Professors like the collegiality at Tufts

Faculty at Tufts are among the most satisfied with the level of professional collegiality on campus, while Harvard faculty are among the most satisfied with the nature of their work and their compensation, according to a new study of 31 universities.

The Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education, based at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, found that Harvard and Tufts scored highly in those areas out of the universities it studied. Other areas that were the subject of the survey included the clarity of the tenure process, balancing of work and family and effectiveness of university policies.

The study also surveyed faculty at 11 liberal arts colleges. Faculty in both types of institutions were asked to rate their job satisfaction in each area on a five-point scale. Overall, women were less satisfied than men; minority faculty members were less satisfied than white faculty members, and faculty at research universities were less satisfied than those at liberal arts colleges.