Top Reasons to Work Here

What really makes working at the University of Toronto a unique experience? The Human Resources & Equity team asked the question, and our faculty and staff responded with some great reasons. Check out what they had to say.

Have some reasons of your own? Simply send them to hrandequity@utoronto.ca.

Students

  • I see students develop from nervous, excited, confused, exasperated people into competent, confident, successful people. I really love it when they hit third and fourth year and get comfortable enough to call me by my first name and stop by the office to tell me how they're doing or what their plans are.
  • The professors interact with the students and allow them to gain hands-on experience, rather than just being a nine-digit number.
  • Having the opportunity to mentor a student whom you've seen go from a shy, unsure teenager to a self-assured, goal driven adult.
  • Getting the chance to have an impact on the student experience. As a U of T alum, there are intrinsic rewards associated with giving back in this way. 
  • The reason we are all here – the students. They keep me young!
  • Where else could I work and have hundreds of other people's kids to call my own?
  • This feedback from a student pretty much says it all: “I would like to thank you for such an amazing course. I never thought that I would be able to say that a course that I took in university had been life-changing, but now I can. This course connected my past to my future in several ways. I cannot believe that I learned so much!”
  • My niece and nephews are U of T students or alumni, and I'm terribly proud of them. They are a testament to the terrific education U of T provides. I hope my own work in some remote way has contributed to this education.
  • I've had conversations with students and asked for their secrets to success in high school that they feel helped them to get here. I've passed on their advice and encouraged my children to do some of the same things.
  • The students. I have two children of my own, a 16-year-old and a 12-year-old, and I hope they will attend U of T one day.

Diversity

  • U of T is filled with people from every corner of the world studying every topic under the sun, and that results in a dynamic and exciting workplace.
  • I have never worked at an institution that was so gay-positive. Not just ‘tolerating’ the LGBTQ community, but welcoming sexual minorities of all kinds.
  • The opportunity of meeting people from different fields and backgrounds.
  • U of T has every kind of job (including glassblowers, lawyers, cooks, systems engineers, gardeners) and every kind of person (students, staff and faculty represent a rainbow of backgrounds, interests and opinions).
  • Going to a nearby bar after an evening class for a drink or two with our professor who talks about her upcoming wedding in the summer and how she used to be in a rock band. U of T has diverse professors who are more than just the subjects they teach.
  • What better place to work than at U of T, where diversity among staff is adequately represented by the student body? An excellent representation of the richness of multiculturalism that Toronto, a world class city, has to offer.
  • Where else but the University of Toronto, is a wudhu (ablution for prayer) station which acts to not only reinforce acceptance of our differences but also promotes the marriage between religion and higher knowledge. There isn’t a better workplace than a workplace that accepts the differences that exist between us!
  • A place that is fused with traditional (Simcoe Hall administration), diverse (students and staff from all walks of life), and corporate values (all those concrete structures rising up at tremendous speed) quite successfully give U of T its unique identification in the community.
  • Commitment to attracting diverse workforce and to ensuring minorities groups are treated equitably.
  • Being surrounded by so many diverse people makes me feel young.

Community

  • Everyone knows your name.
  • Wonderful, helpful, cooperative, and congenial colleagues; Opportunities to learn via lectures, documentary films, and Continuing Education courses; Beautiful grounds and architecture; Fair wages and good benefits; Fun working with students.
  • Most of all, I love the people. I have worked with wonderful and inspiring individuals over the years, many of which I am happy to count as close friends.
  • Because my coworkers are the best bunch on campus and make coming to work feel like home.
  • I have worked here for close to 25 years. When I go for training or for a walk at lunch time, I feel like everyone is my neighbour.
  • Vibrant lifestyle around campus.
  • I like to work with smart people.
  • I'm so glad to be in a place where people are either young, or thinking young and are positive and optimistic.
  • The University has creative, visionary, and committed individuals who can use the many resources here to do good work for students, staff, faculty, and the community.
  • I love the integration into the community, with faculty responding quickly to issues (e.g., Historical Studies at UTM organized debates on topics in the news). We are doing more of that outreach and I think it's very valuable.
  • The sense of community that can be created by being part of groups, activities and events. Even though it's a huge place, the University tries to bring people together.
  • U of T is a fun place to work! We work hard and try to serve well but we aren't so serious that we don’t take time to enjoy one another's sense of humour.
  • I've worked here for 18 years and always find myself surrounded by wonderful and talented colleagues.
  • I feel respected and appreciated at my workplace. 

