The MS advantage
PhD roles report a median of $135K vs $167K for MS, a 19% gap the other way.
316 PhD · 205 MS salary-reporting roles Crosslinked
Market
Live signal from 6,577 open roles · 3,277 report salary
6,577Open roles
2,197Companies hiring
$105KMedian salary
5%Remote / hybrid
806New this week
Posting volume new jobs per week · last 12 weeks
A hands-on field
Only 5% of roles are remote or hybrid (80 remote, 250 hybrid). Bench and floor work keeps this field in person.
Across 6577 active listingsSponsors pay more
Employers with H-1B signals report a median of $135K vs $119K elsewhere, about a 13% premium, likely larger firms competing for talent.
982 roles at known/likely sponsorsThe agency discount
Staffing-agency listings report a median of $120K vs $121K for direct hires, a 1% gap for comparable work.
108 agency · 3169 direct salary-reporting rolesEntry means entry
71% of entry-level roles ask for zero prior experience. Median entry pay: $82K. Unlike tech, "entry level" here is mostly honest.
1424 entry-level listingsFall 2026 season · closes Dec 19 · 59 days left
The search, this season
How the polymer and materials job search is going for people on Crosslinked, in aggregate. Five one-tap questions, no names, no rankings. When the season closes, everyone who answered gets the field report first. Updated Oct 21.
0 of 20
The first charts appear once 20 people have answered. Applications sent, interviews, offers, weeks searching, and whether the last one replied. Your answers stay anonymous and are only ever shown as counts.