By Emily Seamone

Photo by rawpixel.com

It is never too early to begin preparing for negotiation, even if you are just starting your job search. Being armed with knowledge of the salaries in your field(s), the market rate for your target role(s) as well as your education and experience, and your desired characteristics in a job can help you in many ways.

First, by preparing for negotiation, you will have a better sense as to whether jobs with salaries listed in their postings fit your expectations. If the salary appears to be too low based on your research, you may decide not to invest your time in the opportunity (this may also be dependent on several other factors). As of this writing, a new law will take effect in New York City in November 2022 called the Pay Transparency Law. This law requires all New York City employers with four or more employees or one or more domestic workers to list salary ranges in their job postings (there are some exceptions, which you can read about here). A couple of states already have some form of this law, and the federal government includes salary ranges in most of its job listings. Enter “pay transparency laws” into your favorite search engine to read more about what is happening and where at the time of your job search.

Second, salary discussions or requests may come up earlier in the job search process, such as on an application (e.g., when asked to list your desired salary) or in a job interview. We recommend holding off on talking about any compensation until you receive an offer. However, if you are presented with these earlier scenarios, you will want to have up-to-date salary information for your field. We will discuss how to handle these specific situations in the next blog post in this series.

Third, it is helpful in a job search and before negotiation to be clear on what you want in a position, even beyond the salary. Start with a values assessment, such as the one on ImaginePhD (for those in social sciences or the humanities), myIDP (for those in STEM fields), or CareerOneStop’s Work Values assessment (for any field). These exercises will assist you in identifying what is most important to you at this point in your life. Such values might include flexibility, compensation, location, and/or friendships. There are always going to be trade-offs in a job, thus it is critical to know what you really need and are willing to let go of. Also, consider other negotiable aspects of a job, such as the items listed at the end of this post. What is most desirable to you?

Conducting Research on Salaries

The next step in the process of preparing for negotiation is to conduct research on salaries to determine a range for your target work and field, as well as for your market value (i.e., the fair price for your education, training, and experience). There are many ways to gather information on compensation, and it is often valuable to tap into several of these methods.

First, ask around. Talk to friends, colleagues, scholars, your advisor and/or committee members, mentors, people in your network, and recruiters. Ask them what they think the going rate is for the field and someone with your background. You can request a range or even state, “This is what I think I am worth, does that sound right?” Be sure to ask both men and women, as research shows that there are often gender differences in terms of compensation.

Second, if you do not know many people in your field, conduct informational interviews with professionals doing similar work. (Tip: start with alumni of the schools you’ve attended, which you can find via the alumni tool on LinkedIn.) When speaking with professionals about their field and job, you can also ask them what kind of salary range you might expect for someone at your level.

Third, be sure to check out salary websites, such as those listed below (note that some salary websites will require a fee for data, although the ones in this article are free of charge at the time of this writing). Get as specific as possible, including your geographical area, level of education, and experience. If it is challenging to find your exact line of work or targeted job title(s), search for a variety of options and collect information on all. In addition, as you search for job listings in your field, notice if the postings include salary ranges.

Salary websites:

• Payscale
• Salary.com
• Glassdoor (see Discover Salary tab and Salary Calculator)
• Salary Expert
• LinkedIn Salary Tool
• Indeed (see Find Salaries tab)
• CareerOneStop’s Salary Finder
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Finally, look into trade journals and professional associations in your field for industry-specific salary surveys and databases. (Tip: visit professional association directory searches if you are unaware of associations in your line of work.) Many professional associations survey their members annually for salary information. For example, the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) website offers an annual survey of faculty compensation. Also for faculty as well as higher education administration positions, the Chronicle of Higher Education has a searchable database of salaries.

Devising a Salary Range

Once you have collected salary information from a variety of the above sources, come up with a range that you feel is representative of your research and is based on title, field, level, education, and geographical area. Note that this range can be large at this point, such as $70,000 to $100,000. (Tip: when it comes to actually negotiating later on, you will aim to narrow your range a bit more.) Also determine your bottom line. How low can you go and still be able to support yourself and any others in your life? Be honest with yourself and review your budget and living expenses. The lower end of your desired salary range should not be less than your lowest possible salary point.

Aspects you Might Negotiate (for Non-Academic and Faculty Positions)

Additional Resources

Looking for more information on negotiations? Check out our webinar on negotiating or schedule an appointment with a career advisor for personalized assistance. Stay tuned for our next post in the series: “Salary Discussions During the Job Search Process”