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 (330) , Graduate Research Assistant (162) , Teaching Assistant (162) , Graduate Student (150) , PhD Student (145) , Postdoctoral Research Scientist (95) , Administrative Assistant (79) , Graduate Teaching Assistant (78) , Postdoctoral Fellow (74) , Associate Research Scientist (72) , Assistant Director (66) , Director (56) , Postdoctoral Researcher (54) , Associate Director (45) , Researcher (45)

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 482 reviews)); "The people are great and it's a pleasure to work with students" ((in 314 reviews)); "Flexibility and good work life balance" ((in 128 reviews)); "Flexible hours and in an understanding environment while being able to develop real world skills." ((in 118 reviews)); "The campus is beautiful and being in an academic environment in NYC is wonderful" ((in 84 reviews))

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

"The pay can be low and slow" ((in 303 reviews)); "low salary very far from my home not much increase yearly not much chances of growth departments are not well interconnected" ((in 271 reviews)); "extremely low on pay and poor management" ((in 110 reviews)); "Senior leadership can be difficult to deal with." ((in 38 reviews)); "If you get a bad manager, not much can be done." ((in 35 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

4.0

65% would recommend to a friend

(5,428 total reviews)

Lee C. Bollinger

60% approve of CEO

51% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (5,428 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

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Columbia University has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 5,428 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).

Reviews by job title

5K reviews

5.0

Jan 4, 2026

Nice institution for research

Postdoctoral research scientist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Nice vibe. Great collaborators and environments.

Cons

Nothing special I can think of.

4.0

Jan 4, 2026

TA

Teaching assistant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

good work life balance provided

Cons

bad pay rate and less benefit

4.0

Jan 4, 2026

Resident Assistant

Resident assistant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

A lot of hours so you can earn a lot as an undergrad.

Cons

Some of the people make it hard to work because they don’t care.

Viewing 133 - 135 of 5,428 Reviews

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Nice institution for research

TA

Resident Assistant

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