Duke University Pay Scales (employment, schools, salary)

[pwreePE]

I was interested in applying to Duke University for a job (non-Medical) and the description lists the job classification with pay class. However, the website link for the Duke pay scales is internal access only. I was wondering if someone has access to these scales that could tell me what the range was for this type of position (direct msg is OK).

I've heard that Duke salaries are not on par with private industry, and before I go down the road of applying and possibly interviewing I'd like to know if the salary is a deal breaker.

Also, if anyone works at Duke, not in the hospital, what are your general impressions of the workplace? I have seen a number of posts regarding the hospital but not many with facilities/operations/administration experiences.

Thanks!

[jill7930]

Working at Duke varies wildly by one's dept/unit/etc. I have been very happy in my position- an admin one in an academic dept on the Campus side. I've got a wonderful boss, supportive faculty and upper admin. Not everyone finds their situation the same.

The pay scales are very wide though, so I'm not sure how helpful they would be in guessing at the position's salary. For example, the salary for the high end of the scale for my position is almost $10/hr more than the salary of the low end. I saw a $20K-$30K difference on some of the salaried jobs between high and low end. That's a pretty big difference....

Anyway, I sent you a direct msg.

[bobafett4ever]

I worked in the DCRI and my pay was a little under par with the industry, but the stress was unreal. I've moved to a competitor now where the pay is a tad better but the stress is half of what it was there. I know this may not help, but remember what good is the money if the stress kills you

[Esperanza27713]

If you are able to find out the pay range/scale for your position, keep in mind that most units on the university side do not hire past the mid-range, and mid-range is reserved for highly qualified candidates. You can expect the salary offered to be in the first half of the range, usually lower first half unless your experience is exceptional. Otherwise, there's little space for future pay raises and such. This may not be the case in some units, but seems to be the guiding principle for most.

[LisaZ]

I read another thread on here a while back about Duke. People bashed it for being a high stress, long hour work environment. They also said the pay is not THAT great for what you have to deal with. Do a search for the thread.

[jill7930]

I have a problem with people saying that *Duke* is a high stress, long work hour environment (LisaZ, I realize you were just summarizing a previous thread). There are thousands of people employed by Duke, doing a huge range of different jobs. As I've said before- and I think even disgruntled Duke employees could attest to- work life at Duke is very dependent upon one's dept/unit/job/boss.

I have many happy colleagues at Duke. Let's please stop with the sweeping generalizations about working at Duke- it's a big place, and because a nurse in the hospital doesn't like it doesn't mean that a financial analyst in the English dept will hate it. It's like comparing apples and oranges. I HATED my first job at Duke and after a year, got into the one I've been in for 7 yrs and really enjoy. I have very low stress and don't work over 40 hrs/week. I have a great boss and wonderful co-workers. Yes, the pay could be better, but I value my work environment more than money.

[Esperanza27713]

Thank you, jill7930, for pointing out how difficult it is to generalize about employment at Duke. You can look at benefits and make general statements about categories of employee benefits (university bi-weeklies, university monthly, health system bi-weeklies, etc.), but I believe it impossible to generalize work environment across so many thousands of employees, hundreds of units, difference governance and operational systems, various missions, etc.

Sure, there's stress and sometimes there's overtime, but overall, in my little corner of the Duke world, life is pretty darn good and I'm happy to come to work each day. I've been here a long time and I've seen some warts, but I say without hesitation that there are many great job opportunities at Duke. It can be a fantastic place to work if you find the right position.

[Bull City Rising]

Agreed (thanks Jill!)

I work in IT at Duke (university side) and find the pay and overall benefits to be outstanding. I previously worked for another major national peer institution university and find Duke's overall work environment and total compensation package outstanding.

For instance: Monthly salaried employees who contribute at least a minimum percentage to their university tax-deferred retirement account get a sizable contribution from the university -- 8.6% of the first $51,450 of salary and 13.3% of annual salary in excess of $51,450, up to a statutory salary limit of $230,000, according to the HR web site. There are also very generous private college/university tuition benefits that again far exceed what many schools offer.

I've been very happy with the work environment and find Duke a terrific place to work.

[LisaZ]

Woah. I just said what I read on a city data thread (hey I rhymed!). I recommended the person do some research. Of course you can not generalize BUT I can say that I took a job at a GE Finance company and was told after I accepted by many people that they work you looong hours. They obviously didn't come off that way in the interview process. Guess what, they work you loong hours. All I have to say is try to speak to someone in that department of Duke before you accept a job if you are skeptical. Most people are not going to be that forthcoming with the negatives about the work environment in the interview process.

[pwreePE]

I appreciate all of the feedback. I think I will apply for the post and see what happens. As I was looking through the Duke HR website, I came across the policy on reference checking and it states that one of the required references is the candidates current supervisor (including external candidates). That may be a bit difficult as my current supervisor would probably not be too happy that I was looking (we've had quite a few people leave over the last few months) and I'd hate for him to say something to Duke that would cause them to not make me an offer, while at the same time making my current job akward. My supervisor and I get along great, but he tends to hold a grudge when people resign. Can any of the current Duke employees speak ot this policy (is it definitely a requirement)? I've never had to have a prospective employer talk to my current supervisor prior to making an offer.

Thanks again for all of the insight