Career Trends: Budget Analysts

Budget analysts help public and private institutions organize their finances. They prepare budget reports and monitor institutional spending.

Budget analysts work in a variety of settings, including government agencies, universities, and companies. Most work full time.

Budget analysts typically must have a bachelor’s degree, although some employers prefer candidates with a master’s degree.

Employment of budget analysts is projected to grow 3 percent from 2014 to 2024, slower than the average for all occupations. Budget analysts should be needed for their ability to manage the allocation of funds in both governments and businesses.

This occupation supported 61,700 jobs in 2012 and 60,800 jobs in 2014, reflecting a decline of 1.5%. In 2012, this occupation was projected to increase by 6.2% in 2022 to 65,500 jobs. As of 2014, to keep pace with prediction, the expected number of jobs was 62,400, compared with an observed value of 60,800, 2.6% lower than expected. This indicates current employment trends are worse than the 2012 trend within this occupation. In 2014, this occupation was projected to increase by 2.4% in 2024 to 62,300 jobs. Linear extrapolation of the 2012 projection for 2022 results in an expected number of 66,200 jobs for 2024, 6.3% higher than the 2014 projection for 2024. This indicates expectations for future employment trends are much worse than the 2012 trend within this occupation.