administrative assistant

resident director

patient accounts representative

nursing assistant

post-doctoral fellow

Delaware-State-University

DSU is a Historically Black College and University, and most of the staff and students are black. I, a middle age white male, was harassed and discriminated against (for my gender and race) continuously by my black female supervisor. It was abusive, intentional and personal. I was a dedicated, conscientious and well-skilled employee. This person went out of their way to belittle me in front of students, undermine my authority, and humiliate me in front of my colleagues and student workers. It was an abuse of power and this person was on a control mission. I was blatantly discriminated against - my colleagues and coworkers commented that they were aware of the discrimination and harassment by the way this supervisor was treating me and what they witnessed. This person applied strict policies that adhered only to me, while it did not apply to others within the department. (However, a select few of my equals that were singled out by this person left because of her ongoing harassment and relentless discrimination, but it wasn't as blatant and nasty as it was with me). It got to the point where I wasn't permitted to go on my computer or be at my desk except for 10 minutes prior to leaving for the day, but I was still expected to generate reports and perform administrative duties. When I was at my desk at other times I was told to get up and leave. I had other duties within the department, but because of the control and other issues, when I was at the desk it made my former supervisor extremely agitated and angry. People who do these kinds of things typically feel threatened by the other person, and are also very insecure. The abuse was so powerful that eventually it became difficult to perform my job effectively and efficiently. It also became frustrating knowing that no one in authority would defend me.

I am appalled that the DSU Administration and the Dean of the Department allowed this person to get away with such things and didn't stand up for their worker, especially with the amount of documentation. It was reported many times but with no action taken, instead they backed up my former supervisor. Since DSU did not intervene and tell this person to cease and desist, and/or write her up, then DSU must condone this type of behavior. This is a sad reflection on an academic institution that promotes equality, fairness and diversity.

It's a shame that such things still take place in a work environment, and that no one in authority will stand up for the common worker. However when you delegate authority to someone who is unprofessional, abusive , discriminative and has control issues, it is no wonder that these things will take place and will continue to take place long after I have gone.

If you want to work at DSU, it's not what it used to be anymore.
A typical day at work is a drag to wait for the school administration to process paperwork for days where other schools could do in minutes. 
What I learned from this school is to have a lot of patience and the will to forgive even though you are always wronged by the school. 
The school management is horrendous and will always accuse its employees and students before they examine their own code of conduct. 
The workplace culture is depressing and counter-productive since one topic will take weeks to have an inconclusive decision only to be reverted weeks later. Also, the school is extremely hostile if you do not assimilate to their work culture and will work school politics to get you to leave the job, which is ironic for a school advertised for diversity. The school culture is also extremely impolite and sometimes racially insensitive and downright offensive when dealing with international students and scholars. Again, ironic.
The hardest part of the job is to pay for your own research and teaching supplies and to skip meals just because the school has yet to pay the thousands of salary it owes you, and refuse to comment when asked. Also, the school will always overcharge your payments which takes months to get an unapologetic recognition, and you seldom get your money back. Most people just give up on waiting and leave school.
The most enjoyable part of the job is that I don't work there anymore.

p.s. I leave 1 star but would have chosen 0 stars if the system allows me.

At Delaware State University, I had a position that dealt with every facet of the University.  I interacted with every department and every everybody (from the janitors to the president).  After several years with the University, I have found out that an overwhelming consensus of 98% of the University staff, faculty, and vendors are frustrated with the University.  The only people that are not frustrated/disappointed are solely there for the benefits and to get their pension.  If your goal is to do a good job, help better the University and it students, or progress either the institution or yourself, then DSU is NOT the place to work.  

As is all business, the attitude, drive, inspiration and motivation start at the top and work their way down through the ranks.  Upper management at DSU is solely looking out for themselves...entitled to be in the positions that they backstabbed, lied, and cheated to get.  Sadly, the betterment of the University, its faculty & staff, and worst of all its students are not a priority.  

This University is in a golden position to become a gem within the community, state, and amongst their HBCU peers.  And it pains me to see what they truly are, who is taking them there, and the obvious path of self destruction that they being led/forced down.

I thought that I could provide the University with the much needed help that they so desperately require and deserve, but I was met with nothing but opposition and ego fueled power-trips (a far too common outcome for an institution of "higher learning").

It truly hurts me to say...PLEASE DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME APPLYING TO THIS SCHOOL.

