How to hire a researcher

How to hire a researcher, step by step

Here's a step-by-step researcher hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a researcher job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new researcher
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a researcher do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the researcher you need to hire. Certain researcher roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A researcher's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, researchers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents researcher salaries for various positions.

   Type of Researcher	Description	Hourly rate
   Researcher	Medical scientists conduct research aimed at improving overall human health. They often use clinical trials and other investigative methods to reach their findings.	$17-57
   Doctoral Fellow	A doctoral fellow is a physician that has completed studies and receives a fellowship to cover his/her or her expenses while completing his/her or her medical dissertation. A doctor fellow undergoes this fellowship to get additional training for their chosen sub-specialty... Show more	$18-34
   Fellow	A fellow's responsibility will depend on the organization or industry where one belongs. However, most of the time, a fellow's duty will revolve around conducting research and analysis, presiding discussions and attending dialogues, handle lectures while complying with the guidelines or tasks set by supervisors, and assist in various projects and activities... Show more	$22-44

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Python
   • Lab Equipment
   • C++
   • Data Analysis
   • Data Collection
   • R
   • Research Findings
   • Conduct Research
   • Cell Culture
   • Statistical Analysis
   • Linux
   • Chemistry
   • Synthesis
   • SPSS

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage social media publications to spread awareness and notifications on Facebook.
   • Perform cellular assays, DNA extractions, PCR, and sequencing to identify cellulase- producing soil bacteria.
   • Implement data visualization tools by Java.
   • Present research findings to select professors and professionals at scholar conferences.
   • Master techniques in biomedical science research methods.
   • Collaborate with doctorates in the field of immunology.

   More researcher duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your researcher job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A researcher salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, researchers' average salary in north dakota is 68% less than in connecticut.
   • Seniority. Entry-level researchers earn 69% less than senior-level researchers.
   • Certifications. A researcher with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a researcher's salary.

   Average researcher salary

   $67,145yearly

   $32.28 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level researcher salary

   $37,000 yearly salary

   Updated November 13, 2025

   Average researcher salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New Jersey	$100,676	$48
   2	California	$92,322	$44
   3	Massachusetts	$85,095	$41
   4	New York	$76,074	$37
   5	Delaware	$75,158	$36
   6	Hawaii	$75,140	$36
   7	Maryland	$72,502	$35
   8	Washington	$68,689	$33
   9	Pennsylvania	$66,934	$32
   10	Michigan	$66,850	$32
   11	District of Columbia	$63,274	$30
   12	Virginia	$62,589	$30
   13	Illinois	$60,556	$29
   14	Ohio	$55,652	$27
   15	Minnesota	$49,855	$24
   16	Georgia	$48,678	$23
   17	Colorado	$48,432	$23
   18	Wisconsin	$47,926	$23
   19	Texas	$45,771	$22
   20	Alabama	$38,144	$18

   Average researcher salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Renaissance Learning	$160,117	$76.98
   2	The Citadel	$159,193	$76.54	6
   3	Meta	$156,474	$75.23	889
   4	Google	$156,214	$75.10	158
   5	Airbnb	$155,324	$74.67
   6	Vicarious	$151,348	$72.76
   7	Microsoft	$150,120	$72.17	194
   8	Apple	$145,014	$69.72	32
   9	Palantir	$144,789	$69.61
   10	Netflix	$144,667	$69.55	8
   11	Two Sigma	$144,357	$69.40
   12	KLA	$143,823	$69.15	4
   13	eBay	$143,646	$69.06
   14	Boston Consulting Group	$142,948	$68.72
   15	Aramco Services Company	$141,496	$68.03
   16	Urban Institute	$141,189	$67.88	1
   17	Chevron	$141,121	$67.85
   18	Genentech	$140,816	$67.70	21
   19	Riskmetrics Group Holdings LLC	$140,157	$67.38
   20	Rosetta Stone	$139,717	$67.17

4. Writing a researcher job description

   A job description for a researcher role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a researcher job description:

   Researcher job description example

   A World-Changing Company
   
   At Palantir, we're passionate about building software that solves problems. We partner with the most important institutions in the world to transform how they use data and technology. Our software has been used to stop terrorist attacks, discover new medicines, gain an edge in global financial markets, and more. If these types of projects excite you, we'd love for you to join us.
   
   The Role
   
   We are looking for someone that is passionate about natural language processing (NLP) and deep learning, someone that likes to push the boundaries of what is possible, and want to solve hard problems on top of unique datasets. You will be responsible for implementing, customizing, and inventing NLP deep learning techniques for some of the most challenging datasets. In this role, you will have the opportunity to get exposed to real customer problems early on and to help formulate, and drive novel deep learning solutions from the ground up.
   
   Our Machine Learning team develops pioneering machine learning techniques to address immediate customer needs and to ensure Palantir's platforms offer unparalleled machine learning capabilities.
   Core ResponsibilitiesRead, present, and implement research papers in the areas of NLP and deep learning.Modify and/or invent state of the art techniques to solve real-world problems and apply them to tasks such as Natural Language Understanding, Summarization, Text Classification, Intent Classification, Question Answering, etc. to optimize performance on unique datasets.Work closely with engineering teams to push innovative learning models to production.Propose and implement new ideas/directions in NLP/Deep Learning that can effectively solve customer problems.
   Technologies We UsePythonPyTorchONNXDockerSpark
   What We ValueExperience with the latest NLP models such as BERT, GPT-2/3, T5, BART, etc.Experience with deep learning NLP toolkits such as Hugging Face, spacy, etc.Experience with vision-and-language multimodal pre-training and fine-tuning.Proficiency with any of the major Deep Learning frameworks and libraries.MS in Computer Science or related fields, or a PhD degree.Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
   Palantir is committed to promoting a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion and is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer. We believe that all Palantirians share the responsibility of upholding our commitment to these values and encourage candidates from a wide range of backgrounds, perspectives, and lived experiences to join us in solving the world's hardest problems. Palantir does not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. Palantir is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with physical and mental disabilities. Please see the United States Department of Labor's EEO poster and EEO poster supplement for additional information.
   
   Palantir is committed to making the job application process accessible to everyone. If you are living with a disability (visible or not visible) and need to request a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process, please reach out and let us know how we can help.

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5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find researchers for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your researcher job on Zippia to find and recruit researcher candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit researchers, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new researcher

   Once you've selected the best researcher candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new researcher. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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