Remote | Social Science Research Assistant — $30–$50/hour

  • New York, New York, United States
  • Contractor
  • Remote

Job Description:

We are sharing a specialised consulting opportunity for Social Science Research Assistants with strong expertise in methodological rigor, source synthesis, research design, statistical analysis, qualitative methods, and rubric development to contribute to an advanced AI benchmarking and research-evaluation project.

Selected professionals will design complex research tasks reflecting authentic social-science workflows, create realistic research artifacts, define defensible methodological approaches, and develop detailed evaluation rubrics assessing research quality, execution fidelity, and interpretation. No prior experience in AI is required.

Key Responsibilities

Research Task Design

  • Design complex evaluation tasks based on realistic social-science research scenarios
  • Develop assignments involving survey analysis, qualitative coding, literature review, and statistical analysis
  • Ensure tasks reflect the complexity of professional research practice
  • Avoid oversimplified or purely textbook-style exercises
  • Translate real-world research challenges into structured evaluation scenarios

Research Artifact Development

  • Create and curate realistic research materials
  • Develop survey instruments, coded datasets, statistical outputs, and source documents
  • Integrate multiple data types into coherent research tasks
  • Ensure supporting materials are internally consistent and methodologically appropriate
  • Maintain clear documentation across research inputs and outputs

Methodological Analysis & Interpretation

  • Define appropriate methodological approaches for each research problem
  • Apply social-science best practices to study design and analysis
  • Produce clear and defensible interpretations of quantitative and qualitative findings
  • Evaluate assumptions, limitations, and alternative explanations
  • Maintain strong standards of transparency and reproducibility

Rubric Development & Evaluation Standards

  • Develop detailed grading rubrics containing 35+ evaluation criteria where required
  • Assess methodological choices, execution fidelity, and interpretation quality
  • Define clear standards for high-quality research work
  • Ensure rubric criteria align closely with task requirements
  • Maintain consistency and objectivity across evaluation frameworks

Source Synthesis & Research Quality

  • Synthesise diverse academic and research sources
  • Evaluate source relevance, reliability, and methodological fit
  • Build well-documented research artifacts from multiple inputs
  • Distinguish evidence-based conclusions from unsupported claims
  • Maintain rigorous documentation of research reasoning and source use

Collaboration & Quality Assurance

  • Collaborate asynchronously with project leads and reviewers
  • Refine tasks, datasets, and evaluation frameworks based on feedback
  • Identify methodological gaps or inconsistencies before submission
  • Maintain high standards of detail and accuracy across deliverables
  • Support iterative improvements to research-evaluation workflows

Ideal Profile

  • Bachelor's or Master's degree in sociology, economics, psychology, political science, or a related social-science discipline
  • Minimum 2 years of hands-on research experience
  • Experience with survey-instrument design
  • Experience with qualitative data coding
  • Strong literature-review and source-synthesis skills
  • Familiarity with statistical analysis and software such as SPSS, R, or Stata
  • Demonstrated methodological rigor and commitment to reproducible research practices
  • Strong ability to construct and document realistic research artifacts
  • Experience developing or applying grading rubrics or evaluation guidelines is advantageous
  • Comfortable working across multiple data types and research-source formats
  • Strong written English suitable for technical research and evaluation content
  • Ability to work carefully through detailed and methodical assignments
  • No prior AI-training or model-evaluation experience is required

Engagement Details

  • Independent contractor engagement
  • Fully remote
  • Displayed compensation range: $30–$50/hour
  • Actual compensation structure is output-based, with payment made per task that meets project specifications
  • Task completion time may vary depending on individual experience and workflow
  • Minimum weekly submission requirements apply; the source does not specify the exact number of required tasks
  • Work will involve research-task design, source synthesis, data-artifact creation, methodological analysis, and rubric development
  • Strong methodological rigor and research judgement are central to this engagement
  • Roles are typically filled within approximately 48 hours
  • Selected experts are expected to begin initial tasks within approximately 24–48 hours after onboarding
  • Project scope, workload, research domains, and evaluation requirements may evolve depending on project needs
  • Work must be completed without using confidential or proprietary information belonging to any employer, client, institution, or other third party

About the Platform

This opportunity is available through 24-MAG LLC. We connect experienced professionals with remote consulting opportunities across technical, evaluation, and project-based workstreams.

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