Few institutional guidelines on the research side - so choose a lab carefully
Pros
Good benefits, especially health insurance You can see the kids you are helping (whether directly or indirectly) Vibrant intellectual atmosphere in most research departments Resources plentiful
Cons
In research, very few institutional guidelines and regulations regarding employee rights, so lab heads can pretty much do what they want. Many are supportive of the people working in their labs; however, if one gets stuck with a bad apple there is pretty much no recourse provided by the institution. Pay is on par with most other institutions dollar-wise; however, when you take into account the cost of living in Boston, pay is actually below par. At least in research, assessment of performance and recognition for good performance is pretty much nonexistent.
