Families / Investigate

Research Scientist

Designs studies and publishes findings inside institutional constraints. Autonomy is real but arrives late.

Pay band (est.)
$85k–$160k
Time to competence
10 years
Licence
None
Setting
desk
Leverage
medium
Place constraint
high
Physical demand
20/100
Hours burden
65/100

Factor percentiles

Percentile against the whole curated set. Higher is better on that factor only.

  • Play79th

    Absorbing rather than merely paid.

  • Specific knowledge83th

    A combination of skills that is hard to copy.

  • Leverage49th

    Output that scales through code, media, capital or crew.

  • Demand30th

    Durability and shortage, scored conservatively.

  • Pay77th

    Mid-career floor and the range above it.

  • Body71th

    Inverse of physical demand and hours.

  • Autonomy67th

    Control of methods and time.

  • People fit89th

    Distance from your preferred people level.

  • Place flexibility24th

    Remote fit and freedom from specific metros.

  • Time to skill5th

    Inverse of years to competence.

  • Meaning load40th

    Care, craft and stewardship weight. Not a moral score.

  • Downside tolerance43th

    Inverse of named risk to body, market or platform.

Downside

Scarce permanent posts; grant funding drives everything.

Examine this against your weights

The percentiles above use the default weights. Set your own on the ranking and this vocation moves with them.

Source note: BLS-style wage patterns; estimate. All figures are estimates for comparison.