In our series Salary Stories, women with long-term career experience open up about the most intimate details of their jobs: compensation. It’s an honest look at how real people navigate the complicated world of negotiating, raises, promotions and job loss, with the hope it will give young people more insight into how to advocate for themselves — and maybe take a few risks along the way.Been in the workforce for at least five years and interested in contributing your salary story? Submit your information here. You’ll be paid $150 if selected.

Age: 32
Location: Los Angeles
Current industry and job title: Vice President, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Current salary: $136,200
Number of years employed since school or university: 11
Starting salary: $21,000
Biggest salary drop: £21,000 to $10,000.
Biggest salary jump: $50,000 to £120,000.

Biggest negotiation regret: During one of my performance reviews, I was rated in many categories as “meets expectations” when I felt really confident in my work and that I had actually exceeded expectations. I was ready to ask for a raise during this call, but that completely threw me off and it actually hurt me to the point that I cried. I still asked for a raise, through my shaky voice and tears running down my face. I wish I had asked to revisit this conversation to be able to push back on that review and more adamantly advocate for myself and what I felt I deserved instead of just accepting it.

Best salary advice: Don’t be afraid to leave your job! No company deserves your undying loyalty. Plus, you’re likely to get a much bigger salary increase from changing jobs than waiting for a raise.

First Job: College Advisor

Salary: $21,000
Year: 2014

I didn’t really know what I wanted to do in my life after I graduated, but I felt really passionate about educational equity and wanted to be in a position to help first-generation and low-income students like myself pursue college. Many of my extracurricular activities and part-time jobs throughout undergrad revolved around college access work with high school students. After I graduated, I was young and naive and didn’t really care about how much money I made. I just wanted to do something I really cared about that aligned with my values.

Despite money not being a factor I prioritized in my job search, I still found it difficult to land a job I was interested in. It wasn’t until two months after I graduated that I accepted my first full-time job offer. My primary goal was to expand access to higher education for students from under-resourced high schools.

Looking back, I don’t know how I lived on this salary, but I did and it’s probably because I grew up poor and learned many times throughout my life how to strategically navigate having limited resources. I didn’t have a whole lot of wants and needs in my early 20s either. I lived a pretty simple life and had a simple routine so my salary was just enough to pay for my living expenses and eat out every now and then. I was also lucky to have left undergrad with minimal debt (less than $5,000) as well.

Job Change: Admissions Graduate Assistant

Salary: $10,000
Year: 2016

After my two years of service ended as a college adviser, I went to grad school full time. I moved from LA to Chicago because I was lucky enough to secure a graduate assistantship that paid for my tuition and gave me a monthly stipend in exchange for 18 hours of work each week. However, it was a really, really small amount of money each month. I don’t even know how I survived off of this! My pay check came out to around $900 each month with rent already costing $600/month (I lived in a studio). I do remember signing up for credit cards with 0% interest for 15 months so that I could furnish my apartment and have a way to pay for things during this transitional period without it hurting my credit. During my first winter break of grad school, I read freshmen applications for an admissions office to have a few extra hundreds to live off of.

In my second year, I picked up part-time work to help fund everything, but some weeks it would end up being a 33-hour working week. I was so severely burnt out from working and studying that I’m pretty sure this version of me today was made from the ashes of my second year in grad school. It felt like I was constantly running from one thing to another and they were marathons each time.

Job Change: Social Justice & Multicultural Program Coordinator

Salary: $50,000
Year: 2018

I realized after my first job that I wanted to work with college students instead of high school students because I’d be able to do more social justice-oriented work. I applied and ended up withdrawing my application due to personal family matters, but then the director called and asked for an opportunity to connect with me because my resume really stood out to him. I called him back, had a great conversation, and was convinced to begin the interview process with them.

I ended up getting this offer and another at the same time, so I had some negotiating power. The director tried his best and was only able to get me a slightly increased final offer, but he shared his long-term plans with me for my role. I felt really invested in from the get-go because of him and the ways he saw how I fit into his overall team. As someone who has never made more than $22,000 at this point in my life, getting a $50,000 salary felt like a huge win to me and I was excited for my future and the possibilities here.

This was my first big-girl job. I only ever received a COLA raise through my union while working here, so by the time I left this job, I think I was just under $52,000. Although I did ask for a raise and a promotion, I never saw one. Unfortunately, that director left his role a year after I started and there were many organizational and structural changes that took place, which I believe impacted my ability to progress in my career here.

Job Change: Assistant Vice President, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion

Salary: $120,000 (and an annual 20% bonus)
Year: 2021

After going through the pandemic and feeling incredibly undervalued in my role, I made the decision to pivot to corporate America. I started to take personal finance really seriously. And as I neared my 30s, I started thinking about how I would be able to live the life I wanted while also supporting my parents in their retirement. I could not see higher education as part of that future anymore. I wanted more for myself. I wanted to work to live, not live to work. I don’t think it’s mutually exclusive to be able to do meaningful work one is passionate about while also getting paid well and I think it’s unfair that professions like education are expected to choose one over the other. I didn’t want to struggle anymore in my 30s. I wanted to travel, experience new things, buy a house, take my family on vacations, and so much more. Although I loved doing DEI work in higher education, it was not sustainable for me and I needed to choose myself.

With the help and support of a close friend who was already working in tech, I learned how to craft my resumes to fit corporate America and how to sell my higher education skills and experiences as transferable skills. I began, what I called, Operation #HExit (higher ed exit, lol) and applied to more than 100 jobs over the span of six months, interviewed with 16 companies, became a finalist for six, and finally got one offer. This was a job change that saw a 135% salary increase!

I was shocked to see a $120,000 job offer. My jaw dropped. After hearing about the bonus too, it made me feel hesitant to ask for more money because it felt like such a perfectly wrapped package already. But I just kept thinking about all the data I read about women, especially women of color, making less money and how we don’t really negotiate. I felt like it was a responsibility to myself, at the very least, to just try. I asked to go higher, but the answer was no because the budget was actually meant to be $110,000 but my manager looked up market rates and my experience so had asked them to up it already, which is so rarely done. That 135% salary increase was literally life changing.

Promotion: Vice President, DEI

Salary: $136,200 (and an annual 20% bonus)
Year: 2022

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would make six figures in my life. It wasn’t something I ever aspired for or thought would be realistic. I’ve gotten two small raises in my time here, and one that I didn’t even ask for that my manager just advocated for. I’ve learned that I am really great at what I do, and this is the least stressful job I’ve ever had in my life. It’s been amazing to actually be able to maintain work boundaries and not feel like there is often a crisis. I love having more time and more money for myself and my loved ones.

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