Senior Researcher Jobs in USA with Visa Sponsorship
Senior Researcher roles are among the more sponsorship-friendly positions in academia, biotech, and policy, employers regularly file H-1B visa and O-1 visa petitions for qualified candidates. Most require a master's or PhD in a relevant field, and your degree discipline needs to align directly with the research area. For detailed occupation requirements, see the O*NET profile.
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Get Access To All JobsINTRODUCTION
Control Risks is looking to hire an Online Threat Intelligence Researcher to support a major client of ours. This position will conduct open-source intelligence research to support our client's threat intelligence program. The role will provide open source intelligence support, focusing on Person of Interest research. OSINT analysts also support Executive Protection and employee, facility, event safety and security by providing persistent situational awareness research and support.
ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES
- Monitor, triage, and assess high-volume intelligence alerts from OSINT and security platforms, identifying potential risks to employees.
- Conduct deeper-dive investigations into relevant threats and provide actionable insights to support incident response.
- Support response efforts for incidents impacting remote employees and travelers, including monitoring and communications during active events.
- Refine and optimize search queries and alerting frameworks to reduce noise and improve intelligence quality.
- Produce written reports outlining findings identified from threat monitoring and OSINT research.
- Partner closely with Corporate Security leadership to prioritize alerts, manage workload, and enhance intelligence processes.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
- A bachelor’s degree in history, political science, international relations, intelligence analysis, criminal justice, regional studies, or a related discipline
- 1+ years of experience in intelligence, travel security, protective intelligence, security analysis, threat management, risk management or a related field
- Proven ability to accurately draw conclusions by synthesizing raw data and information from multiple, unrelated sources into a finished comprehensive product
- Practical knowledge of open-source intelligence collection and threat analysis.
- Ability to prepare concise written reports with strong attention to detail.
- Experience in directing, collecting, and analyzing information, including following leads, in order to produce timely and actionable intelligence.
- Practical knowledge of the deep and dark web threat landscape preferable.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Control Risks offers a competitively positioned compensation and benefits package that is transparent and summarized in the full job offer.
- We operate a discretionary bonus scheme that incentivizes, and rewards individuals based on company and individual performance.
- Control Risks supports hybrid working arrangements, wherever possible, that emphasize the value of in-person time together - in the office and with our clients - while continuing to support flexible and remote working.
- Medical Benefits, Prescription Benefits, FSA, Dental Benefits, Vision Benefits, Life and AD&D, Voluntary Life and AD&D, Disability Benefits, Voluntary Benefits, 401 (K) Retirement, Nationwide Pet Insurance, Employee Assistance Program.
COMPENSATION
The base salary range for this position is $80000-95000 per year. Exact compensation offered may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.
Control Risks is committed to a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age or veteran status. If you require any reasonable adjustments to be made in order to participate fully in the interview process, please let us know and we will be happy to accommodate your needs.
Control Risks participates in the E-Verify program to confirm employment authorization of all newly hired employees. The E-Verify process is completed during new hire onboarding and completion of the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, at the start of employment. E-Verify is not used as a tool to pre-screen candidates. For more information on E-Verify, please visit www.uscis.gov.
INTRODUCTION
Control Risks is looking to hire an Online Threat Intelligence Researcher to support a major client of ours. This position will conduct open-source intelligence research to support our client's threat intelligence program. The role will provide open source intelligence support, focusing on Person of Interest research. OSINT analysts also support Executive Protection and employee, facility, event safety and security by providing persistent situational awareness research and support.
ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES
- Monitor, triage, and assess high-volume intelligence alerts from OSINT and security platforms, identifying potential risks to employees.
- Conduct deeper-dive investigations into relevant threats and provide actionable insights to support incident response.
- Support response efforts for incidents impacting remote employees and travelers, including monitoring and communications during active events.
- Refine and optimize search queries and alerting frameworks to reduce noise and improve intelligence quality.
- Produce written reports outlining findings identified from threat monitoring and OSINT research.
- Partner closely with Corporate Security leadership to prioritize alerts, manage workload, and enhance intelligence processes.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
- A bachelor’s degree in history, political science, international relations, intelligence analysis, criminal justice, regional studies, or a related discipline
- 1+ years of experience in intelligence, travel security, protective intelligence, security analysis, threat management, risk management or a related field
- Proven ability to accurately draw conclusions by synthesizing raw data and information from multiple, unrelated sources into a finished comprehensive product
- Practical knowledge of open-source intelligence collection and threat analysis.
- Ability to prepare concise written reports with strong attention to detail.
- Experience in directing, collecting, and analyzing information, including following leads, in order to produce timely and actionable intelligence.
- Practical knowledge of the deep and dark web threat landscape preferable.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Control Risks offers a competitively positioned compensation and benefits package that is transparent and summarized in the full job offer.
- We operate a discretionary bonus scheme that incentivizes, and rewards individuals based on company and individual performance.
