Negotiating Salary and Your Start-Up Package

In February 2016, the UW Career Center convened a panel of recently hired faculty members to share their perspectives on how to negotiate salary in pursuing an academic career. Here are some highlights from the workshop:

Top Tips:

(Almost) Always negotiate.
Check your attitude (you want to aim for humble-confident).
Think broadly. Beyond just salary, there are moving expenses, set up costs, teaching load, professional development funds, staff support, and etc.
You can’t get it all, but ask yourself: What will help me be a happy, productive faculty member? What are the deal breakers?

Before Asking:

Frame your thinking and communications as a faculty member, not as an aspiring graduate student or postdoc grasping for a position.
Think hard about what you want (what kind of position). Understand fit. What kind of institution are you looking for? What kind of institutional culture? What kind of experience do you want as a professor? What is possible to ask for within the kind of institution in which you are applying?
Do your research. Know what the salary range is for your discipline and type of institution. Know what you can ask for. In order to do this, you can talk with your network, e.g. people who have gotten positions in the last 3-4 years. This helps you know what to expect.

When to Ask?

Never give the first number, even if they ask. Do not talk about salary until you get a job offer.
Do not respond right away after receiving the offer of salary. Let it sit for at least 24 hours.

What to Ask?

Ask for what you need to be successful. Negotiation implies give and take.
Things to ask for: Remember to tie all asks back to your productivity and impact.
- Salary. Consider cost of living in the city, hard money/soft money split – how long before you need to bring in more of your own salary.
- Summer support. Justify it as research/productivity time. It is easier to give since it is a one-time commitment.
- Moving costs. You can get estimates for your move and negotiate for higher amount – usually institutions have set amount whether you move from near or far.
- Tech, grant, and/or teaching support.
- Travel and development. As junior person, you might need to ask for 2 conferences in first 3 years as you build your network and your position.
- Reduced teaching load. How many preps do you want each year (new courses)?
- TA or RA support
Make sure you have what you want at the end of the negotiation.

How to Ask?

Be honest, have integrity. Don’t “BS” – people can see through that.
Be gracious in the way you ask.
Remember humility – you deserve to be treated well (but not better than) all the other faculty.
Tie your requests back to how it will facilitate your contributions and success as a faculty member – you are not asking to be selfish, you are asking because you want to make good on the investment they are making in YOU.

What if…?

You receive multiple offers.
- Be honest. Never misrepresent. Keep in mind these are your colleagues who will be in your national network.
- You can always ask – if you haven’t heard from top choice yet, you can ask where you are in the process because you have another offer.
- Be gracious in asking for more information, and for more time. Search Committees take time, the whole process takes time. E.g. “I have an offer from another institution, but I would be very interested in hearing from you.”
You are moving with your partner who is also pursuing academic career.
- Don’t start asking right away – it can create a barrier.
- You want to be honest. You want to be upfront. But think about when to say it.
- Certain states have “anti-nepotism laws” – strict rules about having relatives be in potential positions of power over each other. Or resource constraints. Research institutional culture/practices – some institutions can be very helpful.
- Sometimes they find “options”, but they are not options that are desirable for your career.
- Sometimes you can ask for career services for your spouse.

Things to Bear in Mind:

When negotiating, you are starting the beginning of a long term relationship. You want to start on the right foot. Be objective, be fair, look for a win-win solution (see Steven Convey). A teaching institution won’t be able to provide a Research I lab space. Know the context in which you are asking.
Don’t take it personally. When they throw a number out, don’t get excited or offended. Look at the range you know they use. It sets your starting point and you move from there. Do not agree on anything right away.
Putting your best self forward in negotiation. Word will get around about the “ridiculous” things you are asking for, or how unreasonable, or difficult you’ve been.
You have to communicate your sense of value. But not your value as “better than everyone else”. Be confident but humble.
If you give up too much, it also creates a lesser If you agree too quickly, you are not perceived as strong. You may end up resenting what others have.

