AAUW undertook a study of the gender pay gap—the gap between what men and women with similar skill sets and education earn in the same profession or job. The authors concluded that:

Women one year out of college who were working full time earned, on average, just 82 percent of what their male peers earned. After we control for hours, occupation, college major, employment sector, and other factors associated with pay, the pay gap shrinks [to a 6 percentage point gap] but does not disappear.

The study suggested that part of the reason for the persistence of the pay gap might be that men are more likely to negotiate salaries and benefits than women. Start Smart aims to correct this by providing women (and men) the opportunity to learn the basics of salary and benefit packages and practice negotiating skills so that they can negotiate realistic and fair salaries in the real world.

Start Smart is a 90-minute campus workshop that includes role-playing, discussion and lecture and is designed to be a “nuts and bolts” approach to salary negotiation. The program is disseminated nationally by the AAUW and offered locally by branches of the AAUW. Over 165 colleges and universities have offered Start Smart. The workshop has been offered every semester at MUW since 2013.

One recent MUW student had this to say about the experience:

Start Smart was revelatory for me and the other women who attended the workshop. None of us had any experience in negotiating salaries and benefits; most of us didn’t even know we were allowed to negotiate at all! … In this role-play, different scenarios are acted out and women are taught negotiation tactics and phrases to help them get the best offer. Start Smart is an invaluable resource that can change women’s work lives for the better; I know that it has already changed mine and the dozens of other women who attended the first Start Smart workshop.

Another recent MUW graduate reported back that she successfully used the strategies she learned in the Start Smart workshop to increase her starting salary after graduation:

Currently I am working at [medical center name redacted] as a Research Technician. I am excited to tell you that I was able to negotiate my salary, and [my employer] did increase my salary than [sic] what they had offered before. Yay!!! I was able to do this because of the AAUW program [Start Smart] you introduced to us. I hope this program is still going on.

Be sure to book your spot in a Start Smart workshop this semester! For the current schedule please visit our Facebook page or contact an affiliate officer.