◆ Philosophy

What a think tank researcher
really does.

20 tasks, each one witnessed by the sources that watched the job — and behind every one, a prompt you can use tonight.

20evidenced tasks
37,100in the US (2025)
$101,110median pay / year
4systems it runs on
See the 20 tasks ↓Open in the atlasThe full career map →
This is what one task looks like here
Social work theory
Draft a two-page briefing that explains the chosen social work theory,…1 sources agree

The shape of the day

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The work, task by task

20 tasks
Hands on the work11
Social work theory+
Draft a two-page briefing that explains the chosen social work theory, links it to frontline safety practices, highlights its implications for client empowerment and legal transparency, and include three practical recommendations for local providers by next Tuesday.
esco
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Communicate professionally with colleagues in other fields+
Write a concise one-page explainer tailored to public health researchers and urban planners that summarises our social justice framing, outlines shared data needs, notes agreed safeguarding responsibilities, and proposes a 60-minute cross-team meeting next Wednesday.
esco
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Present findings to stakeholders+
Prepare a stakeholder presentation summarising findings, including three policy recommendations that improve transparency of legislation for service users, two case vignettes illustrating harm reduction, and a one-slide ask for commissioners for next quarter.
jd
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Collaborate with other researchers+
Draft a one-page collaboration plan for my colleagues Sara Khan and Dr. James O'Neill outlining shared research questions, data responsibilities, fortnightly check-ins, and a decision rule for draft authorship so we can start the co-authored brief next Monday.
jd
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Prepare grant proposals+
Write a 1,200-word grant narrative for the Healthy Communities Fund showing the problem, objectives, methods, budget summary, and three measurable outcomes tied to reducing service barriers for young people, ready for review by Friday.
jd
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Deliver programmes related to drugs issues+
Design a four-session pilot curriculum on drugs harm reduction, with session aims, activities, handouts, evaluation questions and a 6-week outcome measure so the pilot can run in two community centres next month.
esco
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Empower social service users+
Produce a plain-language guide that explains rights, complaint routes, and safety steps for social service users, with short examples and a checklist they can keep, ready to publish on the website on Wednesday.
esco
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Social justice+
Draft a short policy brief on social justice in local adult social care that names the problem, includes two evidence-backed recommendations, estimates costs for year one, and flags likely resistance from commissioners and providers before Friday.
esco
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Watch and assess4
Grow the practice3
Work with people1
Keep it safe1

What the work runs on

named inside the evidenced tasks
10 tasksNVivoorganises qualitative theory sources and helps extract themes for a clear briefing
8 tasksExcelstructures the shared data needs and meeting agenda items into a clear, shareable tableOpen its task library →
3 tasksSPSSto perform data cleaning, descriptive stats and regression analyses with labeled outputs suitable for publication
1 taskStatato model sample size calculations and power for the quantitative arm
Browse every evidenced software task →

The same task, four heights

this page is height one
ExecuteDo today's task, with fewer mistakesyou are here → ImproveMake it easy for the next person to acceptin the atlas → DecideWork out the right move when it is unclearin the atlas → BecomeLearn the pattern so it stops coming backin the atlas →

Can AI actually do this job?

the honest answer

It can

where it genuinely helps
  • Explain the theory behind the work
  • Draft, tidy and structure your writing
  • Rehearse a hard conversation before you have it
  • Build a study plan that fits your gaps

It cannot

where it stops, completely
  • Be in the room where a think tank researcher actually works
  • Carry the responsibility when the call is wrong — that weight stays yours
  • Notice what no one wrote down: the hesitation, the thing left unsaid
  • Live with the outcome

What the work pays

two countries, two different measures

United States

this exact occupation · BLS 2025
  • $101,110 a year — the middle: half earn more, half earn less
  • The lowest tenth earn near $66,120; the top tenth near $160,300
  • 37,100 people employed in this occupation

India

the occupation GROUP, not this job · PLFS via ILOSTAT 2025
  • ₹38,298 a month — the median for Professionals, the group this work sits in
  • India publishes pay by broad occupation group, so this covers many jobs besides this one. It is a shape, not a salary.
read this carefullyThese two numbers are not comparable and must not be converted into each other. One is a yearly figure for this job alone; the other is a monthly figure for a whole family of jobs. What travels between them is the pattern, not the amount: experience lifts pay almost everywhere.

Where the evidence lives

open any of it yourself
O*NETThe US Department of Labor's own record of this job0 of these tasks ESCOThe European skills and occupations register11 of these tasks Job descriptionsReal postings, in the wild9 of these tasks US Bureau of Labor StatisticsPay and employment, by occupation2025 figures UK NOS SFJCCAB1.2Analyse, interpret and synthesise data and researchnational standard

Close to this work

12 nearby
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Questions people actually ask

Mornings often start with reading new papers, policy reports, or government data to track social trends and issues. You might spend an hour checking emails from colleagues, funders, or external partners and planning the day’s tasks.

Late mornings and afternoons usually focus on hands-on research: designing studies, running surveys or interviews, entering data into Excel or NVivo for qualitative notes, and doing statistical analysis in Stata or SPSS. Days end with writing short memos, preparing slides for stakeholders, or meeting with collaborators.

Start with Excel because it’s used every day for cleaning data, simple tables, and budgets for grant proposals. Learn pivot tables, basic formulas, and charts first.

Next pick one statistical package: Stata or SPSS. Stata is common in policy teams for reproducible scripts; SPSS is menu-driven and easier for beginners. NVivo is next if you’ll handle interviews or focus groups — it helps tag and search qualitative text.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), about 37,100 people worked in this category in 2025. The median annual wage was $101,110; the lowest tenth earned about $66,120 and the top tenth earned about $160,300. That gives a realistic salary range to expect.

Pay varies by location, funding source (university-affiliated vs independent), and experience. Entry-level roles tend toward the lower end; senior researchers or directors reach the top tenth range.

Use AI for drafting surveys, summarising literature, or exploring patterns, but never to store or process identifiable personal data unless your contract and IRB allow it. Remove names, emails, and other identifiers before feeding data into AI tools.

Always check outputs: AI can invent facts. For statistical analysis use Stata or SPSS and keep raw data and code backed up. Note which AI tool and prompts you used in project documentation and grant reports.

Think tank researchers focus on studying social issues, designing research, running surveys or statistical tests, and writing reports for policymakers. You’ll spend more time on data, NVivo/Stata/SPSS, grant proposals, and presenting findings to stakeholders.

Social workers spend most time delivering programmes, assessing and protecting vulnerable people, counselling, and following health and safety in social care practices. Both aim at social justice, but think tank work is research and policy-focused; social work is direct client services.

Study social sciences, public policy, or statistics and take classes in survey methods and research design. Learn Excel plus one stats package (Stata or SPSS) and try qualitative software like NVivo if you can.

Volunteer on a research project, help with surveys or database maintenance, or assist a professor with data entry and analysis. Build a short portfolio: a survey you designed, a small SPSS/Stata script, or a coded NVivo interview project.

The ability to turn messy data and interviews into clear, actionable findings. That means strong data-cleaning and analysis (Excel and Stata/SPSS) plus writing clear presentations for stakeholders.

You must also make legislation transparent and practical for service users: translate technical results into plain recommendations and know how your evidence supports social justice or protecting vulnerable groups.