Does Stanford University pay their employees well?

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

How satisfied are employees working at Stanford University?

83% of Stanford University employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Stanford University 3.9 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.1 for culture and values and 4.0 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Stanford University?

Postdoctoral Fellow (345) , Research Assistant (345) , PhD Student (164) , Graduate Research Assistant (157) , Postdoctoral Scholar (134) , Graduate Student (131) , Postdoctoral Researcher (99) , PhD Graduate Student (79) , Research Scientist (76) , Teaching Assistant (60) , Research Associate (56) , Postdoctoral Research Fellow (54) , Researcher (54) , Clinical Research Coordinator (52) , Administrative Assistant (47)

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

"people were great and nice to work with" ((in 499 reviews)); "one of the best places If you like to do research and the campus is beautiful" ((in 352 reviews)); "Great faculty and colleagues and resources" ((in 166 reviews)); "Good work life balance is good" ((in 143 reviews)); "Everyone is appreciative of your work and hours are flexible as long as you do your assigned tasks." ((in 111 reviews))

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

"Low salary because of the way the fellowship works; can only work domestically not internationally" ((in 299 reviews)); "Low pay and very antiquated." ((in 286 reviews)); "Poor management; Discouraging and had unreasonable expectations as working from home began due to covid" ((in 63 reviews)); "Managers don't hold themselves accountable and you wonder what they do all day." ((in 47 reviews)); "poor leadership and slow moving" ((in 29 reviews))

What are employees saying about Stanford University layoffs in 2026?

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

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Stanford University

Stanford University reviews

4.3

83% would recommend to a friend

(5,706 total reviews)

Jonathan Levin

80% approve of CEO

69% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.2

Diversity & inclusion

4.1

Culture & values

4.0

Career opportunities

3.9

Work/Life balance

3.7

Senior management

3.6

Compensation and benefits

Stanford University has an employee rating of 4.3 out of 5 stars, based on 5,706 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The Stanford 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

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

6K reviews

5.0

Jan 26, 2010

Review

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Location, weather, people, compensation and work.

Cons

High Expectations, thats all really.. nothing else

5.0

Dec 12, 2009

Stanford

Research associate

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

State of the art research, motivated people, productive, in a place with great weather. As well alot of activities and interesting learning material on campus

Cons

Well the worst thing about stanford is palo alto. prices are ridiculously expensive and unless you have at least a 70K job should not consider this place for employment.

4.0

Dec 9, 2009

Great Benefits and respect from others but some snobbery

Financial analyst

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Stanford is a world class University but unlike most of the Ivy League caliber places in America. Stanford is in California where the weather is great. I worked with some very brilliant people and my skillset grew as a result. Also benefits were very generous. Also telling others you work for Stanford usually get's a 'wow' which I have to admit was a good feeling

Cons

There are some people there who are too into being elite and are very judgmental. Unless they think you have some connections or wealth they won't give you the time of day. Also working for any University there is an element of Bureaucracy and doing things a certain way because that's the policy even if it doesn't make sense.

Viewing 5656 - 5658 of 5,706 Reviews

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Stanford

Great Benefits and respect from others but some snobbery

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