Salary Calculator Allows Comparisons, Informs RD Staffing
A snapshot of salaries across the research development profession is now available, with the release of the 2020 NORDP salary survey available to NORDP members here here. This survey updates the information gathered in the most recent survey completed in 2015.
“Research development and human resource offices across the country have used this salary information to inform hiring decisions and RD staffing at universities,” says Kimberly Eck, president-elect of NORDP and assistant vice chancellor of research development at the University of Tennessee.
For example, Karen Eck, assistant vice president for research at Old Dominion University and past president of NORDP, says she used the 2015 survey data to advocate for more senior positions in her office.
“With 3,000 employees at our university, our HR office welcomed this critical data,” she says. “The 2015 NORDP salary survey helped us craft our strategic case and get two senior grant development specialist positions approved. Data always wins, especially in the academic environment.”
NORDP members can access the results, which includes a salary report and salary calculator, which enables users to enter parameters such as degree, job title, type of organization, and region to obtain mean salaries, based on the 2020 survey.
A webinar is scheduled for May 29, 1:00 – 2:00 p.m EST, to highlight key findings and demonstrate the calculator. NORDP members can register for the webinar here.
The confidential online survey was administered to approximately 1,000 NORDP members and received a robust 34% response rate. As in past years, the 2020 survey collected member institution zip codes, enabling paired analyses using both actual reported salaries and normalized salaries using the 2019 county cost-of-living index table from the Council for Community and Economic Research. This allows users of the salary calculator to compare similar positions in different geographic areas.
The report addresses multiple institutional and individual variables including: institution type (public or private), institution geographic location and size (based on research expenditures); job category (professional title); RD office size (as measured by FTEs); and respondent demographics (gender, race, ethnicity, and education). Added this year, the survey also collected information about job functions.
NORDP members serving as salary survey investigators included:
- Kimberly Eck, assistant vice chancellor, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
- Karen Eck, assistant vice president for research, Old Dominion University
- Mary Fechner, proposal development specialist, University of Massachusetts
- Rebecca Latimer, director of proposal development, University of Virginia
- Kayla Tindle, assistant vice president, Texas Tech University
Additionally, salary survey subcommittee members included:
- Gretchen Kiser, executive director, University of California San Francisco
- Heather McIntosh, manager, School of Community Medicine, University of Oklahoma-Tulsa Schusterman Campus
NORDP fosters a culture of inclusive excellence by actively promoting and supporting diversity, inclusion and equity in all its forms to expand our worldview, enrich our work, and elevate our profession.
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