A case study in pre-retirement planning for Oregon State University faculty
Dr. Laura has spent her career doing what she loves. As a faculty member at Oregon State University in Corvallis, her days are full with teaching, mentoring students, publishing research, and showing up for the people around her. Retirement planning for women who have built significant careers often looks different than the generic advice suggests, and Laura is a good example of why. She’d been contributing consistently to her 403(b) and 457 retirement accounts through OSU, building investments outside of her university benefits, and making thoughtful decisions along the way.
By any measure, she had done a lot of things right.
But when she came to Thistle Wealth, she wasn’t feeling confident. She was feeling uncertain.
Not because something was wrong, but because nothing was connected.
The Problem Wasn’t the Numbers. It Was the Clarity.
How important is retirement planning when you already feel financially responsible? It turns out the answer changes when everything is finally coordinated. Laura’s financial life had grown in pieces over the years.
- Her OPSRP pension through Oregon PERS, accumulating quietly in the background.
- An IAP account she knew existed but had never really looked at.
- A 403(b) and a 457 she was contributing to, but wasn’t sure were structured as efficiently as they could be.
- Outside investments she’d built independently.
- Employee benefits she assumed she was using well, but had never fully reviewed.
She knew she had options including shifting to part-time, pursuing a new direction, or eventually stepping back from her career entirely. But without a clear picture of how everything fit together, she couldn’t evaluate any of them with real confidence. More than anything, she was ready to stop carrying this alone. She wanted a trusted partner to walk alongside her through the transition ahead. Someone who could be a steady, knowledgeable guide through the financial decisions that felt increasingly consequential, and increasingly hard to navigate. She wasn’t looking for someone to hand everything off to and disappear. She was looking for someone to sit beside her, help her see the full picture, and move forward together.
If you want a full breakdown of OSU’s retirement structure, start here.
What We Did Together
We started where we always do: getting everything organized in one place, so Laura could see her complete financial picture clearly for the first time.
Understanding what OSU was actually contributing on her behalf. Most faculty are surprised to learn just how much is flowing into their retirement from the employer side. OSU typically contributes well over 30% of a faculty member’s gross salary toward PERS, on top of their salary. That number deserves to be part of how you think about your retirement foundation.
Modeling her pension. Using the OPSRP formula (final average salary × years of service × 1.5%) we projected what Laura’s guaranteed monthly income would look like at different retirement ages, and how the post-2013 COLA structure (1.25% on most of her benefit) would affect its purchasing power over a 20- to 25-year retirement. The pension is a strong foundation. The question is whether the rest of the structure is built to support it.
Reviewing her voluntary accounts. Laura was contributing to both her 403(b) and her 457, but the split between pre-tax and Roth contributions hadn’t been revisited in years. For OSU faculty with a meaningful pension, this matters more than most people realize. The pension generates taxable income from day one of retirement, which can push effective tax brackets higher than expected. We looked at her projected pension income alongside her voluntary account balances and modeled out a contribution structure that made sense for her specific situation.
Reviewing her full benefits picture. Health insurance coverage, long-term disability protection, and survivor benefit elections are easy to put off… until they’re not. We made sure Laura had reviewed each of these with fresh eyes, not just the defaults she’d enrolled in years earlier.
Building out her Social Security picture. Timing matters significantly here, and the right claiming strategy looks different when a pension is already providing guaranteed income.
Scenario planning for the next 5–10 years. This was one of the most valuable parts of the process, and the one Laura hadn’t expected. We modeled what part-time work could look like financially, what a career shift might mean, and when a full retirement could realistically become an option. Seeing those scenarios on paper, with real numbers behind them, changed how she thought about her choices. This is one of the clearest benefits of retirement planning. Not just knowing your numbers, but understanding what your choices actually are. She went from feeling like the future was uncertain to understanding that she actually had real options.
Finally, we brought it all together into a structured, living plan, and one she didn’t have to carry in her head.
The Outcome
Laura still loves her work. She’s not rushing toward the exit. But she no longer ends her day wondering if she’s missing something.
She knows her PERS benefits are fully understood and accounted for. She knows her voluntary accounts are structured with intention. She knows her investments reflect her actual goals. And she knows that when the time comes, whether that’s two years from now or ten, she’ll have a clear picture of what’s possible.
Knowing you have a plan changes everything. Not because it removes every unknown, but because it gives you something solid to stand on while you figure out what comes next.
At Thistle Wealth, we work with women and families who have spent decades building — and are now ready for a clear, coordinated plan for what comes next. If you’re 5–8 years from retirement, carrying the mental load of managing a complex financial picture, and looking for a trusted partner to help you finally see the whole board, we’d be glad to talk. Every engagement starts with a comprehensive financial plan built around your life, your goals, and the retirement you’ve worked hard to reach.
Disclosure: Dr. Laura is a fictional character created for illustrative purposes only. This case study does not represent a real client or real client outcomes. It is intended to reflect the types of financial planning questions and challenges that OSU faculty commonly face. This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered tax or financial advice. Individual situations vary. Consult a qualified professional before making financial decisions. PERS benefit formulas, contribution limits, and COLA provisions are subject to change by the Oregon Legislature.
