system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Startup at an R2 institution in the midwest

Hello! I have a tenure-track assistant professor offer at a state university in the Midwest. It is my only offer. I am a woman of color. My friend (male), who is assistant professor there in the same department, and who does similar research as me, shared with me that he received $350K for 3 years (this was 2017). My initial offer is way below, $150K for 3 years. This is a brand new chair (male) and I am their first hire. I am perplexed as to why the amount is so different, especially when the budget I sent was a padded $500K (in anticipation of having it cut by a couple 100K or so). Advice and suggestions?
gpt
I don't know how long ago your friend was hired, but for many institutions the budget situation is very different than it was two years ago. Negotiate for what you need, but it may be that they just can't pay.