Is RAND a good company to work for?

RAND has an overall rating of 4.0 out of 5, based on over 554 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months. 73% of employees would recommend working at RAND to a friend and 35% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about RAND have been left by employees working as Summer Associate , Research Assistant and Assistant Policy Researcher .

Does RAND pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, RAND employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.7 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at RAND. This rating has improved by 5% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at RAND?

73% of RAND employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated RAND 4.3 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.9 for culture and values and 3.5 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at RAND?

Research Assistant (45) , Administrative Assistant (21) , Assistant Policy Researcher (17) , Analyst (15) , Researcher (15) , Summer Associate (12) , Manager (7) , Policy Analyst (7) , Assistant Policy Analyst (6) , Finance (6) , Policy Researcher (5) , Senior Analyst (5) , Associate Policy Researcher (4) , Behavioral Scientist (4) , Senior Political Scientist (4)

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

"Great people and very intellectual" ((in 69 reviews)); "Great location and colleagues with expertise in their field." ((in 61 reviews)); "The benefits for time off and health insurance can be good." ((in 49 reviews)); "Very collegial, exciting and impactful work, and lots of smart people to work with." ((in 11 reviews)); "Great work environment." ((in 8 reviews))

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

"Low pay relative to outside (non" ((in 19 reviews)); "salaries are low (at least at the Europe office)" ((in 13 reviews)); "Long hours because of gripping topics and always juggling priorities on different projects." ((in 12 reviews)); "1, That flat management, no boss thing means no one is micro" ((in 12 reviews)); "Employees stay a long time and therefore there is not much room for upward mobility." ((in 8 reviews))

What are employees saying about RAND layoffs in 2026?

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

What are the top reviewed RAND locations?

Santa Monica , Washington , Arlington , Pittsburgh , Los Angeles , New York , San Francisco , Boston , Idaho Falls , Chicago , Bristow , Randolph , Austin , Honolulu , Arcadia , Woodland Hills , Pawtucket , Baltimore , Central , Crystal City

RAND reviews

4.0

73% would recommend to a friend

(502 total reviews)

Jason Matheny

53% approve of CEO

35% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.3

Work/Life balance

3.9

Culture & values

3.8

Diversity & inclusion

3.7

Compensation and benefits

3.5

Career opportunities

3.3

Senior management

RAND has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 502 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The RAND employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Management & Consulting industry (3.7 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

502 reviews

5.0

Jul 15, 2014

Very Grateful to Be Here

Associate behavioral social scientist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

I love the diversity of projects, the chance to work with some really smart people (and learn from them), the work flexibility (usually work 6:30 AM to 2:30 PM in the office, or at home if I really have a lot of writing to do). And I kind of love the pressure--it's a challenge to context-switch from project to project, meet deadlines, etc., but it's very rewarding. And while there is a wide-range of personality types at RAND, I really like my colleagues.

Cons

You are very much left alone to sink or swim in the "internal labor market"--I'm lucky that (so far) I'm swimming, and I've had a lot of help. But I can imagine someone who does good work still having bad luck (and maybe not out-going enough) to find work.

3.0

Jun 18, 2014

Great people, unfortunate management

Web producer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Outstanding group of intelligent, focused, and collegial employees.

Cons

Managers tended to care more about their image, than the people who reported to them.

1.0

Dec 9, 2010

Has-been agency, excessive overhead, bureaucracy rivaling government agency, mysterious peformance review process

Former economist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Prestige, good vacation benefits, near the beach

Cons

Overhead on projects is astronomical leaving fewer project opportunities for more experienced staff. To compensate, they aggressively hire less experienced staff and phase out the more experienced (those with good funding streams). The resulting "crowding out" dilutes quality of research and revenue.The planning horizon is measured in weeks/months and is fairly reactive rather than strategic. The salary review process is a black box and seems to be unrelated to performance.

Viewing 52 - 54 of 502 Reviews

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RAND

RAND reviews

Ratings by category

Ratings by demographic groups

Reviews by job title

Very Grateful to Be Here

Great people, unfortunate management

Has-been agency, excessive overhead, bureaucracy rivaling government agency, mysterious peformance review process

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