Is Uncommon Schools a good company to work for?

Uncommon Schools has an overall rating of 2.7 out of 5, based on over 1,125 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 12% over the last 12 months. 30% of employees would recommend working at Uncommon Schools to a friend and 29% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Uncommon Schools have been left by employees working as Director of Operations , Director and Summer Teaching Fellow .

Does Uncommon Schools pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Uncommon Schools employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.1 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Uncommon Schools. This rating has decreased by 7% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Uncommon Schools?

30% of Uncommon Schools employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Uncommon Schools 2.3 out of 5 for work life balance, 2.9 for culture and values and 3.0 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Uncommon Schools?

Teacher (294) , Lead Teacher (32) , Special Projects Coordinator (26) , Office Manager (24) , English Teacher (23) , Summer Teaching Fellow (21) , Special Education Teacher (20) , Dean of Students (19) , Middle School Teacher (16) , Director of Operations (14) , Math Teacher (14) , Science Teacher (11) , Director (10) , ELA Teacher (8) , Elementary Teacher (8)

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

"Good pay and school structure" ((in 74 reviews)); "Uncommon provides strong professional development for teachers and school leaders." ((in 47 reviews)); "staff is great and caring" ((in 38 reviews)); "kids are extremely sweet and benefits are good" ((in 30 reviews)); "Support from Coaches and great culture" ((in 25 reviews))

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

"Long hours if you want to have success as a teacher (it's not horrible)" ((in 128 reviews)); "You are losing so many teachers because of poor leadership." ((in 42 reviews)); "No autonomy for experienced teachers, one size fits all philosophy for students, long hours" ((in 31 reviews)); "Horrible management of employees in terms of operations." ((in 18 reviews)); "Long days and lots of demands" ((in 17 reviews))

What are the top reviewed Uncommon Schools locations?

Brooklyn , New York , Newark , Boston , Rochester , Camden , Dorchester , Troy , Roxbury , Livingston , Montclair , New Brunswick , Chicago , Watervliet , Huntington , Portland , Canada , Houston , Porter , Memphis , Greencastle , Brecksville , Kelseyville , Las Vegas , Miami , West Palm Beach , Hyde Park , New Castle , Mission Hill , Roxbury Crossing

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Uncommon Schools

Uncommon Schools reviews

2.7

30% would recommend to a friend

(1,061 total reviews)

Brett Peiser

40% approve of CEO

29% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

3.4

Diversity & inclusion

3.1

Compensation and benefits

3.0

Career opportunities

2.9

Culture & values

2.3

Work/Life balance

2.3

Senior management

Uncommon Schools has an employee rating of 2.7 out of 5 stars, based on 1,061 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an average working experience there. The Uncommon Schools employee rating is 28% below average for employers within the Education industry (3.7 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

1K reviews

1.0

Apr 4, 2015

Robotic, militaristic "teaching"

Teacher

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

-High expectations for employers and students - The feeling that you are working towards closing the achievement gap -The chance to go on to bigger and better things once you're done with your 2-year Teach For America stint or your dabble in urban education

Cons

-Abuse from leadership  -you will be working at least 12 hours a day most days, and will be expected to complete analyses/reports over the weekend - holiday weekends, long weekends, vacations...  -Belittlement in front of your own kids in your own classroom  -You are expendable - you are just another body  -Turnover rates for new and returning teachers -No enrichment- high stakes test prep curriculum all day long

2.0

Apr 7, 2014

Inconsistent results between schools

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Unlike most other schools, teachers never need to spend a dime out of pocket on anything for their classrooms. Compensation is better than local schools (although with many fewer personal/sick days). Despite still having long hours, Uncommon seems to be very aware of the concerns with work-life balance and leaders make frequent nice gestures to keep morale up - buying lunch, etc. Teachers are encouraged to collaborate and given adequate time to do so.

Cons

The network is expanding rapidly and struggling to replicate its successes at some of its newer schools. School culture and discipline are troubling at some schools. "Mission alignment" seems to be favored over expertise in hiring and promotion, resulting in a culture of inexperienced staff who won't question decisions and inexperienced leadership with a one-size-fits-all approach. Classroom turnover is concerning, with most teachers either promoted or burnt out after just a couple years. When I was hired, Uncommon was known for skilled, experienced teachers who drove student achievement through their own decisions. I am worried it is becoming more like other "corporate" charter chains.

2.0

Mar 29, 2018

"21st Century Slavery"

High school history teacher

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

- Good Pay - Highly Organized/Efficient - Free Meals - Amazing Recruitment/Coworkers

Cons

- Incredibly Racist at Highest Levels - Unreceptive to Feedback from teachers - No work/life balance - Students are miserable (justifiably so) - Culture of Fear/Silence - Constant Micromanagement -

Viewing 19 - 21 of 1,061 Reviews

Jobs at Uncommon Schools

Bilingual Seasonal Benefits Enrollment Counselor

Chicago, IL

View job

Pre-K-12 Teacher - Pre-K, Elementary, Middle, High School Teacher

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Robotic, militaristic "teaching"

Inconsistent results between schools

"21st Century Slavery"

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