💡 Why it matters: Governments and charities need clear evidence on what works in education, jobs, housing and health before they spend public money, and analysts supply it.
🌍 Around the world
- United States: Jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, about as fast as average (US Bureau of Labor Statistics). (this is for sociologists, the closest category).
💰 What it can pay
🇳🇬 Nigeria
- Starting out
- ₦1.5M – ₦3.5M
- Mid-career
- ₦3.5M – ₦7.5M
- Senior
- ₦7.5M – ₦18M
≈ ₦292k – ₦625k a month mid-career. Indicative estimate by Incusim.
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
Typical starter to experienced salary (closest profile: Housing policy officer). National Careers Service, 2026
🇺🇸 United States
Closest US category: Sociologists. Median pay; low and high are the 10th and 90th percentiles. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025
🇨🇦 Canada
Social policy consultant. Hourly wage low/median/high x 2,080 hours. Job Bank (Government of Canada), 2023-2024
Yearly pay before tax. UK, US and Canada figures come from the official sources named on each card. Nigeria has no official salary survey, so those are our indicative estimates. Real pay depends on the employer, the place, your skills and experience.
🛠️ What you actually do
- Study data on poverty, schools, jobs and health
- Test whether government programmes are working
- Write clear policy briefs for decision makers
- Talk to communities to understand their problems
- Recommend ways to improve public services
⚡ Skills you'll need
- Research
- Data analysis
- Writing
- Critical thinking
- Empathy
Get ready at school
🇳🇬 Nigeria
- Start as a research assistant at a think tank, NGO or government planning office and build up
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- Civil Service Fast Stream or Government Social Research graduate schemes
- Research or policy assistant jobs in charities, councils or think tanks
🇺🇸 United States
- Start as a research assistant or program analyst in government, a nonprofit or a think tank
- Government fellowships and internships at city, state or federal level
🇨🇦 Canada
- Start as a research assistant or policy analyst in government, a nonprofit or a think tank
- Co-op programs and government student jobs (federal and provincial)
🗺️ Your path to this career
- 1Be strong in Economics, Maths and English at school
- 2Study Sociology, Economics or Political Science
- 3Learn data tools such as Excel and basic statistics
- 4Join a government planning unit, NGO or think tank
- 5Specialise in education, health or economic policy
⏰ A day in the life
You begin by checking survey results about school attendance in a state. After building a chart, you write a short brief with three suggestions, then discuss it with colleagues and a government official.