Entry Level Policy Researcher Jobs
New grad policy researcher jobs welcome recent graduates and entry level candidates with zero to two years of experience, where strong internship work or a focused writing portfolio can matter more than a long resume. Most openings are on-site roles across Education, Technology & Software, and Healthcare & Medical Services, with employers like UT Southwestern Medical Center, Distyl, and TikTok hiring at this level now.
Find JobsOverview
Showing 5 of 80+ Entry Level Policy Researcher jobs
Responsibilities
About the Team: E-commerce's Governance and Experience is a global team responsible for ensuring our marketplace is safe and trustworthy for not only our users, but also sellers and creators. We value user satisfaction and work on policies, rules and systems to ensure quality. We are looking for an experienced individual contributor to own customer complaint investigations in the U.S. region and drive cross-functional collaboration.
What You'll Do: We are seeking a detail-oriented Insights Analyst to drive analytics for our Governance team. In this role, you will go beyond content moderation to perform strategic audits and trend synthesis across Creator and Content, Product Listing and Intellectual Property (IPR) policy domains. You will be responsible for transforming raw operational data into high-fidelity reports that inform policy updates and strategic roadmaps. The ideal candidate possesses a "detective mindset"—the ability to spot a single anomaly and trace it back to a systemic risk or opportunity.
Responsibilities:
- Content Deep-dives: Execute complex, deep-dive reviews of creator, seller, and product content, applying a nuanced understanding of Governance policies to identify subtle risk patterns and gaps.
- Trend Reporting: Draft recurring insights reports to connect raw data to business priorities, providing actionable summaries for the Strategic Program Managers.
- Root-Cause Investigation: Conduct forensic-level analysis on sensitive escalations and customer complaints to identify the underlying policy gaps or operational friction points.
- Process Feedback & SOP Iteration: Continuously refine audit methodologies and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), ensuring our review tools stay ahead of evolving bad-actor behaviors.
- Cross-Functional Signaling: Proactively flag emerging risks and violative trends to the Strategic Program Managers, providing evidence to inform process improvements.
- Domain Support & Special Projects: Execute deep-dive metric investigations to identify the drivers behind fluctuations in key performance indicators (KPIs).
Qualifications
Minimum Qualifications:
- 1+ years of experience in E-commerce investigations, Trust & Safety, Risk Management, or specialized Data Analysis.
- Exceptional analytical writing skills: The ability to communicate complex technical findings in a clear, concise executive summary.
- Demonstrated experience using data to tell a story or advocate for a process change.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Proficiency in Excel (pivots, VLOOKUPs) or basic SQL.
About USDS
TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC is dedicated to the safety and security of millions of Americans who create, discover, and connect with what they love on the apps we operate. The Joint Venture has been established in compliance with the Executive Order signed by President Trump on September 25, 2025. Our foundation is a comprehensive data privacy and cybersecurity program we operate under defined safeguards to protect national security and secure U.S. user data, apps and the algorithm. We safeguard the U.S. content ecosystem, holding decision-making authority for trust and safety policies and moderation. USDS Joint Venture helps ensure Americans can continue to express their creativity, discover new hobbies and interests, and build thriving communities and businesses on a global scale. On-site presence across teams allows the company to operate with greater speed, alignment, and agility — especially in areas like real-time decision-making, team development, and integrated execution. As such, the company is shifting from a hybrid work model to a fully in-person schedule up to 5 days a week.
Why Join Us
Inspiring creativity is at the core of TikTok's mission. Our innovative product is built to help people authentically express themselves, discover and connect – and our global, diverse teams make that possible. Together, we create value for our communities, inspire creativity and bring joy – a mission we work towards every day. We strive to do great things with great people. We lead with curiosity, humility, and a desire to make impact in a rapidly growing tech company. Every challenge is an opportunity to learn and innovate as one team. We're resilient and embrace challenges as they come. By constantly iterating and fostering an "Always Day 1" mindset, we achieve meaningful breakthroughs for ourselves, our company, and our users. When we create and grow together, the possibilities are limitless. Join us.
