You could have a long-term career at this successful, respectable company.
Pros
Westat conducts high-quality work that benefits our society is done here by knowledgeable, professional staff. The company offers good working conditions (most professional staff have their own offices, not cubicles or shared offices), solid benefits, and treats its staff with respect. The research work done at Westat is primarily done for agencies of the Federal Government. You can work here and feel good about giving policymakers sound, accurate data on which to base policy decisions. Westat is supportive of ongoing staff training and also has a tuition reimbursement benefit. The company also offers free, internal classes to beef up your computer skills.
Cons
Increases in work responsibility tend to precede increases in compensation. Rather than getting a clear-cut promotion, Westat often just modifies your role without increasing your salary. So you basically work at a more advanced job for a year or more before finding out to what extent your salary will be adjusted to compensate you for your new role. There is an ebb and flow to the workflow--sometimes steady periods of work are punctuated with extremely busy periods or very slow periods. The company has not been receptive to allowing salaried employees to telecommute on a regular basis, even if their work could easily be conducted offsite.
