Is Northwestern University a good company to work for?

Northwestern University has an overall rating of 4.0 out of 5, based on over 4,470 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 1% over the last 12 months. 74% of employees would recommend working at Northwestern University to a friend and 50% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Northwestern University have been left by employees working as Peer Mentor , Professor and Undergraduate Research Assistant .

Does Northwestern University pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Northwestern University employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.3 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Northwestern University. This rating has decreased by 3% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Northwestern University?

74% of Northwestern University employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Northwestern University 3.9 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.8 for culture and values and 3.6 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Northwestern University?

Research Assistant (229) , Postdoctoral Fellow (191) , Graduate Research Assistant (133) , Graduate Student (105) , PhD Student (91) , Program Assistant (73) , Research Associate (63) , Clinical Research Coordinator (52) , PhD Graduate Student (52) , PhD Candidate (46) , Program Coordinator (42) , Administrative Assistant (33) , Research Study Coordinator (33) , Research Technologist II (32) , Researcher (32)

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

"Health Insurance benefit is great since you're working at a university affiliated with a solid medical center" ((in 498 reviews)); "Great people and students to work with" ((in 235 reviews)); "Beautiful campus and a lot of supporting facilities for all kinds of student and staff activities." ((in 141 reviews)); "Great colleagues and students to work with" ((in 86 reviews)); "Flexible hours and smart and collaborative professors" ((in 85 reviews))

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

"Pay can be low and enjoyment of my work has depended on my manager and culture of the unit I’ve worked in." ((in 300 reviews)); "Top down administrative style does not work well for a learning institution where salaries are low and expectations are high" ((in 166 reviews)); "There is not any 360 feedback so if you have a bad manager, chances are you are stuck." ((in 30 reviews)); "Incompetent and Toxic Leadership (especially in Central administration and HR)" ((in 25 reviews)); "Low Compensation package" ((in 25 reviews))

What are employees saying about Northwestern University layoffs in 2026?

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

What are the top reviewed Northwestern University locations?

Evanston , Chicago , San Francisco , Los Angeles , Chicago Heights , DeKalb , Geneva , Lake Forest , New York , Glenview , Naperville , North Chicago , Washington , Evanston , Evansville , Boston , South Evanston , Princeton , Morton Grove , Northbrook , Palos Heights , Schaumburg , Skokie , Wilmette , Winfield , Illinois City , Arlington , Saint Louis , Commack , Milwaukee

Northwestern University reviews

4.0

74% would recommend to a friend

(4,087 total reviews)

Michael Schill

57% approve of CEO

50% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.0

Diversity & inclusion

3.9

Work/Life balance

3.8

Culture & values

3.6

Career opportunities

3.3

Senior management

3.3

Compensation and benefits

Northwestern University has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 4,087 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Northwestern University employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Education industry (3.7 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

4K reviews

4.0

Dec 28, 2009

IT Consultant for Northwestern University Information Technology (NUIT)

It consultant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

NUIT offers a competitive salary in comparison to other similarly available jobs on campus. The work environment is clean and professional. The office location is right on the border of campus and the city of Evanston, allowing easy access to great food during breaks.

Cons

Current management is restrictive. Scheduling can be extremely bad but most co-workers are kind enough to trade hours with you when needed.

3.0

Dec 14, 2009

Great place to get a good education, but also need to get ready for the necessary solitude and frustration.

Graduate research assistant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

It allows students to use the state-of-art facilities to conduct the new and exciting research work.

Cons

As a student, we work more than 40 hrs/wk with no overtime fees and sometimes little appreciation.

4.0

Dec 4, 2009

Good benefits, fair treatment of post docs.

Postdoctoral fellow

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Good benefits, fair treatment of post docs. Northwestern's name recognition is extraordinary-- everyone in the Chicago area seems to respect Northwestern. In my particular field, NU's reputation is strong, and I've found that this can open doors. After one year many postdocs qualify for retirement benefits. Health, vision, and dental benefits also seem pretty reasonable. Not great, but the situation could be much worse for postdocs. This will all vary by your field, department, and lab, but my boss is reasonable. I'm pushed to complete my work, but my boss understands balance. Depending on which department you're, you might be able to take advantage of excellent job-hunting resources offered to postdocs. Northwestern does a pretty good job of preparing it's post docs for the next step. You wouldn't want to work here as a postdoc forever, but for 1-4 years, you could do a lot worse. With any luck, you'll leave with a great set of skills and contacts, as well as the Northwestern name on your CV. There are plenty of cons (see below), but if you're looking for a job for a few years, you don' t have lofty academic goals, and you still like ramen noodles, Northwestern is a decent place to be.

Cons

These cons are specific to my experience as a postdoc in one of the physical sciences. My work is almost 100% research, and at NU it's impossible to build any momentum. As soon as my experiments start working, I seem to have to stop work to deal with: (1) bureaucratic hurdles or (2) instruments that are broken or too heavily booked. Work that can take days at other universities can take weeks or months here. The bureaucratic hurdles mean that ordering lab supplies is a nightmare-- it can take a week (or more) to place an order, and after the package is delivered to campus it can take days to receive it. As for instrument time, if you use shared equipment you might find that you need to book time more than one week in advance. It can take weeks to shift gears if your goals change suddenly. I find myself plodding along when I'm dying to sprint. If you're a "slow and steady" type, or you relish filling out forms, this could be the place for you! There's lots of good stuff about Northwestern (see above), but I find that the expectations here are quite high, and the resources available make reaching those expectations almost impossible. These cons are particular my particular physical science.

Viewing 4057 - 4059 of 4,087 Reviews

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