Social Data Scientist
Applies data science methods to social science questions. Uses machine learning, text analysis and network analysis on social data to study inequality, migration, public opinion and social change at scale. Bridges computer science and social science with ethical data use.
- AI exposure
- 62 of 100, moderate exposure
- Hiring trend
- Rising
- Hiring rate
- 45%
The role
What the work is, what it pays, and what it costs you.
At a glance
- Remote friendly
- Yes
- Freelance potential
- High
- Time to senior
- 7 years
- Adaptation level
- Moderate
A day in the role
Builds a text classification model to analyse public sentiment on social media, runs a network analysis of community organisations, interprets findings about information access inequality, and writes a methods paper.
What it pays
Kenyan market, per month- Entry
- KES 110,000-160,000
- Mid
- KES 220,000-370,000
- Senior
- KES 450,000-750,000
Exposure
How much of this a machine can already do, and how that was worked out.
Where this rating sits
1,516 rated careersRated above 84% of the 1,516 careers in the catalogue, which averages 43. Inside social sciences the mean is 41, across 88 careers.
What the rating is made of
Share of recorded tasks- Machine does it
- 15%Software can already complete this work end to end.
- Machine assists
- 45%A person still decides, but the drafting is done for them.
- Person does it
- 40%Judgement, relationships and accountability that do not transfer.
Named task by task
Already automated
- Training ML models on social data for classification and prediction
- Running text analysis pipelines (sentiment, topic modelling, NLP)
- Generating network visualisations and community detection
- Automating data pipelines for social media and survey data
Still human
- Designing social data research with appropriate methodology
- Interpreting findings in social, cultural and economic context
- Ensuring ethical data use and protecting vulnerable populations
- Collaborating with domain experts (sociologists, economists, public health)
- Writing research publications and policy briefs
- Building reproducible data pipelines and analysis workflows
- Communicating findings to non-technical stakeholders
Getting in
The routes into the role and what each one asks for.
What to study
8 courses- Certificate in Marriage and Family TherapyKsh 36,000a year
- Certificate in Sciences of Human DevelopmentKsh 36,000a year
- Certificate in International RelationsKsh 36,500a year
- Certificate in Peace, Security and ConflictKsh 36,500a year
- Diploma in Development Studies and Project ManagementKsh 50,000a year
- Diploma in Peace and Conflict StudiesKsh 54,000a year
- Certificate in Development StudiesKsh 59,000a year
- Certificate in CriminologyKsh 60,000a year
How people get in
Data science or social science degree
4 yearsHigh cost
BSc from UoN, JKUAT or Strathmore
Social data science postgrad
2-4 yearsHigh cost
MSc Data Science or Computational Social Science
Who hires
- APHRC
- iHub Nairobi
- GSMA Kenya
- World Bank Kenya
- Andela
Common misconceptions
Social data science is just data science
It requires understanding of social theory, research design and ethical considerations specific to human subjects.
Big data replaces surveys
Big data complements surveys — each has biases and strengths that the other addresses.
What happens next
How the role changes from here, and where it leads.
Supply and demand
- Demand
- 45
- Supply pressure
- 10
- Balance
- High demand
What to learn
- ML for social data
- Text analysis
- Network analysis
Related careers
Kenyan market notes
Growing demand at intersection of data science and social science. APHRC, World Bank Kenya and tech companies need analysts who can apply ML to social questions. Mobile phone data (Safaricom), social media data and financial transaction data create research opportunities. ZipRecruiter: social data scientist jobs $70K-$140K/year. iHub Nairobi and GSMA conduct digital research with social data science methods. Andela and tech companies hire data scientists with social science backgrounds for product insights. Strong remote work opportunities. Career path: Data Analyst → Data Scientist → Senior Data Scientist → Lead Data Scientist.
Further reading
This role is rated 62 out of 100 today. Save it and the app keeps that number, then tells you by how much it has moved when the record is next reviewed.