About Northwestern University
What is Northwestern University?
Northwestern University is a private research university with campuses in Evanston and Chicago, and a third in Doha, Qatar. Its history page says "Going strong since 1851" and that the university was "officially established 175 years ago when its Act of Incorporation was passed by the Illinois legislature". It has 12 schools and colleges, including the Kellogg School of Management. This profile covers the staff postings on its Candidate Gateway that carry an exempt or IT staff grade, such as "Salary/Grade: EXS/8". Faculty, postdoctoral, temporary and hourly non-exempt postings are not listed, and the Doha campus has its own arrangements.
How much time off do I get?
The vacation page says staff in exempt positions "earn vacation time on the 16th of each month": 1.25 days a month after one completed year, "3 weeks per year", and 0.83 then 1.67 a month in the first year, which also comes to 15 days. Exempt staff in pay grade Exempt 14 or higher and ITS 85 or higher earn 1.67 a month, "4 weeks per year". On top of vacation, "Staff members are granted three personal floating holidays on September 1 of each fiscal year". The holiday calendar lists eleven paid University Holidays for 2026 (New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Day After Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Eve), and the University closes for three Winter Recess days (28, 29 and 30 December 2026): "Winter Recess days are not holidays but are provided in addition to the already scheduled University holidays". That is 15 + 3 + 11 + 3 = 32 days at entry. Sick time is separate: Incidental Sick Time is replenished each 1 September, and Extended Sick Time "Provides 100% of a staff member's hourly rate or monthly salary for an approved extended illness or injury after a seven-calendar day elimination period, for up to six months".
What benefits come with the job?
Retirement is the standout: the Retirement Savings Plans page lists a "University automatic contribution of 5%" and says "Northwestern will match your employee contributions to the Retirement Plan dollar-for-dollar up to 5% of your eligible earnings", in a 403(b) plan. Health cover for US-based staff is "four United Healthcare medical plans" and two dental plans, "Delta Dental of Illinois PPO" and "Guardian Dental HMO". "Basic Term Life Insurance - University paid life insurance offered to all benefit eligible faculty and staff", and the Long Term Disability Core plan "provides 50% of an employee's last working University salary up to a maximum benefit of $11,500 per month". Northwestern offers "Employee Reduced Tuition (ER/ER1) for courses taken by employees at Northwestern University". The benefits catalogue also lists adoption assistance covering "legal fees, travel expenses and adoption agency fees", dedicated spaces at the Baby & Toddler Nursery for "children 6 weeks to 5 years of age", and backup care reimbursement "up to $25/day (up to 6 days per academic year)".
Where will I work?
Postings sit on the Evanston and Chicago campuses: of the 536 postings on the board on 2026-10-21, 198 were in Evanston, 326 in Chicago, two each in San Francisco and Miami, and eight in Doha. The roles are professional staff jobs, for example the Clinical Operations Manager in the Medicine clinical trials unit, the Business Coordinator at the Kellogg School of Management and the Systems Engineer Lead in IT. No remote or hybrid policy was read for this profile, so none is claimed.
What do the roles pay?
Postings state a range, and the one read says "Target hiring range for this position will be between $70,017 - $87,522 per year" for the Clinical Operations Manager, with the offer "determined by the applicant's education, experience, knowledge, skills and abilities". Exempt staff postings are salaried; the board's non-exempt (NEX) postings state hourly pay and are not listed.