Job description template
Social Science Research Assistant Job Description Template
A copy-ready social science research assistant job description with responsibilities, qualifications, skills and pay guidance: customize it for your company in minutes.
Copy the template below, replace the bracketed fields and tailor duties to your workplace. For pay, national BLS data shows social science research assistants earn a median of $61,990 ($29.81/hour); the middle 50% earn $48,620–$77,760.
Job title
Social Science Research Assistant
Job summary
[Company name] is seeking a dependable social science research assistant to join our team in [city, state]. In this role, you will recruit participants, collect data and support our team’s commitment to safety, quality and service.
Responsibilities
- Recruit participants
- Collect data
- Enter and clean data
- Run basic analyses
- Review literature
- Help write reports
- Manage study logistics
- Follow company policies, safety procedures and applicable regulations
Required qualifications
- Bachelor's degree
- Working knowledge of data collection and data cleaning
- Organization and reliability
- [Add role-specific requirements, such as driver’s license or ability to pass a background check, if job-related]
Preferred qualifications
- CITI human subjects training
- Statistics course
- R or SPSS certificate
- Experience with qualtrics
Skills
- Statistics basics
- Literature review
- Survey software
- Research ethics
- Communication
- Attention to detail
Work environment and schedule
Research assistants work in universities, research firms and government offices. Full-time business hours.
Pay and benefits
$[min]–$[max] per [hour/year], depending on experience. [List benefits: health insurance, paid time off, retirement plan, training and certification support.]
Equal opportunity
[Company name] is an equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law, and we provide reasonable accommodations upon request.
Tips for a social science research assistant job posting that attracts applicants
- Use the title candidates search for. “Social Science Research Assistant” is the clearest; alternates include Research Assistant, Research Associate, Data Collection Assistant.
- Show the pay range. Postings with pay get more qualified applicants, and a growing number of states and cities require pay ranges in job postings.
- Separate must-haves from nice-to-haves. Long requirement lists discourage qualified candidates, especially career changers.
- Describe a real day. Borrow from our day in the life of a social science research assistant so applicants self-select accurately.
- Mention training. Highlighting structured onboarding: such as Social Science Research Assistant training: widens your applicant pool.
Next steps
Screen and interview with our Social Science Research Assistant hiring guide, then onboard with the 30-60-90 day plan.