research Scientist+20%Software Developer+15%Computer Systems Analyst+9%Mathematician+8%Web Developer+7%Mathematics Professor+7%Database Administrator+4%Database Architect+4%Computer Programmer-6%Physician Assistant+20%Epidemiologist+16%Medical Scientist+9%Biomedical Engineer+6%Registered Nurse+5%Microbiologist+5%Physician & Surgeon+4%Clinical Laboratory Technologist+4%Agricultural & Food Scientist+6%Geoscientist+5%Environmental Scientist+4%Zoologist & Wildlife Biologist+2%Atmospheric Scientist & Meteorologist+1%
Counties in this labor market
Metros around Hickory, NC
Charlotte, NC–SC13 countiesVirginia Beach, VA16 countiesRaleigh, NC10 countiesWinston-Salem, NC10 countiesWilmington, NC4 countiesAsheville, NC6 countiesSpartanburg, SC5 countiesFayetteville, NC10 countiesJacksonville, NC5 countiesBurlington, NC4 countiesGreenville, NC6 countiesRocky Mount, NC3 counties
This labor market, by search
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Questions people ask
Which STEM careers are in demand in Hickory, NC?
Data Scientist, Information Security Analyst, Computer Network Architect, Statistician and Biochemist & Biophysicist lead on local economy fit here; Data Scientist (+34%), Information Security Analyst (+29%) and Actuary (+22%) lead on national growth.
What is a commuting zone?
A Census labor market built from where people actually commute to work. It is the right geography for training and hiring: the job you train for is usually inside your zone, even when it is not inside your county.
Sources. Career traits, education paths and value lines are the STEM Compass assessment library. Employment growth is U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2024–2034. County economic types are USDA Economic Research Service County Typology Codes (2025); labor markets are Census commuting zones (2020). Salary is not shown anywhere in this campaign on purpose: the assessment measures fit and what the work is worth to the world.