WIT Workshop: Salary Negotiations
General tips to prepare and practice.
- Do your Research:
- Find the salary range for the new title or role
- Save copies of job titles and descriptions for related or dream positions posted on (sign up for Illinois Jobs email alerts)
- Make note of similar job titles and names of people in similar positions
- Search for names of people in lateral positions
- Search similar job titles and their variations and abbreviations (e.g. RES DATA ANALYST and RESEARCH DATA ANALYST)
- Collect Job Titles and Salaries in a spreadsheet; Calculate average and median; consider eliminating highest and lowest salaries (if they are significantly higher or lower than the others)
- University of Illinois employee salaries
- Compare to industry jobs on salary research tools like Glassdoor, LinkedIn, and Indeed 5 Amazingly Useful Websites for Salary Research
- Cost of Living Comparison Calculator
- Accomplishments & contributions- what is your value?
- Set your ideal and minimum salary levels
- Make a counter offer
- Counter to initial offer for new job
- Bring another offer to make a case for a promotion or expected salary
- Practice your talking points
- Have in mind what you want to ask and why
- “From my research, I see other positions with this title earn X, therefore I expect X”
- “I bring additional value with my experience in X” or “I have contributed X to this project or strategic goal”
- “I am interested in taking on X responsibilities/work, but this would be contingent upon a promotion to Grade X”
- Prepare and practice
- Ask a trusted colleague or friend
- Ask for things that aren’t salary
- Pay for parking?
- Flexibility for remote work?
- Flexibility in hours? (e.g., 7-3, 10-6)
- Time and fee for training/certification?
- Recommended Reading
- 3 of the Most Common Challenges Women Face in Negotiations by Mara Olekalns, Ruchi Sinha, and Carol T. Kulik
- A Woman’s Guide to Salary Negotiation
- Why Women Must Ask (The Right Way): Negotiation Advice from Stanford’s Margaret A. Neale
- How to Successfully Negotiate Your Salary
- Ask a manager – also has tips on interviewing, cover letters, managing…