Is UC Santa Cruz a good company to work for?

UC Santa Cruz has an overall rating of 4.3 out of 5, based on over 1,665 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has increased by 3% over the last 12 months. 84% of employees would recommend working at UC Santa Cruz to a friend and 70% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about UC Santa Cruz have been left by employees working as Academic Tutor , Postdoctoral Researcher and Tutor .

Does UC Santa Cruz pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, UC Santa Cruz employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.5 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at UC Santa Cruz. This rating has improved by 1% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at UC Santa Cruz?

84% of UC Santa Cruz employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated UC Santa Cruz 4.2 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.3 for culture and values and 3.7 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at UC Santa Cruz?

Teaching Assistant (57) , Graduate Student Researcher (48) , Graduate Teaching Assistant (34) , Research Assistant (33) , Tutor (20) , Graduate Student (19) , Lecturer (19) , Administrative Assistant (18) , Student Worker (17) , Graduate Research Assistant (15) , Student Dining Hall Worker (14) , Junior Specialist (12) , Resident Assistant (12) , Academic Tutor (10) , Intern (10)

What are the pros of working at UC Santa Cruz according to real employee reviews?

"The campus is beautiful and nice to work" ((in 94 reviews)); "It is an easy job and the people are great." ((in 85 reviews)); "The hours are flexible and it beats off campus jobs since they are really understanding of student's schedules." ((in 69 reviews)); "Good benefits for grad students: tuition deduction" ((in 62 reviews)); "Great Place to Study and has Friendly Staff" ((in 31 reviews))

What are the cons of working at UC Santa Cruz according to real employee reviews?

"Low pay and very hectic first month." ((in 122 reviews)); "base salary low" ((in 49 reviews)); "management is poor" ((in 25 reviews)); "Back to minimum wage for many." ((in 10 reviews)); "Mandatory meetings and trainings especially during weekends really suck." ((in 8 reviews))

What are employees saying about UC Santa Cruz layoffs in 2026?

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

What are the top reviewed UC Santa Cruz locations?

Santa Cruz , San Francisco , Los Angeles , San Jose , Scotts Valley , Santa Clara , Watsonville , Chicago , New York , Santa Clarita , Sacramento , Mount Hamilton , Urbana , Flagstaff , Austin , Bakersfield , Huntington Beach , Ladera Ranch , Laguna Beach , Pasadena , Santa Ana , Santa Monica , Rancho Cucamonga , San Diego , Berkeley , Castro Valley , Fremont , Oakland , Pacifica , Mountain View

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UC Santa Cruz

UC Santa Cruz reviews

Item: UC Santa Cruz
Rating: 4
Author: Administrative Assistant III

4.3

84% would recommend to a friend

(1,478 total reviews)

George R. Blumenthal

69% approve of CEO

70% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.5

Diversity & inclusion

4.3

Culture & values

4.2

Work/Life balance

3.9

Senior management

3.7

Career opportunities

3.5

Compensation and benefits

UC Santa Cruz has an employee rating of 4.3 out of 5 stars, based on 1,478 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The UC Santa Cruz 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

1K reviews

3.0

Jun 19, 2008

UCSC ITS is broken.

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Beautiful campus, wonderful community, incredible benefits package. This is an environment where, if you can find a department you mesh well with and work you enjoy you could quite easily make a career here until you retire.

Cons

Incompetent management, low pay, bizarre politics. The variation in quality and competency in management varies so widely that it's sometimes difficult to keep in mind that it's one big organization. Many of the most infamous managers have been retained through the same sort of policy of staff-shuffling observed in the Catholic Church: Abusive managers are moved rather than disciplined or terminated.

4.0

Jun 11, 2008

One of the better places to work in Santa Cruz City proper

administrative assistant iii

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The best reason to work at UC Santa Cruz is living in Santa Cruz. Work environments lack traditional hierarchies and snotty attitudes found a more "affluent" universities or in private industry jobs. Personal issues, flex time needs are well-addressed there.

Cons

Assuring everyone single person/ agenda is represented is often monotonous and time consuming. The language adjustment from may be hard for some coming from less liberal or less socially conscious backgrounds.

Viewing 1477 - 1478 of 1,478 Reviews

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Jobs at UC Santa Cruz

Domestic Admissions First Year Reviewer

Student Employment Assistant

Student Employment Coordinator

Business Systems Analyst

Research Support Associate