employer cover photo
employer logo
employer logo

Boston University

Is this your company?

Difficult to justify living/working in Boston with such low pay - Communications Manager Boston University Employee Review

3.0
19 July 2023
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The sick days and vacation is great for salaried positions (started with 3 weeks off and 20+ sick days). For the most part, they respect work-life balance. Though this can depend on who your manager is.

Cons

For all the benefits they tout about working at a huge institution, it actually ends up getting in the way of career growth. There is no clarity on titles or career trajectory. Unless you have a direct supervisor/department lead that knows how to navigate the HR system, and is persistent, it can be difficult to get promotions or raises. Pay is extremely low considering the true cost of living in the Boston area. The expectation for staff to be on campus 3 days a week without proper pay to actually live near the most expensive areas of town proves how out of touch they are. Turnover is frequent. Tuition remission is nice but complicated to navigate unless you are pursuing a specific degree program. But the parental leave policy needs to be reformed. Four months is nowhere near enough time and the cost of childcare makes it impossible to continue working at BU with such a low salary. They should know from the cost of their own on-campus childcare (which comes with a lengthy waitlist). Read the fine print/do the math before you decide if the benefits balance the low salary. Also if they truly believed in DEI, they would pay their employees better. You're never going to attract diverse talent through low salaries in Boston.

Explore other reviews about Boston University

5.0
1 June 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great management, flexible, great community.

Cons

Not much to say :)

4.0
3 June 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great time working at CS Dept. Free food (occasionally)

Cons

Nothing much to complain about; Great people

See reviews by: Helpful|Rating|Date|All