Philosophy Phd - Benchmark Specialist

Mercor; Sydney; Remote; AUD 98,000 - 124,000; Full time

Job summary

Mercor is seeking a contract Applied Philosophy Benchmark Specialist to design rigorous philosophy questions for AI research labs. The role is remote with a commitment of 10+ hours per week and compensation of $50-$63 per hour.

The candidate should hold a PhD in Philosophy or be a doctoral candidate, with exceptional depth in subfields and strong command of philosophical argumentation, formal logic, and canonical texts. Excellent written English is essential.

Qualifications

• PhD in Philosophy or doctoral candidate in philosophy.
• Master's degree may be considered for exceptional depth in a subdomain.
• Excellent written English and ability to express complex ideas clearly and concisely.

Responsibilities

• Author original philosophy questions that test deep conceptual understanding and avoid surface-level recall.
• Ensure questions are unambiguous, self-contained, and precisely defined with all necessary information.
• Rate each question's difficulty: Medium, Hard, or Expert.
• Provide 1 correct answer and 9 plausible but subtly incorrect alternatives.

Skills

Philosophical argumentation

Formal logic

Canonical texts

Education

PhD in Philosophy

Master's degree considered

Job description

About the job

Mercor connects elite creative and technical talent with leading AI research labs. Headquartered in San Francisco, our investors include Benchmark, General Catalyst, Peter Thiel, Adam D'Angelo, Larry Summers, and Jack Dorsey.

Position: Applied Philosophy Benchmark Specialist
Type: Contract
Compensation: $50-$63/hour
Location: Remote
Commitment: 10+ hours/week

Role Responsibilities

• Author original philosophy questions that test deep conceptual understanding, not surface-level recall.
• Ensure questions are unambiguous, self-contained, and precisely defined. Include all necessary information 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 like peer-reviewed journals or university repositories.
• For verification tasks: flag issues with clarity, completeness, precision, or solvability and justify any edits made.

Qualifications

Must-Have

• PhD or doctoral candidate in Philosophy or a closely related field.
• Master's degree considered for candidates with exceptional depth in a specific subdomain.
• Strong command of philosophical argumentation, formal logic, and canonical texts across traditions.
• Research publications or teaching experience in philosophy is a strong plus.
• Excellent written English and ability to express complex ideas clearly and concisely.