research assistant

admission counselor

assistant professor

accountant

student worker

University of Central Oklahoma


There are lots of perks at UCO, like a generous time off allowance and built in holidays (spring break off, about a week to ten days off at Christmas). You also get a free gym membership and can participate in various professional development programs (with supervisor approval). With all of the time off there is a great work/life balance. There is also a tuition waiver up to a certain number of credits for you or a dependent to use (includes your spouse). The pay is a little below market average and they are generally short staffed which means that people are doing the work of more than one position usually. This often leads to burnout for staff and high turnover.

There isn't a well-established career advancement ladder, which makes it nearly impossible to advance in your position.  Raises are VERY infrequent especially over the past several years since the school has a budget deficit to make up for. If you want an increase staff usually have to apply for a new position at the University. This makes it tough because there is constant change with staff positions and to top things off UCO's procedures are inconsistent and constantly changing.  The culture is very reactionary. There is always a fire that needs putting out even if it doesn't appear that way looking in.  Staff usually do a good job managing these problems, but the result is exhaustion and high employee turnover. This reactionary culture affects the students, making it more difficult for them to succeed and no doubt effecting the school's retention.

 Middle to upper management is VERY out of touch with general staff and student issues and it is beyond frustrating. They are not willing to make the necessary staffing changes near/at the cabinet level that would make UCO an amazing place to be for both students and staff.

I helped direct and supervise students in the Student Support Services and Project Persist programs at UCO. Along with training student staff to implement office policies and procedures, I tutored students in various subjects such as Biology, Chemistry, and English. My co-workers were a blast to work with. The work environment was fun and professional. They made the transition from a junior college to a big university so smoothly for me. The supervisors are very educated and helped me in any endeavor that I needed assistance with. Not having students show up to a tutor session without contacting me ahead of time was the most frustrating part of the job. However, having students absorb, comprehend, and interpret the information during tutor sessions, apply the information to their coursework, and pass their classes successfully was by far the most enjoyable part of the job. From this job, I have learned organizational skills, office management, delegation of assignments, conflict resolution, curriculum development, teamwork, and effective communication.

As an Adjunct Professor at the University of Central University, each day is filled with intellectual stimulation and rewarding experiences. I have grown significantly in effectively communicating complex concepts to my students. The management is supportive, fostering an environment of continual learning and professional development. The workplace culture is collegial, with a strong emphasis on collaboration and mutual respect. The most challenging aspect of the job is dealing with the sporadic nature of adjunct work, the uncertainty of contracts, and balancing multiple teaching assignments. However, the satisfaction derived from witnessing the intellectual growth of my students is incredibly rewarding, making this the most enjoyable part of the job.

As far as police work goes, it is very low-level with very little activity. The campus has a high percentage of commuters and only max 1500 live on campus during the semester. You can run traffic and write a few tickets. The jurisdiction is small and basically just the perimeter of the main campus. If you work nights you can get a few DUI's. Relationship with the Edmond PD is nonexistent. Great position for an older officer. You can get your steps in unlocking/locking buildings and checking them throughout the shift. Small dept., so not many leadership positions and few chances for advancement. You accrue a crazy amount of time off but little opportunity to take it. If the pay was better, I would have stayed. There are no step raises and no cost of living raises at the university. Pay has not increased since a 25% increase in 2021 but even then it doesn't really match other departments. Almost no training opportunities. 

Working for UCO was very much like working an internship: you are not paid well with little to no benefits, but the work experience is great. Working as a research assistant with a professor in your department is a great experience and there is very little chance of having a poor relationship with them unless you do something they do not approve. Professors also know that you are also a student and will not hound you about results during certain times of the year like midterms or approaching finals. They still expect results, but know that you may be under stress with classes and don't want you to fail. You will have to take a pay-cut and lose all benefits from another job to take this one, but it is worth it in the end with the job experience and networking unavailable to you without it.

Working in Higher Ed provides daily, big-picture motivation seeing student's grow via intentional transformative learning experiences.  Although everyone is feeling the underlying stress of lower enrollment and retention.  The increased staff turnover rate is starting to take a toll in loss of important institutional knowledge.  Even so, the university enjoys a respected reputation in the community and provides a great place for students to grow, transform and become successful by their own definition. It's rewarding to be a part of that success and see the tangible results every semester during graduation ceremonies

The school is financially strapped and up against the wall now.  This is unnecessary.  Credit hour production has been declining for years.  By strategically not replacing faculty and staff as they retired staffing could have been painlessly aligned with student demand.  However, two administrations ignored the problem and continued to hire more faculty, staff, and administrators despite declining credit hour production.  Now they have no way out that doesn’t involve laying people off.  

Watching enrollments decline while increasing administrators, staff and faculty is why I left.  In my opinion the deans and higher administration were and are a clown show I simply lost confidence in.  If you have options I would advise against going.  If you have to go manage your CV with exit as your goal.

I believe the UCO community is a great place to work. There is a real sense of helpfulness between the different divisions. Collaboration is highly encouraged and demonstrated frequently.

Professional development opportunities are available and encourage at the University of Central Oklahoma. I have been fortunate to participate in  both Management Development Program (MDP) & Leadership UCO (LUCO) through UCO Human Resources Professional Development department. I was also selected to participate in Leadership Edmond while at the University.

All of these programs have helped to improve my leadership skills, make me more valuable to my division, and to the University.

Being a teacher Assistant at the University of Central Oklahoma gave me a great opportunity to demonstrate my leadership skills and my ability to manage and organize a classroom. In a typical day I would take roll, sometimes help students take a test, and occasionally teach a lesson. I would answer student's questions and help them keep track and improve their grades. I enjoyed working with my boss, the professor of the class. She was smart, funny, but dedicated to the students' ability to learn the information. The hardest part of the job was trying to communicate to the students and convince them to work hard to improve their grades. I most enjoyed when I would explain a concept to a student and their face would light up with understanding, cause it meant I did my job well.

I loved the environment of the Unviersity. There was always something going on! Surrounded by students eager to learn and on the go!
The employees of the school are a bit different. There is an almost a 'that's not my job" kinda attitude, which is very frustrating. But I managed to get along with everyone alright.
The hardest part of the job was the level of training a person receives. Sort of a sink or swim attitude. Their Data system is really complicated and they aren't that willing to assist you in learning it. So the management is not the greatest.
The most enjoyable part is the challenge of helping out the students with their needs.
You never know what type of situation you will come across. I find that type of work very rewarding.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Research assistant 7 salaries reported	$10.14 per hour
Admission counselor 4 salaries reported	$35,000 per year
Assistant professor 4 salaries reported	$86,300 per year
Accountant 1 salary reported	$58,400 per year
Student worker 5 salaries reported	$8.70 per hour

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