Applied History & Political Science Benchmark Specialist
Mercor • Remote, United States
Education
PhD
Type
Hourly
Pay Rate
$44–$56/hr
Listed
51d ago
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- Weekly hours
- 10 hrs/week
About this role
From the Mercor listing
Role Overview
We are seeking experts in history and political science to author and review high-quality academic assessment content for an AI research initiative. You will write and verify rigorous multiple-choice questions across core history and political science domains, evaluate solution quality, and help establish gold-standard benchmarks used to advance AI capabilities.
You will be assigned one of two task types:
Question Authoring — Create original, challenging multiple-choice questions in your area of expertise, rate their difficulty, and submit them for review.
Question Verification — Review pre-written questions for accuracy, clarity, and rigor. Edit where needed, rate difficulty, and document any changes made.
History & Political Science Domains Covered
National Security, Public Policy, Business History, Environmental History, Latin American History.
Key Responsibilities
Author original history and political science questions that test deep conceptual understanding, not surface-level recall
Ensure questions are unambiguous, self-contained, and precisely defined — all necessary information must be in the problem statement
Rate each question's difficulty: Medium (intro undergraduate), Hard (advanced undergraduate), or Expert (post-graduate and above)
Provide 1 correct answer and 9 plausible but subtly incorrect alternatives that challenge expert-level solvers
Write step-by-step Chain-of-Thought solutions with clear, concise reasoning in markdown format
Supply 1–5 academic references per question from reputable sources (peer-reviewed journals, university repositories)
For verification tasks: flag issues with clarity, completeness, precision, or solvability and justify any edits made
Ideal Qualifications
PhD or doctoral candidate in History, Political Science, International Relations, or a closely related field
Master's degree considered for candidates with exceptional depth in a specific subdomain
Strong command of historiographical methods, political theory, and comparative analysis
Research publications or policy experience is a strong plus
Excellent written English and ability to express complex ideas clearly and concisely
More About the Opportunity
Expected commitment: 10+ hours/week
Asynchronous, fully remote work
Requirements
- Must be eligible to work in one of: Remote, United States
- Fluent proficiency in English (Written & Verbal)
- Reliable high-speed internet connection
- PhD's degree or equivalent professional experience
- Demonstrated expertise in Languages
How long hiring takes
Across the AI training platforms we refer candidates to, the median gap between referral and hire is about 30 days. It varies by platform and role, so treat it as a rough guide for this one.
Talent Pool members
Apply through this link and we can put you forward to Mercor when your profile is a strong match. Not every applicant is submitted. If you're not in the pool yet, set up your profile first.
Set up your profile →What to Expect
Looking at Mercor Languages listings we've tracked, contracts in this domain typically run about 23.5 weeks. Actual length varies by project, but this gives you a realistic baseline going in.
Based on 64 extracted Mercor Languages listings.
Eligible Languages
Fluent proficiency in English or Latin American
Why this role
At $44–$56/hr, this remote Applied History & Political Science Benchmark Specialist role pays competitively without asking you to relocate, interview in person, or keep fixed hours in Languages.
Talent pool
We're light on Languages candidates
We've matched 72 people with a Languages background against 925 Languages listings we've tracked, so most go out without one. Set up a profile and we'll consider you for a role like this one.
Set up your profileSkills and categories
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Common questions
Does it cost money to apply to Mercor?
No, applying and joining Mercor is free. Mercor's revenue comes from a fee it charges the client on top of your hourly rate, not from applicants. Treat any request for payment to join as a red flag.
Is Mercor for freelancers or full-time contractors?
Mercor places you with one client for a defined engagement, like 'Python Tutor for 3 months', rather than having you grab small tasks from a shared queue. Most roles function as steady contract work, not one-off gigs.
What does task-based AI training work look like?
Practical, hands-on data work: recording short videos, categorizing images, rating text responses, or analyzing data. Tasks are designed to be short and distinct, typically 5 to 60 minutes each.
What does asynchronous AI training work mean in practice?
No set hours, no check-ins, no meetings. You log in when you want, pick up an available task, complete it, and submit; nobody is waiting on you in real time. That's different from remote employment, where you're expected online during business hours. The tradeoff: you're competing with others for available tasks, so an empty queue means there's simply nothing to do until more work is released.
What does Languages work look like for an Applied History & Political Science Benchmark Specialist?
Tasks here are scoped to Languages, not generic labeling. As an Applied History & Political Science Benchmark Specialist, expect to draw on real domain judgment (evaluating outputs, correcting errors, or providing expert reasoning specific to Languages) rather than following a one-size-fits-all rubric. If you don't have hands-on Languages background, this is likely not the right listing to start with.
What specific skills does this listing call for?
English and Latin American are named directly in the listing. If you don't have hands-on experience with these, expect the screening process to test for them directly rather than accepting adjacent experience as a substitute.
How many hours per week does this role require?
Based on the listing, this role is scoped at about 10 hours per week. Treat this as a real commitment expectation, not a loose estimate.
How much does this specific role pay?
This listing is posted at $44–$56/hr, an hourly rate. The range reflects experience level and negotiated terms, not a placeholder, so where you land in it depends on your background and the assessment. Pay can change between when we last checked the listing and when you apply, so confirm the current number on the platform's own application page before committing time.
Do I need to be fluent in English or Latin American?
Yes. This role specifically requires English or Latin American proficiency, on top of the English most AI training work assumes by default. If English is not a language you're fluent in, this is not the right role. Filter for your native language to find better-matched listings.
What happens when I click Apply on this listing?
You'll be taken to Mercor's external site to complete your application there. This listing links through a referral, but the process is identical to applying directly; the link just routes you correctly. Create an account on their site and follow their onboarding steps.
Is a PhD required?
For this specific role, yes, or near-equivalent professional depth. The credential gate is enforced at the assessment stage, not just on paper. That said, active PhD candidates and people with equivalent published research have qualified without a formal degree. The assessment is the real filter.
Can I apply from outside the United States?
This specific role is open only to people based in the United States. If you are somewhere else, applying is unlikely to lead to an offer even if you pass the assessment, because the restriction is usually about where the work can legally be contracted rather than your skills. Read the full description for any tax-residency or right-to-work caveats before you apply.
How soon will I start working after applying to Mercor?
Not immediately. Mercor is a talent marketplace, not a task queue, so applying puts you in a pool of candidates. You start working only once a specific client, like a major AI lab, selects your profile, and that matching process can take weeks.