AI training jobs for PhD students and postdocs: tasks and pay
Overview · Today
AI labs pay PhDs to write problems their models cannot solve, to solve problems with full derivations and to build scientific code tests. From the 38 PhD and postdoc listings on this site: the task types, pay by family, where a candidacy is enough and the visa rules for international students in the US.
What PhD-level work looks like
AI training jobs for PhDs pay you to produce work a frontier model cannot. On 12 October 2026, 38 of the 761 listings on this site named a PhD or postdoc in the title. They quote $23 to $200 an hour, with a median midpoint of $95, and 36 of them have no country restriction.
The tasks fall into three kinds. The first is problem writing. Mercor's High Energy Physicist (PhD) panel writes for CritPt, a public benchmark of research-level physics problems, and matches applicants to narrow research areas. micro1's Research Evaluation Specialist is open to any discipline: you write a hard question, run it against AI systems and make it harder when the model answers it.
The second is solving. micro1's Physics Expert (PhD / Postdoc) gives you advanced problems in your own subfield, and you produce reference solutions with every derivation written out in LaTeX.
The third is scientific code. Mercor's Chemistry PhD Coding Experts and its biology and materials science siblings build problems where a model's code looks right and is wrong. They ask for Python or R plus Git and Docker.
What it pays
14 of the 38 are subject roles with no language attached:
| Listing family | Platform | Pay per hour |
|---|---|---|
| Physics panels (five research areas) | Mercor | $80–110 |
| Physics solvers and experts (four listings) | micro1 | $70–90 up to $100–200 |
| PhD coding experts (chemistry, biology, materials) | Mercor | $70 flat |
| STEM PhDs and Technical Domain Experts | Mercor | $55–80 |
| Research Evaluation Specialist | micro1 | $40–90 |
The Mercor STEM PhDs listing is restricted to residents of Australia, Canada, the UK and the US. micro1's research evaluation role pays per accepted task, so questions the model answers easily earn nothing.
The other 24 add a second skill. Twelve are micro1 psychologist roles at $100–200, eleven of them bilingual, covered in our psychology guide. Twelve are Mercor bilingual STEM PhD roles in AI safety, priced by language from $23–27 for Hindi to $77–81 for Norwegian; the bilingual guide explains the tiers.
Candidates and postdocs
You do not always need the degree in hand. micro1's PhD/postdoc physics listing accepts advanced-stage candidates with two to five recent publications, and its research evaluation role accepts an active candidacy. The postdoc and junior professor listing ($80–150) is the reverse: it wants postdoc-level experience and is not aimed at current students. Publications carry weight across the physics roles. micro1 asks for arXiv or DOI links, and Mercor's high energy panel checks every paper you list.
International PhD students in the US
If you are a doctoral student in the US on an F-1 visa, check this before you apply. Mercor's F-1 policy accepts CPT when the work is integral to your curriculum and authorised by your school, and pre-completion OPT at under 20 hours a week. It does not engage anyone on STEM OPT. Handshake AI's programme page lists PhDs and postdocs among the education levels it recruits and also says STEM OPT is not supported; our Handshake AI guide has the full rules.
For more subject-level detail, see the STEM guide and the science and maths listings.
Questions
- How much do AI training jobs pay PhDs?
- On 12 October 2026 the 38 listings on this site with PhD or postdoc in the title quoted $23 to $200 an hour, with a median midpoint of $95. Subject roles without a language requirement ran from $40 to $90 on micro1's research evaluation role to $100 to $200 on its top physics listings.
- Can PhD students apply before they finish?
- Some listings accept them. micro1's PhD and postdoc physics listing takes advanced-stage candidates with two to five recent publications, and its Research Evaluation Specialist role accepts an active candidacy. Its postdoc and junior professor listing is not aimed at current students.
- Can international PhD students on F-1 visas do this work?
- Sometimes. Mercor accepts CPT authorised by your school and pre-completion OPT at under 20 hours a week, but not STEM OPT. Handshake AI also says STEM OPT is not supported. Check with your international student office before you accept a contract.
Platforms covered here
Put this into practice
Every listing shows its pay and who it is open to.