Postdoctoral Research Scientist H-1B salary at Columbia University — 458 certified filings (FY2016–FY2026)
- 59
- Filings · FY2025
- $73k
- Median base · FY2025
- $72k–$75k
- Middle 50% · FY2025
- −1%
- vs market median · all years
Columbia University filed 59 certified H-1B LCAs for Postdoctoral Research Scientist in FY2025, with a median base salary of $73k and the middle 50% of offers between $72k and $75k. Across all years its $62k median is in line with the $62k market median for Postdoctoral Research Scientist. It has filed 458 Postdoctoral Research Scientist LCAs since FY2016, most often in New York, NY.
How much does Columbia University pay a Postdoctoral Research Scientist?
Certified base salary for Postdoctoral Research Scientist at Columbia University by fiscal year: each box is the p25–p75 range, the heavy line the median, the whiskers reach p10–p90. $73k median in FY2025. Base pay only — hover a year for its figures.
Does Columbia University pay Postdoctoral Research Scientists above the market?
Columbia University's all-years median against every employer's certified Postdoctoral Research Scientist LCAs — in line with the market. Same cleaned DOL title, same base-salary definition, so the two rows compare like for like.
| Base salary for this title | Filings | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Columbia University | 458 | $62k |
| All employers · Postdoctoral Research Scientist | 553 | $62k |
How has Columbia University's Postdoctoral Research Scientist hiring changed by year?
33 certified Postdoctoral Research Scientist filings in FY2016 → 30 in FY2026. The change column is each year against the one before.
| Fiscal year | Filings | vs prior FY | Median base |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | 30 | −49% | $74k |
| FY2025 | 59 | +5% | $73k |
| FY2024 | 56 | +44% | $71k |
| FY2023 | 39 | −2% | $65k |
| FY2022 | 40 | 0% | $62k |
| FY2021 | 40 | −2% | $62k |
| FY2020 | 41 | −16% | $56k |
| FY2019 | 49 | +26% | $51k |
| FY2018 | 39 | +22% | $52k |
| FY2017 | 32 | −3% | $51k |
| FY2016 | 33 | — | $48k |
Which wage levels does Columbia University file for Postdoctoral Research Scientist?
DOL prevailing-wage levels I–IV approximate experience tiers (I = entry, IV = fully competent). 0% of Columbia University's Postdoctoral Research Scientist filings sit at Level III–IV. Higher levels earn more entries in the wage-weighted H-1B lottery.
Share of 154 Postdoctoral Research Scientist filings with a wage level · all years
- Level I100.0%154
Where does Columbia University hire H-1B Postdoctoral Research Scientists?
Worksite states and cities on the certified filings for this title, all years, with the median base salary at each.
| State | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| New York | 458 | $62k |
| City | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| New York, NY | 440 | $62k |
| Palisades, NY | 15 | $66k |
| Irvington, NY | 1 | $65k |
| New Yrok, NY | 1 | $60k |
| Syosset, NY | 1 | $63k |
Also filed as
Columbia University's other sponsored titles, and the employers that file the most Postdoctoral Research Scientist LCAs. All years.
Other titles at Columbia University
| Job title | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Associate Research Scientist | 673 | $71k |
| Assistant Professor | 342 | $132k |
| Staff Associate | 103 | $63k |
| Instructor | 50 | $110k |
| Lecturer in Discipline | 43 | $79k |
| Senior Staff Associate | 41 | $88k |
| Staff Associate II | 31 | $74k |
Top Postdoctoral Research Scientist sponsors
| Employer | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Nmc | 24 | $59k |
| 12 | $140k | |
| Eli Lilly And | 4 | $68k |
| Lawrence Livermore National Security | 4 | $78k |
| The Carnegie Institution of Washington | 4 | $71k |
| The University of Iowa | 3 | $62k |
| Intellectual Ventures Management | 3 | $67k |
| Fordham University | 3 | $68k |
| The Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene | 3 | $75k |
Common questions about Postdoctoral Research Scientist H-1B pay at Columbia University
- How much does Columbia University pay a Postdoctoral Research Scientist on an H-1B?
- Columbia University's median certified H-1B base salary for Postdoctoral Research Scientist is $73k in FY2025, from 59 filings; the middle 50% of offers fall between $72k and $75k. Across all years the median is $62k.
- How many Postdoctoral Research Scientist H-1B LCAs has Columbia University filed?
- Columbia University has 458 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications for Postdoctoral Research Scientist on record (FY2016–FY2026), 30 of them in FY2026. That is 20% of its 2,241 certified filings across all titles.
- Does Columbia University pay Postdoctoral Research Scientists above the market?
- Columbia University's all-years median of $62k is in line with the $62k median for Postdoctoral Research Scientist across all H-1B employers (553 certified filings).
- Where does Columbia University hire H-1B Postdoctoral Research Scientists?
- Columbia University's Postdoctoral Research Scientist LCAs name worksites mostly in New York; the top cities are New York, NY, Palisades, NY, Irvington, NY.
- Does a certified LCA mean an H-1B visa was approved?
- No. A Labor Condition Application (LCA) is the Department of Labor attestation an employer must have certified before filing an H-1B petition with USCIS. It records the job, worksite and offered wage, but not whether the petition was filed, selected in the lottery, or approved. Filing counts measure intent to sponsor, not headcount.
- What salary do these figures show?
- The base annual wage offered on the certified LCA, converted to a yearly amount. Bonus, equity, overtime and benefits are not included, so total compensation is typically higher. Figures are medians and percentiles over certified filings; wages above $5,000,000 a year are excluded as data-entry errors.
- What do prevailing-wage levels I–IV mean?
- The Department of Labor assigns each LCA an OES wage level from I (entry) to IV (fully competent) for the occupation and area. Under the FY2027 wage-weighted H-1B lottery rule, a higher level earns more selection entries, so an employer's level mix is a proxy for how senior its sponsored roles are.
Keep exploring
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Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Foreign Labor Certification — certified LCA disclosure data through June 2026 (FY2016–FY2026). An LCA is not an approved visa; pay figures are base salary and exclude bonus and equity. Methodology →