- Control Risks supports hybrid working arrangements, wherever possible, that emphasize the value of in-person time together - in the office and with our clients - while continuing to support flexible and remote working.
- Medical Benefits, Prescription Benefits, FSA, Dental Benefits, Vision Benefits, Life and AD&D, Voluntary Life and AD&D, Disability Benefits, Voluntary Benefits, 401 (K) Retirement, Nationwide Pet Insurance, Employee Assistance Program.
COMPENSATION
The base salary range for this position is $80000-95000 per year. Exact compensation offered may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.
Control Risks is committed to a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age or veteran status. If you require any reasonable adjustments to be made in order to participate fully in the interview process, please let us know and we will be happy to accommodate your needs.
Control Risks participates in the E-Verify program to confirm employment authorization of all newly hired employees. The E-Verify process is completed during new hire onboarding and completion of the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, at the start of employment. E-Verify is not used as a tool to pre-screen candidates. For more information on E-Verify, please visit www.uscis.gov.
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Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding Senior Researcher Jobs
Match your degree to the research domain
USCIS requires your academic background to align with the specific research field, not just research broadly. A PhD in molecular biology supports a biomedical researcher role. A degree in economics does not, even with years of lab-adjacent experience.
Target employers with a sponsorship track record
Universities, national labs, pharmaceutical companies, and think tanks file H-1B petitions for senior researchers regularly. Organizations with dedicated HR and immigration counsel are far more likely to sponsor than early-stage startups without established hiring pipelines.
Understand the H-1B lottery before you apply
Most senior researcher roles at private employers require H-1B sponsorship, which is subject to an annual lottery. Cap-exempt employers, universities, affiliated nonprofits, and government research organizations, skip the lottery entirely and can hire year-round.
Build a publication and grant record before interviewing
Hiring managers evaluate senior researchers on research output. A strong publication record, grant history, or named authorship on high-impact work also strengthens your visa petition by demonstrating the specialized nature of your expertise to USCIS adjudicators.
Ask about cap-exempt status early in the process
Before investing time in an application, confirm whether the employer qualifies as cap-exempt. Universities and affiliated research institutions are exempt, meaning no lottery wait. This single factor can cut your time to a work start date by over a year.
Consider the O-1A if your credentials are strong
Senior researchers with significant publications, awards, peer review invitations, or high citation counts may qualify for the O-1A visa. It has no lottery, no annual cap, and is employer-sponsored, making it a strong alternative when H-1B odds are a concern.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a Senior Researcher role qualify as a specialty occupation for H-1B purposes?
Yes, in most cases. Senior Researcher positions consistently qualify as specialty occupations because they require at least a bachelor's degree, and typically a master's or PhD, in a specific field directly related to the research area. The key is that the job description must require a degree in a particular discipline, not just any degree. Roles with vague educational requirements can face USCIS scrutiny, so a well-drafted job description matters.
Do I need a PhD to get sponsored as a Senior Researcher?
Not always, but it depends heavily on the employer and research domain. Academic institutions and pharmaceutical companies frequently require a PhD for senior researcher titles. Policy research organizations and some tech-adjacent research roles may accept a master's degree plus substantial experience. Three years of relevant work experience can substitute for one year of education under USCIS rules, so a strong work history can compensate for a terminal master's in some cases.
Which employers sponsor the most Senior Researcher visas?
Universities and their affiliated research centers are the largest sponsors of researchers by volume, and most are cap-exempt, meaning no H-1B lottery. Large pharmaceutical and biotech companies such as Pfizer, Genentech, and AstraZeneca also file regularly. Federal contract research organizations and government-affiliated labs are another strong category. You can browse verified sponsoring employers actively hiring senior researchers on Migrate Mate.
Can I get sponsored as a Senior Researcher if my degree is from outside the U.S.?
Yes. USCIS accepts foreign degrees, but they must be evaluated for U.S. equivalency. A three-year Australian or Indian bachelor's degree is generally accepted as equivalent to a U.S. four-year degree for H-1B purposes, though a credential evaluation report from a recognized agency strengthens the petition. The degree still needs to align with the specific research field, equivalency does not override the specialty occupation requirement.
What are the chances my H-1B petition gets approved for a Senior Researcher role?
Approval rates for senior researcher petitions tend to run higher than average because the specialty occupation case is straightforward, the academic and research community has a well-established history of degree requirements for these roles. If you're at a university or cap-exempt employer, there's no lottery risk at all. For cap-subject employers, you still face the registration lottery first, where selection rates have ranged from roughly 20 to 25 percent in recent years.
What is the prevailing wage requirement for sponsored Senior Researcher jobs?
U.S. employers sponsoring a visa must pay at least the prevailing wage, which is what workers in the same role, area, and experience level typically earn. The Department of Labor sets this rate to make sure companies aren't hiring foreign workers simply because they'd accept lower pay than a U.S. worker. It varies by job title, location, and experience. You can look up current prevailing wage rates for any occupation and location using the OFLC Wage Search page.