Student Employment (F-26)
Original Implementation: June 18, 1987
Last Revision: January 25, 2011
- Students seeking on-campus employment may view on-line jobs at https://careers.sfasu.edu. Students must apply on-line and the hiring department will arrange an interview.
- All students employed by the university are required to attend an orientation session provided by Human Resources (HR) on or before their first day of employment. It is the employing department's responsibility to ensure that all new student workers report to new student employee orientation for paperwork processing before they begin work. If students have not worked on campus previously, they should attend training provided by Career Services in the Rusk Building. It is the responsibility of the department to make sure the student workers attend this training. Once the necessary employment forms and trainings have been completed, the student may be authorized to work on campus. Students working in College Work-Study positions must obtain a College Work Study Permit from the Financial Aid Office each semester they intend to work. International Students must also provide Forms I-20 and I-94 as part of their student employment paperwork process.
The hiring department will complete an EPAF to set up the student’s job assignments. Rate changes and new account assignments must also be completed on the EPAF. Terminations from employment with the university and the ending of a job assignment are also documented through completion of the proper EPAF. Departments must also complete the Administrative Account Disablement form when a student terminates their assignment or employment.
- In the fall and spring semesters, student employees of the university will be restricted to no more than twenty (20) hours of work per week, unless approved by the provost and vice president for academic affairs or his/her designee, as indicated on the Departmental Approval to Work More Than 20 Hours form. This form may be found on the Student Employment page of the Human Resources Web site. To be eligible for on-campus employment during the fall or spring semesters as a student worker, a student must carry six (6) or more semester hours. It is the employing department's responsibility to ensure that student employees are enrolled for the required number of semester hours. SFA student workers enrolled for 1-5 academic hours must be approved by the dean of student affairs, as indicated on the Departmental Approval to Work While Enrolled for Fewer Than 6 Hours form. This form may be found on the Student Employment page of the Human Resources Web site.
- During the summer, students employed as either student assistants or work study employees, and are enrolled for three (3) or more hours of coursework, may not work more than twenty (20) hours per week, unless they receive proper authorization as instructed in section 3.
Those students who do not attend school in the summer but have a reasonable expectation of being enrolled as SFA students in the upcoming fall semester are eligible for student assistant employment up to forty (40) hours per week in the summer. Reasonable expectation for a new student would include being accepted by the Office of Admissions. - Departments should contact Human Resources if they have questions concerning the appropriate pay rate. Students should be paid no less than minimum wage and no more than $15.00 per hour. If a department wants to set up an internal pay structure for their department, they may contact Human Resources for assistance.
- Job vacancies requiring services of SFA students should be posted on the Careers at SFA website for at least three days before the employing department recommends appointment of a candidate to fill the opening. In order to be considered an applicant for a student position, students must apply online. It is the employing department’s responsibility to notify Human Resources immediately when the job is filled. Under no circumstances will a student position be filled without completing the job vacancy and posting requirements.
- College Work-Study (CWS) is a federally-funded program designed to provide financial aid to those students choosing to earn a portion of their educational expenses. The Student Financial Aid Office determines the student's eligibility for CWS employment in accordance with established federal guidelines. Departments allocated CWS funds should be aware of the following procedures:
A. The College Work-Study Program is a form of student employment and is subject to the conditions outlined above.
B. To be eligible for the CWS program, the student must first complete the financial aid application for need-based aid by the established deadline. If the results of the need analysis indicate the student is eligible for CWS, and the student expresses an interest in the program, the Financial Aid Office will make the award accordingly.
C. The student must reapply for CWS each academic year. If the student wishes to be employed through the CWS program in the summer, he/she must request that the Financial Aid Office review his/her file for eligibility in the preceding spring semester.
D. Before beginning employment, each student must present to the employing department a copy of their current year award notification from their MySFA account This notification will indicate the maximum amount of money the student may earn during a given semester(s) of employment by the university on a college work-study account. It is important to note that this amount is the maximum amount that can be paid from a CWS budget. It is the employing department's responsibility to control the hours worked by the CWS personnel to be absolutely certain that the student does not earn more than the amount of money allowed from CWS funds. The student must accept the work study award before he/she can accept a work study position.
Once the student has earned the amount of his/her CWS award, the department must terminate the student from their CWS account. At that time the department may choose to either pay the student worker out of their departmental account as a “student assistant” or terminate the student worker and must complete an EPAF to make this change.
It is recommended that departments do not employ CWS students on their CWS and department accounts simultaneously. They should first exhaust their CWS allotment funds and then appoint the student to their departmental account.
E. A fall award notification allows the student to work from August through December. A spring award notification allows the student to work from January through May. A summer award notification allows the student to work from May through August. (The division between the summer sessions is determined by the university's summer calendar.) Exact dates vary from year to year and are determined by the Student Financial Aid Office.
F. If questions arise concerning the College Work-Study Program, call the Financial Aid Office at 936-468-2403.
Foreign Students:
The Department of Homeland Security permits foreign students to be employed under the same regulations as students who are US citizens. Questions about documentation and identification requirements may be answered by Human Resources.
Graduate Assistantships:
Employment authorization and processing of graduate assistants goes through the Human Resources office and the Graduate Office.
Nepotism:
University policy regarding nepotism applies to student employment. See Nepotism (E-33).
Cross Reference: Nepotism (E-33); Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, Pub. L. No. 99-603, 100 Stat. 3359; 42 U.S.C. §§ 2751-2756(b)
Responsible for Implementation: Vice President for Finance and Administration
Contact for Revision: Director of Human Resources
Forms: College Work Study Permit (issued by Financial Aid), Departmental Approval to Work More Than 20 Hours (online), Departmental Approval to Work While Enrolled for Fewer than 6 hours (online), I-9 Form, I-20 Form, I-94, W-4 Form (Human Resources).
Board Committee Assignment: Finance and Audit