Resources:

Check university websites for benefit packages.
Check with your professional society, or with publicly available databases to find out appropriate salary ranges for your field or the institution. Keep in mind years of experience will count.
Career Center resource on Academic Career: Salary Negotiation
Julia Miller Vick & Jennifer S. Furlong. (2008). Academic Job Search Handbook.
Linda Babcock & Sara Laschever. (2009). Ask for It: How Women Can Use Power of Negotiation to Get What They Really Want.

Acknowledgement to the panelists:
Dr. Thelma Madzima, Faculty in Biology, UW Bothell
Dr. Hala Annabi, Faculty in iSchool, UW Seattle
Catherine Basl, UW Career Center

Originally posted on February 11, 2016.

You’re Hired!

I feel behind my cohort in terms of applicable experience. I’ve applied to several internships/practicum experiences, but my financial situation dictates that I either need a paid internship or another job while I complete an unpaid internship. Because my classes are during the day, I’ve found the latter next to impossible. Additionally, I haven’t revived much interest in hiring due to my lack of experience. How do I find the right positions for this situation? —Inexperienced

(This week’s answer is courtesy of Catherine Basl, Lead Career Counselor, Career Center.)

Thanks for sharing a bit about your situation. It can definitely feel discouraging when we aren’t having as much luck as we want in the job search and when we are faced with hard decisions about lackluster paid positions versus highly interesting unpaid positions. Below are some tips you might find helpful.

Don’t worry! Most graduate cohorts are made up of students who have a range of applicable experience. If they accepted you into the program, they think you have enough experience to be successful! Though it can be difficult, try to stay positive and confident.
Consider making a list of what you are looking for in a job or internship. Whether it includes a desired weekly schedule, skills, location, or something else, making a list and prioritizing it can help when mulling over possible options.
Applicable experience is more than work experience. Consider your volunteer experience too! If you are within a few years of your undergraduate work you might also include relevant clubs and student activities on your resume. Don’t sell yourself short.
Use your network! If you have only been looking online, consult with your graduate program adviser, departmental staff members and faculty about possible internships. Depending on your field, HuskyJobs might also be a good resource.
Polish your resume and cover letter! Tailor your resume and cover letter for each position and consider getting them reviewed to ensure they are submission-ready. Sometimes tweaking your materials or doing a mock interview can make a world of difference in the job search.
Feeling stuck? Schedule an appointment with a career counselor—we can help you with every step of the process from deciding what’s most important to you to helping you prep for the interview that will land you your dream internship.

Ask the Grad School Guru is an advice column for all y’all graduate and professional students. Real questions from real students, answered by real people. If the guru doesn’t know the answer, the guru will seek out experts all across campus to address the issue. (Please note: The guru is not a medical doctor, therapist, lawyer or academic advisor, and all advice offered here is for informational purposes only.) Submit a question for the column →

Do I Have to TA if I Have a Fellowship?

I received an NRSA predoctoral fellowship. My understanding is that the fellowship is to cover my graduate school tuition so that I can devote full-time efforts to research (as required by NIH policy). However, my department has requested that I TA in the Spring quarter (concurrently with my fellowship) to cover the tuition shortfall. Is this typical? Are there options for tuition waivers so that I may focus solely on research? Are there limits to the number or amount of tuition waivers for NRSA recipients?

(This week’s answer is courtesy of Helene Obradovich, Director of Fellowships and Awards, Graduate School.)

The Graduate School often provides tuition waivers for students who receive prestigious, individually-awarded, nationally-competitive fellowships from external organizations that don’t cover the full cost of tuition. We want to ensure that graduate students know that they can and should apply for these prestigious awards without concern for how they will cover the cost of tuition. Examples of types of funders/awards include the Ford Foundation Pre-doctoral and Dissertation fellowships, NSF Graduate Research fellowships, ACLS fellowships, etc. NIH NRSA individual fellowships also fall into that category. Have your department contact our Fellowships & Awards office to discuss how this might work. The request for tuition coverage must come from your department. Our staff can be reached at gradappt@uw.edu or 3-7152. Any graduate student considering applying for an award that doesn’t cover the full cost of tuition should also contact our Fellowships & Awards office before applying for confirmation on whether we can assist with tuition coverage.

