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Updated through 2024NTEE V · Social Science

Social Science nonprofitexecutive pay

Median top-executive pay across 409 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
$120,010
The typical social science nonprofit's highest-paid executive earns $120,010 in total reported compensation.
25th pct
$55k
75th pct
$208k
90th pct
$415k
409 organizations · 2021 – 2024
Percentile distribution

Where the middle 50% lands.

Half earn between $55k and $208k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $415k, roughly 3.5 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.

PercentileTotal compMeans
90th$414,750Top 10% of earners
75th$207,60025% earn more than this
50th · median$120,010The typical executive
25th$55,49925% earn less than this
10th$21,54410% 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$31k$73,129$114k207
$1M – $10M$117k$158,037$248k155
$10M – $100M$316k$466,198$597k41
$100M – $500M$939k$1,045,810$1.3M6
Revenue bands with fewer than 5 organizations are not shown.
Geography

Pay varies by state.

District of Columbia pays $135,415 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.

Directory

Social science research organizations, think tanks, policy institutes, and academic societies. Covers economics, political science, sociology, and interdisciplinary research. There are 733 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

733 organizations · Page 3 of 15

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
AMERICAN RESEARCH CENTER IN EGYPT INCAlexandriaVA$3.9M4
Montana Policy Action IncBillingsMT$3.8M0
MYERS & BRIGGS FOUNDATION INCGainesvilleFL$3.7M3
A BETTER BALANCE INCNew YorkNY$3.6M6
COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP OF OREGONSalemOR$3.6M1
COALITION FOR A PROSPEROUS AMERICA INCWashingtonDC$3.6M6
NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR THE SOCIAL STUDIESSilver SpringMD$3.6M2
THE WILLIAM R KENAN JR FUND FOR ETHICSChapel HillNC$3.4M0
AMERICAN SOCIETY OF OVERSEAS RESEARCHAlexandriaVA$3.3M1
CENTER FOR INDEPENDENT THOUGHTBala CynwydPA$3.2M1
THOMAS R BROWN FOUNDATIONTucsonAZ$3.2M0
CALIFORNIA CHANGELAWYERSSan FranciscoCA$3M3
It's My Community Initiative IncOklahoma CityOK$3M1
SYNERGIA - INITIATIVES FOR HUMAN RIGHTSWashingtonDC$3M1
Council on Governmental RelationsWashingtonDC$2.9M6
OPEN TO DEBATE FOUNDATIONNew YorkNY$2.9M2
EQUITY RESEARCH ORGANIZATIONPhiladelphiaPA$2.9M6
THE POLICY CIRCLE COWilmetteIL$2.9M3
Americans for Prosperity FoundationArlingtonVA$2.8M11
LSB LEAKEY FDTN FOR RESEARCH RELATED TO HUMAN ORIGINS BEHAVIOR AND SURVIVALSan FranciscoCA$2.8M5
Campbell CollaborationPhiladelphiaPA$2.8M1
ACTIONAID USAWashingtonDC$2.7M9
NATIVE AMERICAN FINANCE OFFICER ASSOCIATIONWashingtonDC$2.7M5
THE ROCKVILLE INSTITUTE A RESEARCH INST FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SOCIAL SCIENCERockvilleMD$2.6M3
ASSOCIATION FOR BEHAVIORAL AND COGNITIVE THERAPIES INC (FKA ASSOC ADVANCE BEHA)New YorkNY$2.6M3
JOSEPH RAINEY CENTER FOR PUBLIC POLICYWashingtonDC$2.6M1
POVERTY AND SOCIAL REFORM INSTITUTEWarrenMI$2.6M1
CENTER FOR PUBLIC INTEREST RESEARCH INCBostonMA$2.6M2
SHARED-USE MOBILITY CENTERChicagoIL$2.5M2
American Institute of Indian StudiesChicagoIL$2.5M2
SCHOOL FOR ADVANCED RESEARCHSanta FeNM$2.5M2
RICE INSTITUTE INCAmstonCT$2.5M2
42 ANALYTICS EDUCATIONAL INCNew YorkNY$2.4M2
LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES ASSOCIATIONPittsburghPA$2.4M1
LET'S PRESERVE THE AMERICAN DREAM INCTallahasseeFL$2.4M0
ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN GEOGRAPHERSWashingtonDC$2.4M9
COALITION OF COMMUNITIES OF COLORPortlandOR$2.4M1
VIA INSTITUTE ON CHARACTERCincinnatiOH$2.4M5
American-German Institute Johns Hopkins UniversityWashingtonDC$2.3M4
PEOPLE UNITED FOR PRIVACY FOUNDATIONWashingtonDC$2.3M7
THE ALPAUGH FAMILY ECONOMIC CENTER FOR EDUCATION AND RESEARCHCincinnatiOH$2.2M1
OAKDALE FOUNDATIONWaterfordMI$2.2M1
Negative Population Growth IncAlexandriaVA$2.2M4
WASHINGTON MONTHLY INSTITUTEWashingtonDC$2.1M2
HIGHER AMBITION LEADERSHIP ALLIANCE INCBurlingtonMA$2.1M3
GOOD ENERGY COLLECTIVE INCSacramentoCA$2M3
INSTITUTE FOR POLITICAL INNOVATION INCMilwaukeeWI$2M1
FRIENDS OF CRAFT INCGosportIN$2M2
NORTH AMERICAN ARAB COUNCIL FOR THE SOCIAL SCIENCES INCNew YorkNY$2M1
KNOLOGY LTDNew YorkNY$1.9M4