Interested in this Research Scientist role at New York University?
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Africa House is seeking to hire a Junior Research Scientist to support the research of the Director, Professor Yaw Nyarko. Professor Nyarko’s primary research interests include African economic development, artificial intelligence and technological adoption, and commodities markets. Primary duties will consist of conducting high\-quality research suitable for publication in academic journals. Additional duties include providing broad support for ongoing projects, including: a multi\-year study on the potential for blockchain to address market failures in rural credit markets; an international research consortium focused on scaling evidence\-based technological innovations for agricultural systems, including livestock, using AI, digital advisory services, and weather forecasting to support smallholder farmers; a set of working papers focused on the economics and mathematics of large\-language models; and research on various dimensions of the United Arab Emirates’ economic history and structure. Our ideal candidate is a committed, responsible, highly motivated individual with a proven ability to work independently and effectively in a professional environment. We are looking for a problem\-solver and a strategic, creative thinker with strong writing skills to be part of our interdisciplinary team.
Key Responsibilities \& Duties:
- Help conduct quantitative research on African commodities markets, AI and blockchain, and technological interventions for economic development
- Assemble, graph, and analyze data using Excel, Stata, or Matlab
- Manipulate economic data and/or create new variables using Excel, Stata, or Matlab
- Conduct quantitative and qualitative research
- Present information in clear, concise reports
- Clean and manage large datasets for field research project in Ghana, West Africa
- Conduct statistical analyses of data using Stata or Matlab (advanced knowledge required)
- Assist with data management for a research project on commodities markets, AI, and blockchain
- Prepare research reports for concept notes, academic papers, and presentations
The ideal candidate exhibits the characteristics below and demonstrates a desire to be an important contributor to a collegial team.
Required:
- Master’s degree with concentration and course work in Economics, Mathematics, Statistics or a related field
- Strong analytical capability, including experience analyzing large data sets in Excel, Stata, Matlab, R, or similar software
- Exceptional academic record
- Excellent attention to detail
- Strong interest in economic development in emerging markets
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Willingness to work as part of a global, diverse, multicultural team
- Excellent organizational and problem\-solving skills
- Excellent interpersonal, communication, and customer service skills
- Ability to solve problems and interact with individuals at all levels
- Ability to work and communicate with diverse stakeholders
- Ability to complete detail\-oriented tasks with accuracy and timeliness and perform multiple tasks in a fast\-paced environment
- Willingness to take on assignments or tasks within short notice
- Previous work experience (2\-3 years) in an office environment
Preferred:
- Experience with analysis of complex survey data is highly desirable
- Knowledge of randomized control trials
- Prior field research or research assistant experience in the fields of development economics a plus
In compliance with NYC’s Pay Transparency Act, the compensation for this position is $70,000\-80,000 USD. New York University considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, as well as market and organizational considerations when extending an offer.
This is a one\-year fixed term position. Please submit your resume, cover letter, and two academic writing samples for consideration by August 31, 2026\.
For people in the EU, click here for information on your privacy rights under GDPR: www.nyu.edu/it/gdpr
NYU is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to a policy of equal treatment and opportunity in every aspect of its recruitment and hiring process without regard to age, alienage, caregiver status, childbirth, citizenship status, color, creed, disability, domestic violence victim status, ethnicity, familial status, gender and/or gender identity or expression, marital status, military status, national origin, parental status, partnership status, predisposing genetic characteristics, pregnancy, race, religion, reproductive health decision making, sex, sexual orientation, unemployment status, veteran status, or any other legally protected basis. All interested persons are encouraged to apply for vacant positions at all levels.
Sustainability Statement
NYU aims to be among the greenest urban campuses in the country and carbon neutral by 2040\. Learn more at nyu.edu/sustainability
Salary Context
This $70K-$80K range is in the lower quartile for Research Scientist roles in our dataset (median: $195K across 149 roles with salary data).
Role Details
About This Role
Research Scientists push the boundaries of what AI can do. They design experiments, develop novel architectures, publish papers, and translate research breakthroughs into production capabilities. This is where the fundamental advances happen, from attention mechanisms to diffusion models to reasoning chains.
The work is intellectually demanding and often ambiguous. You might spend months on an approach that doesn't pan out. The best research scientists combine deep mathematical intuition with engineering pragmatism. They know when to go deep on theory and when to run experiments. They read papers voraciously and can spot incremental contributions from genuine breakthroughs.
Across the 4,317 AI roles we're tracking, Research Scientist positions make up 4% of the market. At New York University, this role fits into their broader AI and engineering organization.
Research Scientist roles are concentrated at major AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR) and well-funded AI startups. The competition is intense. PhD is effectively required for most positions, and publication track record matters. Compensation is among the highest in AI, reflecting both the scarcity of talent and the strategic importance of research breakthroughs.
What the Work Looks Like
A typical week includes: reading and discussing recent papers with your team, designing and running experiments on multi-GPU clusters, analyzing results and iterating on hypotheses, writing up findings for internal review or publication, and collaborating with engineering teams to productionize promising results. The ratio of thinking to coding is higher than in engineering roles.
Research Scientist roles are concentrated at major AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR) and well-funded AI startups. The competition is intense. PhD is effectively required for most positions, and publication track record matters. Compensation is among the highest in AI, reflecting both the scarcity of talent and the strategic importance of research breakthroughs.