Diversity & Inclusion
TikTok is committed to creating an inclusive space where employees are valued for their skills, experiences, and unique perspectives. Our platform connects people from across the globe and so does our workplace. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. To achieve that goal, we are committed to celebrating our diverse voices and to creating an environment that reflects the many communities we reach. We are passionate about this and hope you are too.
USDS Reasonable Accommodation
USDS is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities, pregnancy, sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation, please reach out to us at https://tinyurl.com/USDS-RA.
Job Information
【For Pay Transparency】Compensation Description (Annually) The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $96000 - $168889 annually. Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate’s qualifications, skills, competencies and experience, and location. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work, and this role may be eligible for additional discretionary bonuses/incentives, and restricted stock units. Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Employees have day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) savings plan with company match, paid parental leave, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, wellbeing benefits, among others. Employees also receive 10 paid holidays per year, 10 paid sick days per year and 17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure). The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.
For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates: Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment:
- Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues;
- Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and
- Exercising sound judgment.
Responsibilities
About the Team: E-commerce's Governance and Experience is a global team responsible for ensuring our marketplace is safe and trustworthy for not only our users, but also sellers and creators. We value user satisfaction and work on policies, rules and systems to ensure quality. We are looking for an experienced individual contributor to own customer complaint investigations in the U.S. region and drive cross-functional collaboration.
What You'll Do: We are seeking a detail-oriented Insights Analyst to drive analytics for our Governance team. In this role, you will go beyond content moderation to perform strategic audits and trend synthesis across Creator and Content, Product Listing and Intellectual Property (IPR) policy domains. You will be responsible for transforming raw operational data into high-fidelity reports that inform policy updates and strategic roadmaps. The ideal candidate possesses a "detective mindset"—the ability to spot a single anomaly and trace it back to a systemic risk or opportunity.
Responsibilities:
- Content Deep-dives: Execute complex, deep-dive reviews of creator, seller, and product content, applying a nuanced understanding of Governance policies to identify subtle risk patterns and gaps.
- Trend Reporting: Draft recurring insights reports to connect raw data to business priorities, providing actionable summaries for the Strategic Program Managers.
- Root-Cause Investigation: Conduct forensic-level analysis on sensitive escalations and customer complaints to identify the underlying policy gaps or operational friction points.
- Process Feedback & SOP Iteration: Continuously refine audit methodologies and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), ensuring our review tools stay ahead of evolving bad-actor behaviors.
- Cross-Functional Signaling: Proactively flag emerging risks and violative trends to the Strategic Program Managers, providing evidence to inform process improvements.
- Domain Support & Special Projects: Execute deep-dive metric investigations to identify the drivers behind fluctuations in key performance indicators (KPIs).
Qualifications
Minimum Qualifications:
- 1+ years of experience in E-commerce investigations, Trust & Safety, Risk Management, or specialized Data Analysis.
- Exceptional analytical writing skills: The ability to communicate complex technical findings in a clear, concise executive summary.
- Demonstrated experience using data to tell a story or advocate for a process change.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Proficiency in Excel (pivots, VLOOKUPs) or basic SQL.
About USDS
TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC is dedicated to the safety and security of millions of Americans who create, discover, and connect with what they love on the apps we operate. The Joint Venture has been established in compliance with the Executive Order signed by President Trump on September 25, 2025. Our foundation is a comprehensive data privacy and cybersecurity program we operate under defined safeguards to protect national security and secure U.S. user data, apps and the algorithm. We safeguard the U.S. content ecosystem, holding decision-making authority for trust and safety policies and moderation. USDS Joint Venture helps ensure Americans can continue to express their creativity, discover new hobbies and interests, and build thriving communities and businesses on a global scale. On-site presence across teams allows the company to operate with greater speed, alignment, and agility — especially in areas like real-time decision-making, team development, and integrated execution. As such, the company is shifting from a hybrid work model to a fully in-person schedule up to 5 days a week.