Money money money

I’m entering the last year of my program and my financial resources have run dry. Though I receive loans through the UW, they do not provide the income I need. What options are available to me to help bolster my income for this quarter? —Anonymous

1. Your first stop should be Graduate Funding Information Services (GFIS). They’re the go-to for all funding resources. 2. You can also search the UW job database for student positions (category: Academic Student Employee) and 3. Husky Jobs, which posts academic positions and general job advertisements. 4. If you are interested in a TA/RA/GSA position, contact the department in which you are interested directly for more information. Keep in mind that you can look for positions outside of your home department. Though most departments hire through their own student populations, other departments—particularly those that don’t have graduate students or administrative units that hire graduate staff assistants—will recruit widely for positions from relevant degree programs across campus. 5. Check the Graduate School’s Fellowships and Assistantships page. 6. Consider part-time work that’s flexible and fun to do. Graduate students often work as nannies, tutors, pet-sitters, etc. 7. Always let your department know that you are in need of help. They will know of any opportunities that might not be heavily advertised or for a very specific niche. Good luck!

TA/RA Positions

Where may I look for available TA/RA positions for next quarter? Also, does working in a UW Library give any benefit as the ones received through TA/RA: Tuition waiver or graduate insurance? —Anonymous

Teaching assistants, research assistants and graduate staff assistants are hired directly by departments. If you are interested in a TA/RA/GSA position, contact the department in which you are interested directly for more information. Keep in mind that you can look for positions outside of your home department. Though most departments hire through their own student populations, other departments—particularly those that don’t have graduate students or administrative units that hire graduate staff assistants—will recruit widely for positions from relevant degree programs across campus. Every department runs its own hiring process and can let you know what it requires to be considered for such positions. Check the UW Employment site for TA/RA/GSA positions (category: Academic Student Employee).

The Graduate Funding Information Service is another resource and runs a blog for both UW and outside funding.

As for library positions, Erik Dahl, employment and payroll services manager of UW Libraries, says: “We generally have one or two salaried positions that are in academic student employee positions covered by the UAW contract and, thus, eligible for the tuition waiver or graduate insurance. Most of our student employee positions, however, are hourly positions that do not offer formal benefits beyond wages. Working in the libraries does offer the opportunity to learn more about our resources, programs, and services, which can be beneficial to employees’ academic work. Library positions also allow students to gain skills and work experience that, depending on career goals, may be directly related to their field or generally transferable. And of course (like any on-campus job) library positions are conveniently located and may offer tax benefits relative to off-campus work. Like other on-campus jobs, library positions usually find students working with staff and supervisors who are highly supportive and flexible when it comes to balancing work with their academic schedules and other demands.”

Good luck!

Death and Taxes

Filing taxes seems more complicated than it should be, and there seems to be no help from the university, despite the fact that many graduate students have very similar tax situations. What’s the best way to file to maximize our return (where do we put student fees and union dues and all of the other things that we can claim to reduce our tax liability)? Are there good tax help resources available? —Anonymous

Why are taxes so complicated? Albert Einstein once said, “The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax.” Anyway, yes, the UW does provide tax help! Student Fiscal Services is holding general student tax workshops Thursdays, April 2 and 9, 1:30-2:30 p.m. They are also holding a workshop specifically for graduate/professional students on Wednesday, April 8, 2:30-3:30 p.m. and one for international students on Tuesday, April 7, 1:30-2:20 p.m. All workshops are held at UW Seattle, Odegaard 220. If you can’t make a workshop in person, you can download their presentation. Also, the Seattle Public Library offers one-on-one tax help at various branches. United Way offers help at a few additional sites. (You must have made less than $60,000 in 2014 to be eligible for their free help. Probably not a problem for grad students?) Good luck!

“Taxation with representation ain’t so hot either.” —Gerald Barzan, humorist