What does a Survey Researcher do?

Plan, develop, or conduct surveys. Day to day that includes work like review, classify, and record survey data in preparation for computer analysis and Monitor and evaluate survey progress and performance, using sample disposition reports and response rate calculations.

What skills should a Survey Researcher put on a resume?

O*NET rates Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, and Writing among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Survey Researcher list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Acarda CallAssist, Acarda ForbiddenCalls, Adobe ColdFusion, Apian SurveyPro, and Argus Perceptual Mapper. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Survey Researcher work?

O*NET records 26 titles for this occupation, including Data Analyst, Field Interviewer, Research Associate, and Research Fellow. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Survey Researcher need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 46% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Survey Researcher role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Survey Researcher resume example

A resume for a Survey Researcher needs to show the work itself: plan, develop, or conduct surveys. Day to day that means work like this: review, classify, and record survey data in preparation for computer analysis; monitor and evaluate survey progress and performance, using sample disposition reports and response rate calculations. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Data Analyst
Field Interviewer
Research Associate
Research Fellow
Market Survey Representative
Methodologist
Public Opinion Analyst
Research Interviewer
Survey Research Consultant
Telephone Interviewer
Analytic Methodologist
Bilingual Field Interviewer
Data Collection Specialist
Interviewer
Pollster
Proctor
Screening Field Interviewer
Survey Analyst

O*NET records 26 titles for this occupation in total.

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Review, classify, and record survey data in preparation for computer analysis.
Monitor and evaluate survey progress and performance, using sample disposition reports and response rate calculations.
Produce documentation of the questionnaire development process, data collection methods, sampling designs, and decisions related to sample statistical weighting.
Prepare and present summaries and analyses of survey data, including tables, graphs, and fact sheets that describe survey techniques and results.
Determine and specify details of survey projects, including sources of information, procedures to be used, and the design of survey instruments and materials.
Consult with clients to identify survey needs and specific requirements, such as special samples.
Conduct surveys and collect data, using methods such as interviews, questionnaires, focus groups, market analysis surveys, public opinion polls, literature reviews, and file reviews.
Support, plan, and coordinate operations for single or multiple surveys.
Conduct research to gather information about survey topics.
Direct and review the work of staff members, including survey support staff and interviewers who gather survey data.
Analyze data from surveys, old records, or case studies, using statistical software.
Direct updates and changes in survey implementation and methods.

16 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Review, classify, and record survey data in preparation for computer analysis, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Monitor and evaluate survey progress and performance, using sample disposition reports and response rate calculations, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Produce documentation of the questionnaire development process, data collection methods, sampling designs, and decisions related to sample statistical weighting, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Prepare and present summaries and analyses of survey data, including tables, graphs, and fact sheets that describe survey techniques and results, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Acarda CallAssist
Acarda ForbiddenCalls
Adobe ColdFusion
Apian SurveyPro
Argus Perceptual Mapper
Askia Design
Askia Vista
Askia Web
Askiaanalyse
Askiaface
Askiavoice
C++
CfMC COSI
CfMC SoundSurvent

98 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Laser printers
Notebook computers
Optical character readers
Personal computers
Personal digital assistants PDA
Scanners
Tablet computers

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Critical Thinking
02Active Listening
03Reading Comprehension
04Speaking
05Writing
06Complex Problem Solving
07Judgment and Decision Making
08Mathematics
09Active Learning
10Coordination

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

English Language
Mathematics
Customer and Personal Service
Administration and Management
Computers and Electronics
Sociology and Anthropology
Communications and Media

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

46%Bachelor's Degree
38%Master's Degree
4%Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Extensive Preparation Needed”. Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.

Common questions

What does a Survey Researcher do?: Plan, develop, or conduct surveys. Day to day that includes work like review, classify, and record survey data in preparation for computer analysis and Monitor and evaluate survey progress and performance, using sample disposition reports and response rate calculations.
What skills should a Survey Researcher put on a resume?: O*NET rates Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, and Writing among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Survey Researcher list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Acarda CallAssist, Acarda ForbiddenCalls, Adobe ColdFusion, Apian SurveyPro, and Argus Perceptual Mapper. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Survey Researcher work?: O*NET records 26 titles for this occupation, including Data Analyst, Field Interviewer, Research Associate, and Research Fellow. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Survey Researcher need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 46% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Survey Researcher role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.