On a typical day at work in the Deans office is a professional environment that communicates effectively with respect, assist professionals with compassion to fulfill service provided, filing and copying for professionals/professors etc., answering phone calls/dialing out phone calls, delivering mail/receiving mail and running errands for Dean. I have learned that the workplace environment is a place of business, building friendships and networks. The management at the Deans office are very intelligent professionals with the passion to assist other professionals and students. The workplace culture is independent working and shares respect throughout the day professional and functional to complete tasks. The hardest part of the job is when you have a busy class schedule for the day but your Boss gives you a list of duties for the day to complete in a specific amount of time. But I manage time efficiently and complete the task duties well ordered. The most enjoyable part of the job is being in an environment with like-minded people who smile everyday at work and love to assist people and have fun while working.

This is not a state agency that you would like to work for. The pay is bare minimum and does not match the amount of work and time you contribute. There is very little work/life balance when working for Strategic Enrollment Management (Student Accounts, Financial Aid, Records, Admissions). They do not care about what you have personally going if you are not higher management. The level of turnovers that each department sees is an all time HIGH! You will be there for about 6 months before you realize you made a mistake. The Vice President of Strategic Enrollmet Management does not care about you. He will act like he does and in the very same breathe, show you he doesnt. He only cares about making himself look good and thats all. It doesnt matter if its at the cost of his employees or not. The amount of money that you are paid never equates to the amount of your life you are losing. If possible, try to remain under the Union so you can have some protection of your job! Strategic Enrollment Management has no structure and will change your job and job duties overnight. There are Executive Directors in each department who don't know what they are doing. The possibility of promotions or even a raise is slim to NONE!! PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM STRATEGIC ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT!!! 

There was an overwhelming amount of work every single day, I was excepted to stay later, I was the only one on the team qualified to do the job so I got hit with a lot more tasks. Upper management was constantly aggressive and micromanaging. Also I was the only one who actually applied for the position everyone else came in through friendships.  I learned alot through the system being constantly incorrect and having to manually correct the information and check for accuracy. So I learned a lot of manual processes that goes on behind automation. The workplace culture was very hostile and toxic, the management has no clue what they are doing or how to lead a team. They are very cliquey and that is the main focus most of the time, not the work. The hardest part of the job is definitely the people and lack of structure, the most enjoyable part was helping the people that were affected from the disorganization and chaos of this place.

As a lifeguard may daily tasks included maintaining the pool and guarding the safety of the waters. I was most impressed with the way little kids were able to swim as toddlers. I assisted in training new staff, teaching procedures and how to check and set chemicals in the pool. My co-workers were fellow students who were energetic and loved talking about philosophy. The hardest part of my job was dealing with staff having behavioral issues. Our work environment was very encouraging staff where given the ability to grow professionally during workshops and in-services. My favorite part about being a lifeguard was encouraging the little swimmers. The kids brought positive energy to the facility, and interacting with them was a great, they made me smile every day.

A typical day at work involves me scheduling meetings with faculty, students, and my supervisor.

-Assist and advise students in completing work study documents
-Assist with supervisor and student employment training's
-Distribute work study documents to person(s) in charge
-Arrange files with proper headings to ensure organization and ease of access for student filing

My co-workers are excellent and always willing to offer advice when in need which makes my job a lot easier to deal with. The hardest part of my job would be knowing all the different departments off hand and knowing where to distribute student forms. The most enjoyable part of my job would be the fact that I am constantly learning something new and challenging myself to become an even harder worker.

We are criticized, harassed, forced to work overtime as non unionized staff in an at will state, and feel as though we are not cared about. The culture is very bad and management is abusive. Long hours are the norm. Demands are made in the nastiest of ways, my friends with children at DSU are pulling their children out of the university because the financial aide and student accounts departments have directors that make student workers service the kids. I have witnessed colleagues experience anxiety attacks from working under abusive administration and we will be bringing this to the attention of others. Human Resources is biased and does not care. Dr. Allen, we plead with you to do a clean sweep and support the staff that are too afraid to say anything to you. We are made to be fearful of being fired.

After Covid, the environment for faculty members did not improve from past surveys and constant promises from administration to become more of a self-governing higher education institution. Favoritism, politics, and practices by administration that directly contradict their messages are the norm. 

The culture of blaming faculty for poor performance by some students makes for nothing less than adversarial relationships between chairs and professors. DSU's graduation rate is about 40% (owing to very low admission requirements), which is simply terrible and reinforces the toxic environment that is pervasive even among the students. This is not the place for any bona fide academic who is truly interested in pursuing research and teaching classes with top notch students. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Administrative assistant 7 salaries reported	$40,000 per year
Resident director 3 salaries reported	$30,000 per year
Patient accounts representative 3 salaries reported	$41,667 per year
Nursing assistant 2 salaries reported	$24.00 per hour
Post-doctoral fellow 2 salaries reported	$55,000 per year

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