Vantaggi
I really can't think of many pros here. But since I must: 1. Decent benefits 2. Small institution 3. Easy commute
Svantaggi
Where do I even begin: 1. Too much red-tape. Nothing in this place can be done without filling out forms or getting approval from the right department. Even something as designing a flyer needs to go through the right department. And god forbid if you are up for renewal. In all likelihood employees here will get mired in Hershey Medical Center, College of Medicine, PSU. Three different entities that operate on their own terms. 2. Scientific environment. Hershey lags so far behind the rest of the other academic institutions in scientific environment that its not funny. The odd part is that the faculty here live in denial of that disparity. 3. Lack of collaborative atmosphere. There is marked lack of scientific collaboration here. Part of it is because there are not enough renowned experts working in this place, and partly because of the distance between the two campuses. The main campus is 2 hours away and there is no easy way to collaborate. 4. Lack of growth potential. Unless you can play politics, there is no way you can grow in this place. There will be a million excuses for not promoting you, the favorite one being "too much paperwork." There is no incentive offered for talented individuals to work harder and perform better. It seems the administration takes pride in not promoting individuals. In one particular instance a secretarial staff even quipped that as long as person has a job, he or she should not even expect anything more in this economy. 5. Lack of compensation. Postdocs are under the College of Medicine and therefore have a pay freeze. So even if you are working hard, publishing and getting grants funded you won't see a single cent increase in your pay. This again does not offer an incentive for people to either work here or for that matter recommend this place to other people. 6. Town of Hershey. It is tourist trap for half a year and dead for the other half. The favorite line for attracting people here is "it is a great place to raise a family" except not in a postdoc's salary that is frozen year to year. My advice to prospective post-doctoral fellows is to consider other places first. This place has nothing to offer. It does not have a stellar reputation and in all likelihood you won't get a job offer once you finish here, nor will you get promoted. If I knew what I know now, I would have never come here. Two years have been enough.
