Survey Researchers

What Survey Researchers Do

Survey researchers design and conduct surveys and analyze data.

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Work Environment

Most survey researchers work in research firms, polling organizations, nonprofits, corporations, colleges and universities, and government agencies. The majority work full time during regular business hours.

How to Become a Survey Researcher

Many research positions require a master’s degree or Ph.D., although a bachelor’s degree may be sufficient for some entry-level positions.

Pay

The median annual wage for survey researchers was $59,170 in May 2019.

Job Outlook

Employment of survey researchers is projected to decline 4 percent from 2019 to 2029. 

Survey researchers design surveys and analyze data. Surveys are used to collect factual data, such as employment and salary information, or to ask questions in order to understand people’s opinions, preferences, beliefs, or desires.

Duties

Survey researchers typically do the following:

• Conduct background research on survey topics
• Plan and design surveys, and determine appropriate survey methods
• Test surveys to make sure that people will understand the questions being asked
• Coordinate the work of survey interviewers and data collectors
• Account for and solve problems caused by nonresponse or other sampling issues
• Analyze data, using statistical software and techniques
• Summarize survey data, using tables, graphs, and fact sheets
• Evaluate surveys, the methods underlying them, and their performance to improve future surveys

Survey researchers design and conduct surveys for different research purposes. Surveys for scientific research cover various topics, including government, health, social sciences, and education. For example, a survey researcher may try to capture information about the prevalence of drug use or disease.

Some survey researchers design public opinion surveys, which are intended to gather information about the attitudes and opinions of society or of a certain group. Surveys can cover a wide variety of topics, including politics, culture, the economy, or health.

Other survey researchers design marketing surveys which examine products or services that consumers want, need, or prefer. Researchers who collect and analyze market research data are known as market research analysts.

Survey researchers may conduct surveys in many different formats, such as interviews, questionnaires, and focus groups (in-person, small group sessions led by a facilitator). They use different methods to collect data, including the Internet, mail, and telephone and in-person interviews.

Some researchers use surveys to solicit the opinions of an entire population. The decennial census is an example of such a survey. Others use surveys to target a smaller group, such as a specific demographic group, residents of a particular state, or members of a political party.

Researchers survey a sample of the population and use statistics to make sure that the sample accurately represents the target population group. Researchers use a variety of statistical techniques and analytical software to plan surveys, adjust for errors in the data, and analyze the results.

Survey researchers sometimes supervise interviewers who collect survey data through in-person interviews or by telephone.

Survey researchers held about 12,200 jobs in 2019. The largest employers of survey researchers were as follows:

Survey researchers work in research firms, polling organizations, nonprofits, and corporations.

Survey researchers who conduct interviews have frequent contact with the public. Some may work outside the office, traveling to meet with clients or conducting in-person interviews and focus group sessions. When designing surveys and analyzing data, they usually work alone in an office setting, although some work on teams with other researchers.

This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of survey researchers.

For more information about careers in survey research, visit

American Association for Public Opinion Research

Insights Association

O*NET

Survey Researchers