Social Science Research Assistants in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$51,338
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$12,372
19.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$54,534
North Carolina costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in North Carolina — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$63,710
Kept after tax
$51,338
Worth in national money
$54,534
State rank
12
of 45 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. North Carolina pays social science research assistants a middle wage of $63,710, ranking 12 of 45 states and sitting about 2.77% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 489 occupations North Carolina reports figures for, this is number 170.
- North Carolina is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $63,710 the take-home is $51,338; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $54,534 would nationally. The average comes to $65,260, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- North Carolina's median for social science research assistants is $63,710, about 2.77% above the national figure and 12 of 45 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- In North Carolina's occupational distribution, social science research assistants sits at 170 of 489 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Post-tax income for social science research assistants in North Carolina, on $63,710, is $51,338 — equivalent to $54,534 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $65,260 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
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Pay band: Social Science Research Assistants
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $49,980 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $63,710 |
| Top tenth earn over | $81,650 |
| This salary | $63,710 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in North Carolina | $51,338 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $53,371 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$389 |
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $61,179 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$470 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in North Carolina earn less than $63,710. The published range is $49,980 up to $81,650, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In North Carolina the take-home figure of $51,338, from $63,710, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 170 of 489 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $54,534 uses one figure for the whole of North Carolina. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 489 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 170.
- Reported values are medians; for social science research assistants in North Carolina the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $49,980 to $81,650. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for North Carolina is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $51,338 from $63,710. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 170 of 489 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $54,534, worked from $63,710, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular North Carolina address, on work sitting at 170 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $49,980 at the tenth percentile, $81,650 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in North Carolina sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $54,534 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and North Carolina's own levy, $51,338 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 45 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($49,980 to $81,650) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to North Carolina rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
North Carolina's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $54,534 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $51,338 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and North Carolina income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 45 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.