Is NIH a good company to work for?

NIH has an overall rating of 4.1 out of 5, based on over 2,842 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 3% over the last 12 months. 80% of employees would recommend working at NIH to a friend and 60% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about NIH have been left by employees working as Postdoctoral Researcher , Intern and Summer Intern .

Does NIH pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, NIH employees rate their compensation and benefits as 4.0 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at NIH. This rating has decreased by 2% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at NIH?

80% of NIH employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated NIH 4.1 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.2 for culture and values and 3.9 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at NIH?

Postdoctoral Fellow (298) , Research Fellow (124) , Postbaccalaureate IRTA (103) , Staff Scientist (63) , Postdoctoral Research Fellow (40) , Intern (38) , Research Assistant (38) , Summer Intern (29) , Post-Baccalaureate Fellow (27) , Scientist (25) , Research Scientist (23) , Biologist (22) , Program Analyst (21) , Post Doctoral Fellow (20) , Visiting Fellow (20)

What are the pros of working at NIH according to real employee reviews?

"The people are great and having a role in biomedical research is rewarding" ((in 145 reviews)); "good benefits and pro." ((in 134 reviews)); "Flexible and good work/life balance" ((in 76 reviews)); "Great lab and colleagues." ((in 55 reviews)); "Great opportunity to be mentored and grow as a scientist" ((in 45 reviews))

What are the cons of working at NIH according to real employee reviews?

"Low salaries and lack of benefit." ((in 72 reviews)); "can become repetitive, sometime poor management, same activity repeated," ((in 28 reviews)); ""Bad" Departments has poor leadership, micromanage and terrible behaviors unbecoming of what a manager should be." ((in 14 reviews)); "Lots of bureaucracy and red tape to navigate" ((in 12 reviews)); "Certain managers (and this is a systematic problem government wide) that focus on promotion based on "time in grade" rather than job performance." ((in 9 reviews))

What are employees saying about NIH layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about NIH layoffs and their outlook for job security at NIH in 2026.

What are the top reviewed NIH locations?

Bethesda , Rockville , Washington , Baltimore , Frederick , Durham , Gaithersburg , Silver Spring , Research Triangle Park , New York , North Bethesda , Phoenix , Raleigh , Boston , Herndon , Maryland Heights , Houston , Columbia , Bowie , Cambridge , Shady Grove , Little Falls , New Brunswick , Wayne , Princeton , Chicago , Kewanee , Annandale , Clifton , Reston

NIH reviews

4.1

80% would recommend to a friend

(2,341 total reviews)

Francis S. Collins

82% approve of CEO

60% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (2,341 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

NIH has an employee rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars, based on 2,341 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The NIH employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

4.0

Jul 8, 2025

Good benefits, great mission

Technical writer/editor

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great manager, everyone strongly believes in the mission and work, good work-life balance, life-saving work happening, always willing to try new or different things to find a better process.

Cons

Work can progress slowly given the red tape that has to be cut to move forward; promotions to management level are few and far in between and often are delayed by months or even years thanks to the bureaucracy so the strongest employees tend to leave (and sometimes return) so they can get the promotion.

5.0

Jul 4, 2025

Excellent research institute

Staff scientist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

high level of research; sufficient funding

Cons

hard to get a promotion; hard to transfer to federal position

5.0

Jul 4, 2025

Best possible way to kick start my academic career

Postbaccalaureate irta

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Incredibly collaborative and collegial community of bright researchers

Cons

Washington DC is hot in the summer and government funding can create some uncertainties

Viewing 94 - 96 of 2,341 Reviews

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

GSK

3.9★Compensation & Benefits

Sanofi

4.0★Compensation & Benefits

Bayer

3.9★Compensation & Benefits

Novartis

4.1★Compensation & Benefits

Jobs at NIH

Postdoctoral IRTA Position on Mucosal Immunity and Vaccine Development for Emerging Respiratory Viruses

Postdoctoral Fellow (NIH NIAID Montana)

NIH

NIH reviews

Company ratings over time

Ratings by demographic groups

Reviews by job title

Good benefits, great mission

Excellent research institute

Best possible way to kick start my academic career

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

Jobs at NIH

NIH reviews FAQs

Want the inside scoop on your own company?

Bowls

Followed companies

Job searches

Company ratings over time

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

NIH reviews FAQs

Jobs at NIH