field interviewer

research coordinator

research assistant

senior research associate

research manager

Vital Research

This independent contractor gig is an interesting one.  As a Field Interviewer, you contact" our most vulnerable community" (seniors) and convince them to complete surveys about their medical services and experiences on the phone or in person.  Each survey can take about an hour.

The pros with this gig are that the compensation is pretty good IF you're successful and that you can work and schedule these surveys whenever you like. You even get to meet very interesting seniors in your community. 

Works perfect for someone who is self employed, retired or simply needs to not be tethered to a certain work shift at a typical job.

The cons are that the managing team (at least in 2022 at least) are EXTREME micromanagers, who call and email you excessively when you're not performing to their expectations. 

Furthermore, the training is super long and drawn out and their whole process needs refining. Why? Because of the often incorrect data in your call list, the seniors not knowing what's going on when you call and the seniors not comprehending the overall idea of what you're doing. Even though you're not a telemarketer or selling anything in this role, the process can be a hard sell to people who are already on edge in a world with scams abundant.

This job is best for someone who is very creative, comfortable and fearless in a sales context. Are you an extrovert?  Are you confident enough to cold call a huge list of people who don't know what you're talking about? Approach senior citizens centers and ask to speak to the owners? Knock on doors? Do a little investigative work to correct erroneous contact information? 

This can be an overwhelming and nerve-wracking role, but it doesn't have to be, if vital research would assist with not making the process seem like a scam and lengthy process to senior citizens.

It's a bittersweet role that I was successful in, but I saw alot on my team that crumbled under the pressure and lack of support from the vital research team. 

At least my sales and people skills were strengthened though. For that, I am grateful for the experience, but I'll never do this again.

Each morning from Monday through Thursday I would drive to an assigned nursing home and/or an assisted living facility and meet up with my team which changed from day to day and we would meet the director of the facility. He/she would show us where we could keep our belongings and leave us to organize. For about the next ten minutes we would go through the list of residents to decide who would interview whom and determine how many people we could talk to by lunchtime. Then we would go out separately and interview the residents until lunch. After lunch, we'd discuss how many people were left that needed to be interviewed and who refused to be interviewed. We would then interview them until we interviewed all those on the list we were supposed to interview. Then we would record our information and hand it to the team leader along with the list. The team leader had to mail the information to Vital Research. At home I would submit the hours I worked and the mileage on my vehicle.
I learned how to pay attention to the mileage on my car. I also learned not to take it personally when a resident refused to be interviewed or acted difficult. Another thing I learned was how to keep a resident on track when he/she strayed off the subject.
We had a supervisor sometimes who made sure we interviewed the residents properly, and sometimes the supervisor was assigned to us more than we needed. We got extra help with the interviews, but all that management felt rigid.
My co-workers changed frequenty so I was able to talk to everybody and I built some friendships with a few that are still going on.
The hardest part of my job was sticking to the questionnaire and prompting the resident with the proper answer choices. The most enjoyable part of the job was going to the different places and talking with different people every day.

I worked as a field interviewer and had to meet a weekly quota of interviews. Our team had 35 field interviewers at the time of training. At the end of the project, less than 10 of us remained. The training itself was wholly unhelpful for the job that we did. The job consisted of (essentially) cold-calling people and asking them to do a phone survey. Most people who picked up the phone called us scammers; it was very difficult to get people to complete the survey. The management made this even harder by providing no support to field interviewers even though the pay is performance-based: you don't get paid by the hour - you get paid by the interview. They don't help you get interviews, nor will they vouch for you if your phone number gets reported as spam. You do get to set your hours, and if you can easily convince people to take a phone survey, you might like this job. But if you'd prefer not to sit all day talking to angry people while knowing that your managers don't have your back, then don't work for this company.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Good pay for pleasant social service work.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
If you have team members who do not want to follow guidelines set out by company.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Training was above average in quality.  I had an excellent supervisor my first year so I learned a lot under him.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
I worked on two projects for this company.  One involved team work and one was independently done. Both involved interviewing either seniors or those with disabilities.  On the team job we met at a specific time each morning and divided the work; met back to redivide work as the day progressed.  Had an end time and paperwork to do at day end.  The independent job had hours within which interviews could be done and calls made but otherwise you structured your own work day.  As I was social service life long, I found each of the jobs very pleasant.

*Work isn't real stressful, learning to read the script verbatim was a challenge but I had no problems with it.
*Learned I have have exceptional Customer Service Skills.
*Management this year was not exactly what I thought it would be. No praise for doing a good job. Just when I thought I was doing well, I was told it wasn't the way Manager wanted, I should be going slower. She waited until my last facility I did, and she wasn't very constructive in how she explained it to me. If I would have known they were unhappy with my work, I would have found a different job. Last year, the manager and coordinator were really nice and called and told you were doing a good job. I really loved the job I was doing and I actually thought I was making a difference in the lives of the elderly, but apparently the work I was collecting was of poor quality due to the my speed. I was trained, I used every tool they gave me to be successful, and now that I am, it's not good enough?!?! I'm so confused.

If you’re organized, don’t need much supervision or guidance, are somewhat technically savvy, love interviewing people and working towards a higher purpose, a Field Interviewer at Vital Research might be a good match for you.  

Comprehensive, interactive training is provided at the start of the project, and weekly support calls are available for regular communication and questions.  Managers are also an email or phone call away if questions come up while on the job.  Quality Assurance Mentors will attend a few of your interviews to make sure you are coding answers consistently and treating clients kindly.  

You get to create your own hours and have a lot of autonomy.  Great second job or grad student source of income.  


The interview process consisted of a phone interview and a virtual interview, as the company is based out of Los Angeles, CA.  I attended a three-day training, which I felt was pretty thorough and well-presented.  The project managers were professional and easy to work with.  The work is pretty independent, as you work from home, setting appointments and conducting interviews to gather data for the research analysts.  There is as much support as you need as far as I could tell.  I enjoy working for them.  The hardest part of the job is the tremendous amount of phone calls you make, which can be a bit tedious and frustrating (you have to do some leg work at times to find participant phone numbers), but you meet some wonderful and interesting people in its course.  In addition, the work you do is meaningful to the research being conducted.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Great team; low stress; flexible work schedule and flexible location(s)

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
There is no stress associated with the position.  There are goals established that are achievable. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
I work remote. The supervisors are cordial and professional. The company makes an effort to provide all field employees an opportunity to be engaged through virtual meetings.  I've enjoyed the work opportunities this company has provided. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
I make my own schedule unless I'm on site.  You have to be organized and keep the ultimate goal in mind when scheduling your hours.

VR is one of the best companies I've worked for and had a positive experience. Workload was manageable after I got my footing. When I needed help someone was always available to answer questions. It can be hard to convince people that it's in everyone's best interest to participate in the survey/interview so being informed of the surveys content is necessary so you are not caught off guard when someone asks you why should I do the survey. The fact VR is geared in my area at helping the State with people with disabilities and the aging population makes me want to do the best I can so they can receive the best care they can.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Working with a variety of people from different backgrounds and getting to meet many senior citizens while in the field.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The extensive amount of travel required

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Work environment is very positive and collaborative. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Travel to the assigned site and meet with administrators, begin interviewing residents at 9am, complete interviews by mid afternoon and travel back home to clock time.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Field interviewer 1 salary reported	$22.00 per hour
Research coordinator 1 salary reported	$26.50 per hour
Research assistant 3 salaries reported	$23.00 per hour
Senior research associate 4 salaries reported	$73,500 per year
Research manager 1 salary reported	$24.50 per hour

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