research assistant

graduate researcher

teaching assistant

postdoctoral fellow

postdoctoral research associate

Dartmouth College

I worked for Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College for 10 years before I was laid off.  DC is recently changing from the "Good Ole Boy Network" (you have to know someone to get a job) and is starting to bring in better qualified people from outside the immediate area.  If you plan on applying to DC, be aware that they are pretty much the only game in town and in my experience promotions are non-existent.  You must leave the college and then re-apply to a higher position if you want career advancement.  If you do not work at the college then the next closest metro area with decent employment is at least 1 hour drive away.  If you do not have a college degree, you will not be considered for employment.  If you are not a Dartmouth Allum you will be looked down upon.

Pay raises are meager (1.5% to 2.0% annually) and not always guaranteed. Benefits are decent and both time off and retirement savings (401K) are reasonably generous. 

Educational opportunities do not exist.  As an institute of higher education one would expect a much greater emphasis on continuing education for their employees.  DC only accepts full time students (no possibility for "nights and weekends" education) and does not reimburse you for classes taken elsewhere.

Thayer School has recently undergone a complete management change and the culture of "Family" has been destroyed and replaced with a culture of "Profit" (Dartmouth College is a "not for profit" entity).  Thayer School is in the midst of a very substantial expansion and the new management has effectively eliminated all morale from the building.  

Overall Dartmouth College is a decent place to work but don't expect prosperity or career advancement.

Generally people are friendly but some leadership can be hostile and intimidating. Some seem pretty incompetent in terms of managing human beings and should not be in that role. Too much micromanaging and criticism and disrespect. And egos. Unclear expectations and systems and procedures that change all the time. Some leadership get angry at lower staff for policies that staff have no control of. No-win situations and what a lot of people call a "cya" cover-your-a## mentality. Overwhelming workloads, stress, and pressures that have people working late nights and weekends, which management are aware of but do nothing about. Makes for sometimes very low morale among staff.

I loved working for this highly esteemed academic institution with its intelligent, hard-working faculty, staff, and students. There is a wonderful network of Administrative Assistants throughout the college who collaborate to keep things running smoothly. It is difficult to land a job there because it is such an outstanding institution, so people are happy and grateful to work for them and do their best. I worked for a variety of departments within the college and enjoyed getting a broad picture of the school.

Your experience will be great if you love the outdoors and have a decent supervisor. If not, you're in trouble! 

The College typically promotes from ResLife and Athletics, so you have academic advisors and deans with very little experience guiding students. 

Everyone knows there is a problem with attracting and retaining diverse staff members, but no one is willing to implement any changes or offer any solutions. 

If you are fortunate to have another job offer, take it! The pay is low and benefits are expensive (but better for families). Read between the lines before signing your contract and moving your life up to NH, where you'll also be isolated and need to travel 2-3 hours to get to an 'affordable' airport!

I was at Dartmouth for 15 years, and in that time we basically built a Classroom Tech support department from the ground up. When I started we had less then 10 installed rooms/venues, and when I left there were close to 80.

Dartmouth is slightly behind technologically and drags due to lack of proper management/direction. It is also mired in old traditions which it is working hard to change.

I left for personal reasons, but had I stayed in New England this was easily one of the best jobs in my area. It was a difficult choice but I am happy to be in the triangle area closer to friends and family. I look forward to starting a new career here, and I am thrilled at the amount of opportunities I am seeing in this area.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Nothing - the pay is terrible - the cost of living is utterly unaffordable - the administration has no clue and HR is a disaster

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
No communication, ho help and no one cares. Senior leadership cares more about their image than they do their employees. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Its like working with 8th graders who cannot make a decision.  Everything is a secret and the senior leadership team are the only ones in the know. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Starts at 5am ends at 10pm, mental health difficulties and exhaustion are common among staff.

It all depends on what department/manager you work for. I'm sure there are great departments/bosses. Unfortunately, I wasn't in a department like that. My department was pretty dysfunctional. There's a lot of needing to treat the faculty like gods. The faculty never communicated important things to me, like budget, when new researchers come in and old researchers leave.  

At the college, many of my coworkers made my job fun and enjoyable. The hours were painful, especially for a High School student who lived an hour away, and wouldn't get home until eleven on a school night, the people who worked there were always the best. The supervisors actually care about you and your life, and make sure you are always taken care of. The people I worked with directly were always willing to help me, and would make sure I was always laughing and enjoying my work. Though my feet hurt at the end of the day, and I got quite bored, the coworkers made it worth it.

For the area, Dartmouth is a great employer offering tons of options for different types of employment. Dartmouth has almost any job you can think of, and many levels within and opportunities for advancement if you're comfortable with being uncomfortable. Pay and benefits are great for the area.

Management style at the college is pretty bad for a school that has a world-renowned business school. I often think some Tuck professors should be required to teach a leadership and management class to all manager or supervisory positions at the college.

When I was offered a position with Dartmouth I was very excited, after all who wouldn't be excited for an opportunity to work for an IVY League School.  Sadly, I quickly learned that my Manager and other Supervisors were not able to communicate which left me most times in the middle. My staff were great, wanted to learn, were eager to learn, hungered to learn. 
It has been so full filling for me to be able to teach my staff that will help them to be the best they can and to give them the chance to improve themselves. Too bad that management hasn't been more supportive.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Research assistant 6 salaries reported	$20.50 per hour
Graduate researcher 7 salaries reported	$41,571 per year
Teaching assistant 4 salaries reported	$19.50 per hour
Postdoctoral fellow 9 salaries reported	$59,460 per year
Postdoctoral research associate 6 salaries reported	$61,747 per year

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