housekeeper

cook

floor technician

landscape technician

hvac installer

Christopher Newport University

Overworked, Low pay, not enough staff,  managers/supervisors are lazy, no recognitions, some not all of the staff(professors) are not friendly. Students/professors get to do whatever they want in those classrooms after you clean them. Manager never checks them anyway, Managers dont listen to their staff or have meetings to find out whats going on with employees, you Will Not make alot of money there.  You will not be Recognized for Anything. Oh i forgot you may get some pizza and some diet sodas that they had leftover from an event as a thank you before you are out for two weeks for Christmas break. That 5pm -2am shift is useless.  You will be in that building alone  especially on Friday and Saturday nights when they have shows, the part time person leaves at 11pm only gets the trash and then its still trash left in the building because sometimes the stars are still in the dressingrooms eating, sleeping, etc but the manager will tell you to leave it for dayshift to do which consist of one or maybe two people.  A security officer may or may not show up for work. Some of them actually work while others chill on their phones, laptops, crotchet things, or simply hide in a mechanic closet. They leave at 12:15 (midnight.) Sometimes an Newport News cop patrols through supposedly checking inside/outside entrance/exit doors. They don't speak to you either. Never met the president of the school Never wanted to , i heard he tells everyone the same line when he greets you "thanks for all you do" , Action speaks louder than words. Dont Expect Anything Going In And You Will Not Be Disappointed When You Quit Because You Will Quit. Management Will Lie on YOU, So keep a detailed record of EVERYTHING, I would even suggest recording meetings or conversations with Management because they will Lie on you and they tell you that they have your back but really they dont its their own back they really cover, Trust me i learned the hard way.

CNU likens itself to Disney World and, in doing so, strives to insure students and guests of the university have a magical experience while on campus. CNU's commitment to its students is admirable; however, expectations for staff are extremely high and sometimes unrealistic. Pulling a 60-hour work week is not uncommon for some staff, especially those who are heavily evolved with Commencement, Orientation, Convocation, Welcome Week, Family Weekend, and Homecoming. I often accept work calls at all hours and gave my cell phone number to half of campus in order to be "more accessible."

That being said, CNU could be your crucible, the job that makes you ready for all other challenges. If, you work well under pressure or want to learn how to, CNU is the perfect place to hone your skills. Also, you won't be alone: CNU employs over 1000 Faculty and staff, all of whom are well aware of how ridiculous some of the expectations they labor under are. There will always be someone who can help you with whatever task you've been given and the students make the work extremely rewarding. Seeing President Trible's vision of CNU take shape has been incredible and knowing that I had a (very small) hand in making CNU the Disney World of VA Colleges, gives me an overwhelming sense of pride.

Exploitive use of temporary faculty on whom they depend for most of their teaching staff; apathetic, under-achieving student population that lacks intellectual rigor and academic seriousness and sometimes basic civility (of course, there are exceptions--but very few); grossly overpaid administrators, underpaid teaching staff; poor library resources (best collection, appropriately: children's books); inadequate & overpriced parking; no office space for visiting faculty; incoherent curriculum.

Don't let the swanky IM Pei-designed arts center fool you: CNU is a decidedly third-rate university with dangerous pretentious to academic quality and seriousness that bamboozle students and staff alike. Administrators think highly of the school (CNU hires many of their own to boost graduate employment numbers) and give undergraduate students a false impression of the value of a CNU degree. Teaching staff and students are squeezed to pay for lush new facilities. A degree mill with delusions of grandeur and an example of what's worst in American higher education today. To be avoided.

Days were not typical as my job involved the financial, compliance, and operational audits of all university departments - a widely varied lot.  I met very interesting people who were dedicated to their fields whether financial, admissions, academic, student services, etc.  I prepared reports for the Board of Visitors.  The President acted as my day-to-day supervisor for signing leave slips, etc. but mostly my position had a great deal of autonomy.  Mine was an office of one except for a few years of having a part-time assistant or a student worker.  Sometimes it was difficult for people to understand at first that as Internal Auditor I was there to help, so this could be a challenge but was usually overcome fairly quickly.  The most enjoyable part of the job was assisting people when they had questions or problems and helping them improve operations within their department.

I interact with approximately 3000 students per day in the dining hall. The bonds and relationships I have formed has been wonderful.
Management is slow to change and realize issues amongst employees and policies that are outdated. Not enough supervision of departments to resolve conflict. Staff is consistantly short handed and the remaining are overworked and morale is low. No positive reinforcement.
This job is very physical and hours are long. What I love most about my job is customer service. I truly enjoy meeting the needs of the students through my daily tasks and sometimes helping them emotionally get through their day through words of encouragement or   just by giving a hug.

CNU only cares about the way things look. Period. Management does not care how it gets there, and it will chew through student workers and full time professionals in order to achieve the goal of looking good. If you look a little deeper, you'll notice the appearance is only surface deep. Equipment is outdated, workers aren't allowed to be seen, and everything is supposed to just magically exist and look perfect as if at Disney.

The college burns through money like there is no tomorrow on events, but absolutely refuses to share any of it with their employees. Their tuition rate is outrageous to support the parties and resort lifestyle of students, and they graduate them into the world with barely useful degrees and a boatload of student debt. 

Hours are long, pay is outrageously low. Learn what you can and get out. It at least looks good on a resume.

My time here at CNU has been interesting, as a former student at the univesity it is nice being able to continue to spend time on the campus and watch as it changes and grows. A typical day at work is coming in the morning and being given a stack of work orders, and devising the best and most efficient manner with which to complete them. For the most part my co-workers are good people, though they are all about 20 years older than I we find good common ground and make a good team. The management is somewhat lacking as the acting supervisor and the lead worker are often at odds, thus leaving those on the bottom at a loss at times. The best part of the job is the satisfaction from doing good work. The hardest is probably the management issues that were mentioned above

What is the best part of working at the company?
The atmosphere is generally positive, and the administrators were friendly.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The academic state of the institution in my field.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Professionally the atmosphere was stressful because of departmental disarray. The students and administrators were fine, though.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Generally I had to work around programs that were poorly functioning, so a significant amount of extra time was spent doing damage control.

CNU looks good on the outside, internally it’s awful. Senior administrators expect employees to do duties outside of their hired position, always being volun-told. They get mad if you take PTO and straight refuse PTO if it’s not to their liking. Furthermore, they were forever hand holding the students, meaning they were not promoting self autonomy, which (personal opinion) puts the students at a disadvantage when they graduate. Lack of diversity. Low pay. State benefits are nice though. HR is full of awesome people. However, it always seemed like HR didn’t know what senior admin was doing. And honestly, I don’t think they did. 

Working in the Presidents Office was interesting.  It included many functions where invitations and RSVPs were required to dignitaries and preparation for those events.  I was there at the beginning of the growth of the university - new dorms, performing arts center.

While working in the Office of Human Resources, I learned a lot about hiring under the Commonwealth Regulations, payroll, benefits, and student hiring. There was a time when many employees were laid off and the HR office assisted many employees with their resumes.  I was heavily involved with that.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Housekeeper 1 salary reported	$31,200 per year
Cook 6 salaries reported	$30,203 per year
Floor technician 1 salary reported	$36,759 per year
Landscape technician 2 salaries reported	$30,160 per year
Hvac installer 3 salaries reported	$43,419 per year

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