Applied Sociology Careers and Pay

Some of the most common career paths for sociologists are in education, however, other more specialised jobs are in applied sociology. This includes social work, journalism, administration, and more. Here are a few sources that report on applied sociology careers and pay.

Careers

Career Sidekick lists the top jobs for sociology graduates as social worker, human resources specialist, and market research analyst. The full list is as follows:

1. Social Worker
2. Human Resources Specialist
3. Market Research Analyst
4. Public Relations Specialist
5. Community Development Worker
6. Policy Analyst
7. Non-profit Program Coordinator
8. Market Researcher
9. Urban Planner
10. Criminal Justice Researcher
11. Policy Advocate
12. Diversity and Inclusion Specialist
13. Social Researcher
14. Higher Education Administrator
15. Humanitarian Aid Worker

For additional description of some of these roles, see here.

Pay

Research.com reports that social scientists earn high wages in philanthropy (grant-making and giving industries), educational support services, management companies and enterprises, scientific research and development, and rail transportation.

They cite research by Radford and Joseph, which finds there are limits to machine learning, and that social science skills are still in demand, with sociologists earning an average salary of $86,110. This figure is from the USA Bureau of Labour Statistics, which is also cited by other sources.

ZipRecruiter lists social scientist as the highest paying job, ranging from $57,000 to $116,500, and social science analyst ranges from $57,000 to $94,000.

Similarly, in Australia, humanities and social science graduates earn an average of $70,300, which is higher than maths and science graduates ($68,900). For Canada and UK, see here.

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