One of the main reasons holding back proposed mergers of colleges and universities is the fear of faculty and staff reductions. This is why the mergers that tend to have the least resistance from constituents are those that are mission-complimentary and do not entail duplication of academic areas, i.e. merging a freestanding law school or medical school into a comprehensive university.

Sometimes there are mergers with duplication of academic programs, however, and a reduction in personnel is required to effect the merger and achieve much-needed financial savings. This is the case of the upcoming merger between Boston University and Wheelock College. All tenured faculty from Wheelock College will be retained, though 111 employees will be laid off. Those being laid off will receive severance pay and outplacement services offered by the University.