Values

  • Working for an organization striving to be excellent without sacrificing other important values.
  • The colleagues I work with all share a common vision of education for the public good: to help enhance student learning, university development and strong local communities.
  • The working environment at U of T fosters the creation and implementation of ideas - no matter what your level of employment. You are not expected to conform to a corporate identity.
  • Everyone is working to create their own space…to create their own identity within the larger community - a mosaic of ideas!
  • Everyone is treated with respect.
  • Harassment is neither condoned nor accepted.
  • Management is very understanding of family issues/problems.
  • I was promoted into a position when I was nine months pregnant and had the job held for me for a year! You really feel wanted and respected as a professional at U of T.
  • Freedom of thought, speech, and action.
  • Many people at U of T have a great commitment to the cause of education.
  • Being surrounded by people who are striving to achieve their potential.
  • Makes one proud to be associated with it.

Academic Environment

  • U of T is a rich scholarly environment. I can indulge my curiosities while at work and be connected to the pulse of the University's academic culture.
  • The educational environment keeps the mind active. There are many great opportunities for self-development.
  • I'm constantly stimulated by what I learn at U of T. The quality of discourse is very high here.
  • U of T is an open and innovative community
  • Given its large faculty, there is great scope for collaborative, multidisciplinary research opportunities.
  • U of T is situated in the most multicultural urban core in the world, providing access to a tremendous diversity of research populations.
  • The extraordinary libraries and rare book collections. Colleagues from all over the world envy us, and they come to U of T to do research because the holdings of our libraries are unmatched. In my own field (French Studies), we even have books that are not in the Bibliothèque nationale de France.
  • Students, faculty and staff are all engaged in learning new things, exploring new opportunities – it makes for a vibrant and exciting atmosphere.
  • We have access to thousands of brilliant minds, in students, faculty and staff.
  • Being in a climate where growth is all around you. It makes me want to expand my horizons and stretch myself.
  • U of T is a world of choices: the colleges, the universities, the faculties, the departments, the programs, the centres, the affiliated bodies, the research institutes, the specialized programs, the schools, the centres and probably more, all of which house students, academics, researchers, visiting professors, staff and executives recruited (or enrolled), or simply connected with this great institution either locally, nationally or internationally making it most certainly, one of the most interesting places to work and study in.
  • A diverse number of extracurricular and academic programs to ensure excellent academic years and futures for its workers. What's made accessible to University of Toronto workers is the recipe for happiness and success.
  • A unique and one of a kind experience, especially when you are involved in research.

Benefits

  • Quality of life – I can work out at the Athletic Centre at lunch, cycle to work, catch a lecture or walk in Queen's Park and there is always something of interest going on in my work.
  • Work is flexible enough to allow me to continue raising my 3-year-old son as a single parent and take courses while getting a reduction in tuition.
  • The tuition waiver for staff and dependants – and the understanding supervisors who make accommodations for taking classes.
  • The generous benefits, sick leave, health benefits, vacation time and time off over the holiday break!
  • The joint membership plan. So many ways to enjoy your health and support your health.
  • Vacation - almost 5 weeks within the first year... (3 weeks + Christmas time) You won't get that anywhere.
    Summer hours until 4:30 p.m.
  • The best moment was seeing my daughter get her degree. Being able to take advantage of the dependent tuition waiver was a real help for her and our family.
  • Not only can I take academic courses, I can also take courses of interest like painting.
  • The most amazing opportunities for growth. I am taking advantage of the staff tuition waiver to earn a master’s degree part time while I work.
  • Great tuition reimbursement programs and lots of learning opportunities.
  • Thanks to the tuition waiver, I have done a master's degree at U of T. I could use my lunch hour to attend seminars, go to the library, and I was always close to my classes.
  • Work hours are quite flexible so it doesn't affect school work.

Learning and Development

  • I continue to be challenged in my roles and have been provided with numerous continuing education and career development opportunities. I am currently a mentee in the ODLC (Organizational Development Learning Centre) mentorship program (which is amazing) and I am also taking my third School of Continuing Studies course.
  • The University promotes individual and professional growth – the staff development program and the tuition assistance program allow me the opportunity to learn more about myself and explore my options.
  • U of T is its own community where you have room to learn, grow and advance within one environment with endless opportunities and stability. 
  • I have easy access to all kinds of learning materials. Life is never boring.
  • Career development. I have worked here for just over 8 years and during that time I have continually had the opportunity to try new positions and gain new skills.
  • I was able to develop my skills and my career. Being part of the ever-changing financial, student and HR systems that have been introduced over the years has made accessing information a breeze.
  • Professional growth is fostered through the wealth of training and possibilities for transfer and advancement within the university.

