Social Science Research Assistants Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks
SOC 19-4061 · National · May 2024 OEWS Data
Median Annual Salary
$58,032
$27.90/hr
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated Apr 3, 2025
Source: BLS OEWS · Published Apr 2, 2025
Next refresh: May 15, 2026
Get notified when this number updates
Personal or work email, both work. No account needed. Unsubscribe anytime.
The national median salary for Social Science Research Assistants is $58,032 per year ($27.90/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024. The middle 50% of earners make between $46,197 and $73,070 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $100,630 per year. There are approximately 32,940 social science research assistants employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Assist social scientists in laboratory, survey, and other social science research. May help prepare findings for publication and assist in laboratory analysis, quality control, or data management.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+4.4%
Faster than average
Annual openings
5K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
41K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
3% from new growth97% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
Bachelor's degree
Experience
None
On-the-job training
None
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools
NAICS 611300
15K
$52,540
Scientific Research and Development Services
NAICS 541700
10K
$60,470
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
NAICS 622100
2K
$52,960
Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services
NAICS 541600
1K
$67,710
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999300
530
$54,210
Wage range across top 5 industries: $52,540 to $67,710 (29% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$17.50
$36,400
P25
$22.21
$46,197
P50MEDIAN
$27.90
$58,032
P75
$35.13
$73,070
P90
$48.38
$100,630
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · professional sector
Cooling
Openings Rate
4.2%
Quits Rate
2.0%
Professional & Business Services openings tumbled 318K in March -- the largest single-sector drop in this release. Openings rate fell from 5.5% to 4.2%. Layoffs jumped to 527K (+99K). White-collar demand has cooled abruptly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average social science research assistants salary?
The national median salary for Social Science Research Assistants is $58,032 per year ($27.90/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2024 data. The middle 50% earn between $46,197 and $73,070 annually.
How much do top-earning social science research assistants make?
The 90th percentile salary for Social Science Research Assistants is $100,630 per year ($48.38/hr). The 75th percentile is $73,070 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for social science research assistants?
Entry-level Social Science Research Assistants (10th percentile) earn approximately $36,400 per year ($17.50/hr). The 25th percentile is $46,197 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
Built and maintained by Falcon Incentives, a compensation strategy and incentive design consultancy.