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Updated through 2024NTEE V · Social Science

Social Science nonprofitexecutive pay

Median top-executive pay across 435 social science nonprofits, 2021 – 2024. Each organization is counted once at its most recent filing, using the highest-paid leader reported on IRS Form 990, Schedule J.

Organizations that conduct research and education in the social sciences, including economics, political science, and sociology.

Median executive pay
$122,500
The typical social science nonprofit's highest-paid executive earns $122,500 in total reported compensation.
25th pct
$53k
75th pct
$209k
90th pct
$415k
435 organizations · 2021 – 2024
Percentile distribution

Where the middle 50% lands.

Half earn between $53k and $209k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $415k, roughly 3.4 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.

PercentileTotal compMeans
90th$414,837Top 10% of earners
75th$208,68225% earn more than this
50th · median$122,500The typical executive
25th$52,75225% earn less than this
10th$19,85410% of executives earn less than this
By organization size

Bigger budgets, bigger paychecks.

Median executive pay rises with organization revenue. Each band shows the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile of top-executive pay for social science nonprofits in that revenue range.

Revenue band25thMedian75thOrgs
Under $1M$30k$65,991$114k221
$1M – $10M$119k$171,808$253k166
$10M – $100M$312k$426,067$545k41
$100M – $500M$854k$1,022,915$1.2M7
Revenue bands with fewer than 5 organizations are not shown.
Geography

Pay varies by state.

District of Columbia pays $136,006 more than the national median across social science nonprofits.

By role

Benchmark a specific Social Science role

Drill into median pay for individual leadership roles within social science nonprofits.

Board & trustee pay

Social Science board & trustee pay norms

14% of social science nonprofits pay at least one board member or trustee, with a typical per-person payment of $46,060 across a median board of 5 paid members.

Organizations paying board members
14%
Median board pay
$46,060
Median paid board size
5
By filing type
Form 990: 17%
Form 990-EZ: 9%
Form 990-PF: 12%
Directory

Social science research organizations, think tanks, policy institutes, and academic societies. Covers economics, political science, sociology, and interdisciplinary research. There are 771 social science organizations in our database with compensation data from IRS Form 990 filings. Use the table below to browse them, or sort by revenue, location, or number of reported executives.

Organizations in Social Science

771 organizations · Page 12 of 16

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
American Policy Project IncLincolnNE$108k2
AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCHDallasTX$108k0
FLORAND RESEARCH FOUNDATION INCGainesvilleFL$108k1
PATRIOTIC REPUBLICChicagoIL$107k0
Center for Public Policy StudiesDenverCO$106k1
NATIONAL WOMENS HISTORY ALLIANCESanta RosaCA$105k2
POLICE DATA ACCESSIBILITY PROJECT INCPittsburghPA$105k1
ASSOCIATION OF POPULATION CENTERSAlexandriaVA$104k0
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF ISLAMIC PSYCHOLOGY INCORPORATEDRestonVA$103k0
SELECTIVE MUTISM ASSOCIATIONWinter GardenFL$103k6
CLAY COUNTY AFRICAN AMERICAN LEGACYLibertyMO$103k0
NORTHWEST ALLIANCE FOR PSYCHOANALYTIC STUDYSeattleWA$102k0
TAMPA BAY AREA COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS INCTampaFL$101k1
EATING DISORDER SUPPORT FUNDDallasTX$100k0
OMEGA POINT INSTITUTESanta BarbaraCA$99k0
Solidarity Research CenterLos AngelesCA$98k0
TF CHEN CULTURAL CENTER INCNew YorkNY$98k0
MOSAIC THERAPY COLLECTIVESanta BarbaraCA$97k0
FES INSTITUTEAvon LakeOH$97k0
POSITIVE MONEY US INCBroomfieldCO$97k0
STATE TAX RESEARCH INSTITUTEWashingtonDC$97k3
INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH MIDDLE EASTERN POLICY INCWashingtonDC$96k1
NARRATIVE RESEARCH GROUP INCNarragansettRI$96k0
CORE GIFT INSTITUTEVashonWA$95k0
INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS SOCIETYWashingtonDC$95k0
AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR YEMENI STUDIESWashingtonDC$92k0
Chrisney Civic Association IncChrisneyIN$92k0
Good InSight IncBostonMA$91k0
LAW WORKS INCWinstedCT$91k0
THE INSTITUTE FOR FAMILIES AND NANNIESSan FranciscoCA$90k0
LEHIGH VALLEY LABOR COUNCILEastonPA$90k0
DOM RESEARCH CENTER INCSummitMS$90k0
ATLANTIC ECONOMIC SOCIETYAtlantaGA$89k0
INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONSacramentoCA$89k0
Institute for Diversity and Civic LifeAustinTX$89k1
LAW AND CIVICS READING AND WRITING INSTITUTEChicagoIL$87k2
INTERNATIONAL VISUAL SOCIOLOGY ASSOCIATION INCChicagoIL$87k0
DOMINQUEZ ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH GROUPGrand JunctionCO$84k0
Bramble Center for Informal Research IncSan DiegoCA$80k3
Ozark Research Institute IncGreenlandAR$79k0
Mother Divine Institute of Sacred ScienceLa CanadaCA$79k1
THE RONALD COASE INSTITUTESt LouisMO$78k0
CHARTERED INSTITUTE OF ARBITRATORS NORTH AMERICA INCGlendaleCA$77k0
Association for Gerontology Education in Social Work IncMadisonWI$77k0
GREEN BAG INCWashingtonDC$76k0
ECONOMIC CLUB OF TAMPA INCLutzFL$75k0
California Problem Solvers FoundationSacramentoCA$75k0
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF SOCIAL WORK AND SOCIAL WELFAREFairfaxVA$75k0
PERICLES FOUNDATION OF AMERICA INCNycNY$75k0
OHIO COUNCIL FOR THE SOCIAL STUDIES C/O ADAM MOTTERWadsworthOH$73k1