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 481 reviews)); "The people are great and it's a pleasure to work with students" ((in 324 reviews)); "Flexible hours and in an understanding environment while being able to develop real world skills." ((in 121 reviews)); "Flexibility and good work life balance" ((in 110 reviews)); "Great staff and a community that helps you grow" ((in 85 reviews))

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

"low pay compared to state schools that pay more to perform the same exact duties." ((in 294 reviews)); "Salaries in the teaching and research tracks are low compared to private industry; many positions depend on grant funding." ((in 270 reviews)); "extremely low on pay and poor management" ((in 111 reviews)); "Senior leadership can be difficult to deal with." ((in 40 reviews)); "If you get a bad manager, not much can be done." ((in 39 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

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

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

2.0

Dec 4, 2025

Challenging environment now

Director

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Many smart people work there and it's a great learning environment.

Cons

A lot of politics and low pay; poor management skills.

3.0

Dec 2, 2025

Great

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

forward thinking boundary pushing critical thinking

Cons

way too expensive, offices lack communication between them

2.0

Dec 2, 2025

Good work/life balance but lack of strategy and vision

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Good work life balance and tuition and time off benefits. The access to University events and resources is also a plus. Pay is fine.

Cons

There’s a lack of unified vision, the University culture is very decentralized and different schools and departments operate very much on their own, creating a lot of confusion.

Viewing 160 - 162 of 5,428 Reviews

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Jobs at Columbia University

Adjunct Lecturer, Solving Real World Problems with Analytics (ONLINE - Summer/Fall '26)

Adjunct Lecturer, Applied Deep Learning and AI (On-Campus, Fall '26)

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Challenging environment now

Great

Good work/life balance but lack of strategy and vision

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