Is NIH a good company to work for?

NIH has an overall rating of 4.1 out of 5, based on over 2,843 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 3% over the last 12 months. 80% of employees would recommend working at NIH to a friend and 60% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about NIH have been left by employees working as Postdoctoral Researcher , Intern and Summer Intern .

Does NIH pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, NIH employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.9 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at NIH. This rating has decreased by 2% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at NIH?

80% of NIH employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated NIH 4.1 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.2 for culture and values and 3.9 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at NIH?

Postdoctoral Fellow (298) , Research Fellow (124) , Postbaccalaureate IRTA (103) , Staff Scientist (63) , Postdoctoral Research Fellow (40) , Intern (38) , Research Assistant (38) , Summer Intern (29) , Post-Baccalaureate Fellow (27) , Scientist (25) , Research Scientist (23) , Biologist (22) , Program Analyst (21) , Post Doctoral Fellow (20) , Visiting Fellow (20)

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

"The people are great and having a role in biomedical research is rewarding" ((in 136 reviews)); "Benefits are great and as expected" ((in 124 reviews)); "good work/life balance and super friendly teammates" ((in 81 reviews)); "Great lab and colleagues." ((in 59 reviews)); "Great opportunity to be mentored and grow as a scientist" ((in 51 reviews))

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

"Low salaries and lack of benefit." ((in 73 reviews)); "Very little recourse for bad management." ((in 28 reviews)); "Corrupt leadership, erosion of standards" ((in 13 reviews)); "Lots of bureaucracy and red tape to navigate" ((in 12 reviews)); "Certain managers (and this is a systematic problem government wide) that focus on promotion based on "time in grade" rather than job performance." ((in 9 reviews))

What are employees saying about NIH layoffs in 2026?

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

What are the top reviewed NIH locations?

Bethesda , Rockville , Washington , Baltimore , Frederick , Durham , Gaithersburg , Silver Spring , Research Triangle Park , New York , North Bethesda , Phoenix , Raleigh , Boston , Herndon , Maryland Heights , Houston , Columbia , Bowie , Cambridge , Shady Grove , Little Falls , New Brunswick , Wayne , Princeton , Chicago , Kewanee , Annandale , Clifton , Reston

NIH reviews

4.1

80% would recommend to a friend

(2,341 total reviews)

Francis S. Collins

82% approve of CEO

60% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.2

Culture & values

4.2

Diversity & inclusion

4.1

Work/Life balance

3.9

Compensation and benefits

3.9

Career opportunities

3.8

Senior management

NIH has an employee rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars, based on 2,341 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The NIH employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology industry (3.5 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

4.0

Mar 16, 2014

NIH -- Making a difference

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The people who choose to work at NIH do it because they care about creating new medical knowledge that advances human health. They have the right values and believe that they are making a difference -- which turns out to be true. They are.

Cons

In the current political climate, congressional support for all basic research and science has been on the decline, which is causing painful choices about what can be supported within NIH. Also, DHHS rules, especially around travel, make it hard to get things done.

3.0

Mar 5, 2014

Great research opportunities, horrible standard of living for Postdocs

Postdoctoral research fellow

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Obviously, the NIH is probably one of the only places in the US where you can do cutting-edge biomedical research with fairly flexible budgets. For postdocs, they also provide opportunities to attend meetings, although this has decreased during my time here due to the budget crunch.

Cons

The salary for a postdoctoral fellow is absolutely horrible. I have been here for 5 years and we have had no pay increases, while the cost of living goes up and up and up. Living in the DC region on the pay they give is pretty much impossible unless you are willing to give up comfort - who works hard enough to get a PhD in order to do that? You had better be married with a second income, and preferably without children if you want to make it work. It is very depressing when there are technicians without anything beyond a Bachelor's Degree making twice what postdocs make, and they get benefits too.

4.0

Mar 1, 2014

I've been at NIH for a little more than a year

Contract specialist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The mission is fantastic. Lots of smart people doing great work to better the world. The work/life balance, as well as the ability to promote are very good. Most people here are very dedicated to their work. The environment is generally much more progressive than other federal government jobs.

Cons

Some buildings aren't on campus and feel quite disconnected. My job can be quite boring and often not very challenging. Many of the same normal drawbacks of all federal government jobs also exist here, including bureaucracy, Federal funding has been on the decrease the past few years, which makes funding new projects very difficult.

Viewing 2137 - 2139 of 2,341 Reviews

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NIH

NIH reviews

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Reviews by job title

NIH -- Making a difference

Great research opportunities, horrible standard of living for Postdocs

I've been at NIH for a little more than a year

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