Penn State Graduate Research Assistant (Engineering) reviews

4.1

66% would recommend to a friend

(399 total reviews)
avatar

Eric J. Barron

82% approve of CEO

50% positive business outlook

Graduate Research Assistant (Engineering) employees have rated Penn State with 4.1 out of 5 stars, based on 399 company reviews on Glassdoor. This indicates that most Graduate Research Assistant (Engineering) professionals have an excellent working experience there. Penn State is rated in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) by Graduate Research Assistant (Engineering) professionals compared to other employers within the Education industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

399 reviews
1.0
Dec 11, 2025

PhD RA

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

1) Good insurance coverage. 2) Competitive salary for PhD students.

Cons

1) The pay grade stays the same throughout the PhD years. 2) There is very weak support for graduate student well-being. 3) There is a significant power imbalance in favor of the manager (PI).

3.0
Dec 5, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

You could have a really good situation or not so much. It just depends on your research advisor.

Cons

You can put a lot of time and energy into a paper, just for a reviewer to barely read it or reject it for some irrelevant reason. It can be disheartening at times.

Viewing 13 - 15 of 399 Reviews

Glassdoor has 5,441 Penn State reviews submitted anonymously by Penn State employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Penn State is right for you.