Why Join Us
Inspiring creativity is at the core of TikTok's mission. Our innovative product is built to help people authentically express themselves, discover and connect – and our global, diverse teams make that possible. Together, we create value for our communities, inspire creativity and bring joy – a mission we work towards every day. We strive to do great things with great people. We lead with curiosity, humility, and a desire to make impact in a rapidly growing tech company. Every challenge is an opportunity to learn and innovate as one team. We're resilient and embrace challenges as they come. By constantly iterating and fostering an "Always Day 1" mindset, we achieve meaningful breakthroughs for ourselves, our company, and our users. When we create and grow together, the possibilities are limitless. Join us.
Diversity & Inclusion
TikTok is committed to creating an inclusive space where employees are valued for their skills, experiences, and unique perspectives. Our platform connects people from across the globe and so does our workplace. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. To achieve that goal, we are committed to celebrating our diverse voices and to creating an environment that reflects the many communities we reach. We are passionate about this and hope you are too.
USDS Reasonable Accommodation
USDS is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities, pregnancy, sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation, please reach out to us at https://tinyurl.com/USDS-RA.
Job Information
【For Pay Transparency】Compensation Description (Annually) The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $96000 - $168889 annually. Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate’s qualifications, skills, competencies and experience, and location. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work, and this role may be eligible for additional discretionary bonuses/incentives, and restricted stock units. Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Employees have day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) savings plan with company match, paid parental leave, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, wellbeing benefits, among others. Employees also receive 10 paid holidays per year, 10 paid sick days per year and 17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure). The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.
For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates: Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment:
- Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues;
- Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and
- Exercising sound judgment.
See All 80 Entry Level Policy Researcher Jobs
Find roles that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find JobsEntry Level Policy Researcher Job Market
Who's Hiring
Top Industries Hiring
- Education33
- Technology & Software20
- Healthcare & Medical Services8
- Investment & Asset Management6
- Electronics & Hardware4
Entry Level Policy Researcher Jobs: Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get an entry level policy researcher job?
Entry level policy researcher roles typically look for candidates who can analyze data, synthesize sources, and write clearly under tight deadlines. A research internship, senior thesis, or policy brief from coursework gives hiring managers something concrete to evaluate. Familiarity with qualitative or quantitative research methods, plus demonstrated interest in a specific policy area such as health, education, or housing, helps a new candidate stand out at this stage.
Which companies hire entry level policy researchers?
Companies hiring entry level policy researchers right now include UT Southwestern Medical Center, Distyl, and TikTok, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. Hiring at this level comes from a wide range of employers, including think tanks, government agencies, nonprofits, consulting firms, and advocacy organizations that need analytical support across active research projects.
Are there remote entry level policy researcher jobs?
Yes, though on-site and hybrid roles remain common at this level. About 26% of entry level policy researcher openings are remote or hybrid as of November 2026, reflecting the document-heavy, data-driven nature of the work. Candidates open to any work setting will find the broadest range of opportunities, while fully remote roles tend to be more competitive at the entry level.
Are these new grad policy researcher jobs?
Yes, the roles on this page include new grad, recent graduate, and junior policy researcher positions. A new grad friendly posting typically welcomes zero to two years of experience, accepts internships or academic research in place of full-time work history, and considers a strong writing sample or policy portfolio as qualifying evidence. Look for language like "no prior experience required" or "entry level" in the job description.
Which industries hire the most entry level policy researchers?
Entry Level policy researcher roles concentrate in Education, Technology & Software, and Healthcare & Medical Services, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. These sectors tend to drive hiring at the entry level because they run ongoing research programs, respond to shifting regulations, and need junior analysts who can support senior researchers with literature reviews, data collection, and report writing.