Does Columbia University pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Columbia University employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.6 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Columbia University. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Columbia University?

65% of Columbia University employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Columbia University 3.8 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.6 for culture and values and 3.7 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Columbia University?

Research Assistant (329) , Teaching Assistant (162) , Graduate Research Assistant (161) , Graduate Student (150) , PhD Student (144) , Postdoctoral Research Scientist (94) , Administrative Assistant (78) , Graduate Teaching Assistant (78) , Postdoctoral Fellow (73) , Associate Research Scientist (70) , Assistant Director (66) , Director (55) , Postdoctoral Researcher (51) , Associate Director (45) , Program Coordinator (44)

What are the pros of working at Columbia University according to real employee reviews?

"Columbia and the Business School are great to work for because of the benefits and the people." ((in 481 reviews)); "The people are great and it's a pleasure to work with students" ((in 325 reviews)); "Some great students and colleagues" ((in 155 reviews)); "Flexibility and good work life balance" ((in 120 reviews)); "Flexible hours and in an understanding environment while being able to develop real world skills." ((in 120 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Columbia University according to real employee reviews?

"The pay can be low and slow" ((in 297 reviews)); "Low salary depending on the department and there is no way to know until you get the offer." ((in 275 reviews)); "extremely low on pay and poor management" ((in 108 reviews)); "Senior leadership can be difficult to deal with." ((in 38 reviews)); "If you get a bad manager, not much can be done." ((in 38 reviews))

What are employees saying about Columbia University layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Columbia University layoffs and their outlook for job security at Columbia University in 2026.

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Columbia University

Columbia University reviews

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4.0

65% would recommend to a friend

(5,406 total reviews)

Lee C. Bollinger

60% approve of CEO

51% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.0

Diversity & inclusion

3.8

Work/Life balance

3.7

Career opportunities

3.6

Culture & values

3.6

Compensation and benefits

3.4

Senior management

Columbia University has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 5,406 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Columbia University employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Educación industry (3.7 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

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Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

5K reviews

4.0

Feb 6, 2010

Great benefits, below average pay, lots of bureaucracy

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Tuition Remission, Broad set of challenges, Exposure to multiple facets of the entire school. If your career goal is to grow fast and continue growth, then this is an ideal place to get in, get a degree, gain valuable work experience and then leave. Good work/life balance. Job security.

Cons

Extreme budget constraints, the top decision makers (ie. faculty and dean) have unrealistic expectations due to the extremely limited budget they supply. There is always a do more with less approach, and while this is good for the sake of efficiency, there comes a point where it is just extreme. Upper management has no real backbone for creating policies and enforcing them. Extreme political forces at play here and lots of employees are undervalued.

3.0

Jan 28, 2010

It just basically sucks to be a grad student in general.

Graduate student

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

You get paid to go to school. It's in NYC, which is awesome. The name will get you places. High-preforming colleagues.

Cons

You're a grad student so you have no life. No one appreciates you. The hours/week sometimes end up in excess of 70 hours. Giving a professor complete control of your life is not a very good life decision.

2.0

Jan 24, 2010

Project Director

Project director

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Average 20 vacation days off; access to Columbia University's libraries

Cons

Little professional development, especially if no PhD degree

Viewing 5362 - 5364 of 5,406 Reviews

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Great benefits, below average pay, lots of bureaucracy

It just basically sucks to be a grad student in general.

Project Director

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