Is UCLA a good company to work for?

UCLA has an overall rating of 4.1 out of 5, based on over 6,428 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 2% over the last 12 months. 76% of employees would recommend working at UCLA to a friend and 57% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about UCLA have been left by employees working as Resident Physician , Peer Learning Facilitator and Undergraduate Researcher .

Does UCLA pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, UCLA employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.7 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at UCLA. This rating has decreased by 1% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at UCLA?

76% of UCLA employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated UCLA 4.0 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.9 for culture and values and 3.8 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at UCLA?

Research Assistant (202) , Teaching Assistant (171) , Graduate Student Researcher (166) , Administrative Assistant (121) , Postdoctoral Fellow (113) , Graduate Student (104) , Graduate Research Assistant (88) , Graduate Teaching Assistant (86) , PhD Student (67) , Postdoctoral Scholar (67) , Postdoctoral Researcher (65) , Student Worker (63) , Student Assistant (58) , Registered Nurse (57) , Researcher (55)

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

"Benefits are great and class material is interesting." ((in 528 reviews)); "The people I worked with were great and that was one of the best reasons I enjoyed my work experience at ucla." ((in 294 reviews)); "The campus is beautiful and it is a dream place to work if you like research in social sciences." ((in 227 reviews)); "Flexible hours and you get to take on as many people as you want to tutor" ((in 212 reviews)); "I love teaching and work environment is good." ((in 123 reviews))

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

"Low pay and if you don’t publish you can really hurt your chances of getting a job after." ((in 319 reviews)); "Salary and raises very low for level of responsibilities and expectation (25% below fair market value)" ((in 241 reviews)); "Management was poor and slow to get back to you." ((in 116 reviews)); "parking is expensive and not always convenient to where you work." ((in 100 reviews)); "Low compensation and lack of growth" ((in 23 reviews))

What are employees saying about UCLA layoffs in 2026?

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

What are the top reviewed UCLA locations?

Los Angeles , UCLA , Westwood , Santa Monica , New York , West Los Angeles , San Francisco , Westwood Village , East Los Angeles , Lake Arrowhead , California City , Irvine , San Jose , California , San Antonio , Fresno , Van Nuys , San Diego , Boston , Atlanta , Agoura Hills , Anaheim , Long Beach , Marina del Rey , Torrance , Riverside , Oakland , Los Angeles , Chicago , Springfield

UCLA reviews

4.1

76% would recommend to a friend

(5,754 total reviews)

Gene D. Block

68% approve of CEO

57% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (5,754 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

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UCLA has an employee rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars, based on 5,754 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The UCLA employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Education industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

6K reviews

2.0

Jun 30, 2014

The Corporatization of Academia

Administrative specialist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Ok benefits. Flexible working hours in some situations. Possible to transfer to different departments on campus (once you pass your six month probationary period). 403b. Possibility of interaction with some brilliant researchers.

Cons

Terrible management and no consequences for bad decisions. It used to be more of a collegial friendly atmospher but in the last few years I've noticed more of a corporate type of outlook. Faculty are encouraged (that's an understatement) to bring in research dollars. Concern over teaching is not as important. On the administrative side I've noticed incredibly mediocre people getting hired into staff positions of power and helplessly watched as they hire their friends to come on board. Cronyism is huge here. In order to bypass unions if they want to remove "problem" employees, positions will be eliminated and then a few weeks later a re-worded job title will emerge.

3.0

Jun 28, 2014

Good place for the youngest postdoc to improve skills.

Assistant researcher

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Good to get more experience as a researcher/postdoc/scientist, but you should look for a better opportunities as soon as possible. Friendly environment. Not good carreer opportunities. It depends on the $ you bring in (Grants).

Cons

Very tight budget. Low salary. Preference for young postdocs because their payment is low. Not good carreer opportunities. It depends on the $ you bring in (Grants). However, many regulations make it difficult to get your own Grant. Everything is about $. If you have Grants to pay your own salary you are "in" even if you are not part of the average. You can work hard with integrity but if no Grant, no Job!

3.0

Jun 27, 2014

This is about my experience in my fourth year as a graduate student research in the EE Dept. at UCLA.

Graduate student researcher

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The Professors are very sharp and are on top of what is happening in the field. Also for most graduate students funding is never a serious problem.

Cons

UCLA could do a better job of encouraging graduate students and researchers to socialize. I have often felt that buying lab equipment was prioritized over using funds to send me to conferences, and that professors do not provide much guidance for students to find their careers.

Viewing 5293 - 5295 of 5,754 Reviews

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The Corporatization of Academia

Good place for the youngest postdoc to improve skills.

This is about my experience in my fourth year as a graduate student research in the EE Dept. at UCLA.

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