Work-life Balance

  • The University doesn't ignore the fact that employees are people with lives outside the workplace.
  • As the mother of a child with multiple exceptionalities, I greatly appreciate the opportunity the University has afforded me with the flexibility of an 80% appointment. I am able to attend to my child's needs while remaining engaged in the workplace.
  • It’s great to have an employer who understands work-life balance. Working at U of T gives you the opportunity to Work to Live rather than Live to Work.

Recreation

  • Taking a stroll on the Five Minute Walk between UTM’s North and South buildings and seeing the campus’s very own deer family out for a stroll as well.
  • Walking through Philosophers Walk listening to the music wafting through the windows of the Faculty of Music.
  • Hitting the gym for a Pilates class at lunch.
  • The UTSC garden club has been going on for about 30 years. Staff and faculty pay a little fee to have their own plots.
  • $5 lunches at Hart House.
  • Watching swimming events in the 50m pool at the Athletic Centre.

Campus Beauty

  • Seeing deer from outside my office window – it’s also a real kick to see families of Canada geese and the snapping turtle who likes to sun herself on the patio outside my office.
  • The landscaping. I really enjoy my walks around the St. George Campus. I look for all kinds of paths to walk through and places to sit and simply be. It’s a lovely place.
  • U of T is a wonderful environment that allows individuals to do great things, learn, grow and be the best that they can be.
  • The quad at University College and the trees on St. George Street.
  • There is so much history, knowledge and beauty on all three campuses - I love the old buildings, the great architecture, and the landscaping. Over the past few years, as green space has been lost, an effort has been made to provide new spaces for relaxing, thinking (e.g., Earth Sciences green spaces, St. George Street, Sidney Smith Hall, courtyard south of the Bahen Centre). It's fun to spend a lunch hour seeking out new places to sit and reflect.
  • Because I can walk around campus and sometimes feel I'm not in the city.

Arts/Culture

  • The number of clubs on campus - there is something for everyone.
  • Every day there are seminars, lectures or other activities on just about every topic imaginable in which I can participate.
  • The number of libraries we have access to. Did you know that the library at the Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design has books on gardening? I haven't even explored all the libraries yet, but each one of them has hidden treasures.

Urban Environment

  • Being in this magical campus RIGHT DOWNTOWN.
  • U of T is situated in the most dynamic, pluralistic, creative, and safe city.
  • Toronto is at the doorstep of the university.
  • U of T is like a small town within a big city.
  • Walking out of Robarts Library and smelling the sudden waft of Chinese food coming from the vendor truck beside the curb, mixing with the aroma of grilling Polish sausage from the hot-dog stand nearby. You don’t just see or hear about multiculturalism at U of T, you smell it as well.

And More...

  • I like the campus down here (UTM). I like the fact that it's growing and that means opportunity rather than stagnation.
    It is exciting being part of all the technology-related changes at the university.
  • Just the feeling of giving back to the institution and community that we spend so much time in is incomparable.
    Every day is new and challenging!
  • Allows for independent work that builds self-confidence and esteem.
  • My work is challenging and varied, the environment is pleasant and supportive, and I love the fact that I am helping to promote the growth of knowledge.
  • Getting paid for doing something I love.
  • Working in an environment where there is cutting edge research being done and knowing that this will have a global impact.
  • The University gave me both the desire and the opportunity to better myself - what more could you ask?
  • Location (easy access, close to where I live).
  • 10 years ago, I started working at the University Of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies. Every day since, I counted my blessing. I can honestly say that I love my job. I enjoy working with the faculty, staff and students of UTIAS.
  • I'm a U of T alumna and I don’t know how to leave…Just kidding. I love the academic environment, the liveliness of the campus each fall as the students return as well as the access to the many amazing benefits, including the RAWC (I work at UTM), plus my commute is only 15 minutes door-to-door! 
  • The University of Toronto is by its very nature a forward looking enterprise. We are fortunate indeed to reside within a community of possibility. Recently while talking with friends about the absolutely challenging difficulties/issues facing individuals and organizations, not to mention nations – I realized yet another benefit to working here and to which not everyone has the same easy access. At U of T we enjoy a direct pipeline to a wealth of ingenuity, hope, energy, willingness, and much more. I value this positive influence, overwhelming as it can also be. I feel fortunate to work with good people. The campus is beautiful, an oasis in the downtown core, and I enjoy the architecture and the grounds every day. Thank you for asking.