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 (347) , Research Assistant (346) , PhD Student (165) , Graduate Research Assistant (157) , Postdoctoral Scholar (135) , Graduate Student (132) , 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 506 reviews)); "one of the best places If you like to do research and the campus is beautiful" ((in 346 reviews)); "Great faculty and colleagues and resources" ((in 172 reviews)); "Good work life balance is good" ((in 146 reviews)); "Everyone is appreciative of your work and hours are flexible as long as you do your assigned tasks." ((in 108 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 300 reviews)); "Low pay and very antiquated." ((in 296 reviews)); "Poor management; Discouraging and had unreasonable expectations as working from home began due to covid" ((in 61 reviews)); "Managers don't hold themselves accountable and you wonder what they do all day." ((in 46 reviews)); "poor work organization and leadership" ((in 28 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.

Stanford University reviews

4.3

83% would recommend to a friend

(5,715 total reviews)

Jonathan Levin

79% approve of CEO

68% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (5,715 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Stanford University has an employee rating of 4.3 out of 5 stars, based on 5,715 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).

Reviews by job title

6K reviews

4.0

Oct 7, 2018

It depends what department you work for

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Stanford is a world-famous teaching and research institution, and when you work here you see evidence every day as to why that is. Stanford is a small city, and there are more types of jobs at Stanford than you could ever find at any company. If you want to, you can learn a lot here and have an incredibly interesting career.

Cons

Stanford is really decentralized. Your success depends a lot on the department you work for and the culture that exists there. There can be huge egos, and some of these individuals can be unpleasant to work with. Salaries at Stanford are not competitive with industry which is a problem when the cost of living in the Bay Areas is so high. Employees often have long commutes because they can't afford to live close to work.

2.0

Nov 30, 2015

Think Twice Before Working at Stanford

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great benefits, access to lots of campus activities, classes and amenities, lively atmosphere, world class research, internationally known speakers, interesting and diverse people on campus. Excellent students.

Cons

If your manager/supervisor is verbally abusive, capricious, dishonest or openly hostile, HR will probably ignore your requests for help if the this person has tenure or is famous. There is a high tolerance for bad behavior if the person committing the behavior is high ranking enough. I was told by someone in HR: "Unless your supervisor physically strikes you or someone captures his behavior on video, there's nothing I can do to help you." If you're low on the totem-pole, you are not valued. Stanford is as much a corporation as a university.

3.0

Dec 7, 2013

Stanford is so decentralized that one's experience there really depends on your organization and manager

Administrative associate

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Beautiful campus, culture of learning, education and training benefits, lots of smart and talented people, on-campus activities and perks

Cons

Few well-paid, professional-level opportunities; faculty have too much power and influence over staff careers; little recourse for unfair treatment

Viewing 25 - 27 of 5,715 Reviews

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