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Northwestern University

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Excellent Work/Life Balance & Benefits - Senior Research Coordinator Northwestern University Employee Review

5.0
Jan 20, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I've enjoyed my time drastically at Northwestern and have had nothing but good experiences with my colleagues. The entirety of the two different labs I've worked for have been nothing short of exceptional as they maintain a professional, considerate, and mindful organization. On top of that, the benefits the University has provided is nothing short of amazing. I've been really fortunate to work here honestly.

Cons

The only "con" (which I wouldn't really even call it a con, it's just more of a caveat of working in public sector research in general) is that if you're not currently on a Doctoral Academic/Facult path of some sort, you can hit a celing of higher opportunity within 5 years. They do provide annual merit raises when funding isn't frozen. I've finished an MS Degree and am not actively looking to pursue education any further, NU has been amazing for me but I'm potentially interested in taking my experience to the Private Sector.

Explore other reviews about Northwestern University

5.0
Jul 14, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great work experience, and I got to work with a professor during the process.

Cons

Can be more difficult to get higher pay

4.0
Jul 6, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

It's steady and stable money. Coworkers can be great, and benefits can be good**

Cons

They recently changed all of the benefits due to the government administration pulling federal funding. They changed from Blue Cross Blue Shield to United so the insurance is pretty bad now, with higher premiums and higher copays. You get a 90% discount on tuition, yet also about 97% of the graduate programs are when you'd be working during a 9-5. So it's nearly impossible to actually utilize your tuition discount. There were a lot of budget cuts, and 3% bonuses were one of the first to go. Your base pay is usually underpaid because it's higher education/nonprofit, and the 3% raise is barely enough to cover the rise of cost of living. So now it's underpaid, bad or unusable benefits, and low morale because there were also so many layoffs with the rest of the employees having to do the work of multiple people. Systems in the university are antiquated and it takes forever for anything to get done and most of it is trial and error. They say there is mobility, but it's only lateral if you're lucky. I've been here for two years and there's been such high turnover in senior management including the President that everything feels up in the air.

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