Skills in Demand for This Role
PhD strongly preferred for most roles. Deep expertise in a specific area (NLP, computer vision, reinforcement learning, multimodal) is expected. PyTorch is the standard. Publication track record matters. Strong mathematical foundations in linear algebra, probability, optimization, and information theory are assumed.
Beyond the fundamentals, companies value experience with large-scale distributed training, novel architecture design, and the ability to bridge theory and practice. Understanding of current frontier topics (reasoning, multimodal, long-context, alignment) is essential. Code quality matters more than many researchers expect. Labs want researchers who can implement their ideas cleanly.
Strong research postings specify the research area, mention the team you'd join, and describe the problems they're working on. They often list recent publications from the team. Vague 'AI research' postings without specifics usually mean the company wants to sound impressive but doesn't have a real research agenda.
Compensation Benchmarks
Research Scientist roles pay a median of $222,200 based on 378 positions with disclosed compensation. Entry-level AI roles across all categories have a median of $110,000. This role's midpoint ($75K) sits 66% below the category median. Disclosed range: $70K to $80K.
Across all AI roles, the market median is $215,000. Top-quartile compensation starts at $266,300. The 90th percentile reaches $320,790. For comparison, the highest-paying categories include AI Safety ($287,500) and Research Engineer ($272,100). By seniority level: Entry: $110,000; Mid: $194,400; Senior: $227,400; Director: $274,554; VP: $241,000.
New York University AI Hiring
New York University has 3 open AI roles right now. They're hiring across Research Scientist. Positions span New York, NY, US, Brooklyn, NY, US. Compensation range: $65K - $80K.
Location Context
AI roles in New York pay a median of $220,000 across 1,650 tracked positions.
Career Path
Common paths into Research Scientist roles include PhD Student, Research Engineer, Postdoc.
From here, career progression typically leads toward Research Lead, Distinguished Scientist, VP of Research.
The PhD is the entry point for most paths. Choose your advisor and research area carefully since they'll define your first industry position. Publish consistently, contribute to open-source projects in your area, and build relationships at conferences. Industry research offers better compensation and compute resources than academia, but the pressure to show product impact is real.
What to Expect in Interviews
Research interviews are multi-stage: a research talk (present your best paper), technical deep-dives on your methodology, and often a 'research proposal' exercise where you design an experiment to test a hypothesis. Coding rounds test implementation ability alongside theoretical knowledge. Be prepared to implement a paper from scratch and discuss the design choices the authors made. Strong candidates can critique papers constructively and identify gaps in experimental methodology.
When evaluating opportunities: Strong research postings specify the research area, mention the team you'd join, and describe the problems they're working on. They often list recent publications from the team. Vague 'AI research' postings without specifics usually mean the company wants to sound impressive but doesn't have a real research agenda.
AI Hiring Overview
The AI job market has 4,317 open positions tracked in our dataset. By seniority: 138 entry-level, 2,071 mid-level, 1,655 senior, and 453 leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level). Remote roles make up 15% of the market (635 positions). The remaining 3,657 roles require on-site or hybrid attendance.
The market median for AI roles is $215,000. Top-quartile compensation starts at $266,300. The 90th percentile reaches $320,790. Highest-paying categories: AI Safety ($287,500 median, 34 roles); Research Engineer ($272,100 median, 227 roles); AI Engineering Manager ($244,000 median, 23 roles).
Research Scientist roles are concentrated at major AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR) and well-funded AI startups. The competition is intense. PhD is effectively required for most positions, and publication track record matters. Compensation is among the highest in AI, reflecting both the scarcity of talent and the strategic importance of research breakthroughs.
The AI Job Market Today
The AI job market spans 4,317 open positions across 15 role categories. The largest categories by volume: AI/ML Engineer (3,004), Data Scientist (345), AI Software Engineer (309). These three account for the majority of open positions, though smaller categories often have higher per-role compensation because of specialized skill requirements.
The seniority mix tells a story about where AI teams are in their maturity. Entry-level roles (138) are outnumbered by mid-level (2,071) and senior (1,655) positions, reflecting that most companies are past the 'build a team from scratch' phase and need experienced engineers who can ship production systems. Leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level) total 453 positions, representing the bottleneck between technical execution and organizational strategy.
Remote work availability sits at 15% of all AI roles (635 positions), with 3,657 requiring on-site or hybrid attendance. The remote share has stabilized after the post-pandemic correction. Senior and specialized roles (Research Scientist, ML Architect) are more likely to be remote-eligible than entry-level positions, partly because experienced hires have more negotiating power and partly because these roles require less hands-on mentorship.
AI compensation is structured in clear tiers. The market median sits at $215,000. Top-quartile roles start at $266,300, and the 90th percentile reaches $320,790. These figures include base salary with disclosed compensation. Total compensation (including equity, bonuses, and sign-on) runs 20-40% higher at companies that offer those components.
Category matters for compensation. AI Safety roles lead at $287,500 median, while Prompt Engineer roles sit at $145,000. The spread between highest and lowest-paying categories reflects the premium on specialized technical skills versus broader analytical roles.
The most in-demand skills across all AI postings: Python (2,249 postings), Aws (1,224 postings), Azure (938 postings), Rag (915 postings), Gcp (660 postings), Pytorch (640 postings), Prompt Engineering (624 postings), Kubernetes (559 postings). Python dominates, appearing in the vast majority of role descriptions regardless of category. Cloud platform experience (AWS, GCP, Azure) is the second most common requirement. The newer entrants to the top skills list (RAG, vector databases, LLM APIs) reflect the shift from traditional ML toward generative AI applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
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