STUDENT RECRUITMENT

The following information is for hiring undergraduate student employees either through pre-selection or open recruitment.

PRELIMINARY INFORMATION

  • Recruitment Options
  • There are two ways to recruit a student employee:
           -Direct hire / preselect – for a student that you have already identified to fill the position 
           -Open recruitment 
    – Post the position on Hand Shake and the department will interview candidates.
  • Additional Preliminary Considerations
  •        -Position type: Student Assistant II/III/IV or academic (GSRs, TAs,etc. are handled via Academic Recruitment)
           -Compensation: The Student Assistant pay scale can be found here or a stipend payment (BYA) may be an option
           -Work-Study make be a mutually beneficial option for the unit and the student employee(s). More information below.

     

STEPS

  1. Department determines the need for a student employee; updates/ creates student job description.
  2. A ticket is created in Aggie Service.
    • Ticket navigation: Human Resources- Recruitment/Position Management
    • Employee Type: Student
    • Request Type: Recruitment/Open Recruitment
  3. Unit works with SSO to post position on Hand Shake for department desired amount of time (usually 2 weeks).  Applications are received via a pre-identified email within the unit. Not applicable to direct hire recruitments.
  4. Unit interviews and selects a student who can perform the duties of the position most effectively and makes the job offer. 
    1. If it is a Work-Study position, the unit requests the Work-Study Employment Eligibility form from Student Employment and lets the SSO know as well. 
  5. SSO HR verifies that the applicant is an eligible UC student in the student information system (BANNER). Deactivates the listed position from Hand Shake. SSO HR notifies unit if a student needs an onboarding appointment and/or background check.
  6. Department completes the IET onboarding form and sets up a work station. Identifies any additional resources (access, training, etc.) that the new employee may need.
  7. SSO HR notifies department that the onboarding/background check process is complete; and that student can begin working.

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

  • Common Issues
  • When hiring a new student, no action is ever the exact same and are diverse as our campus community. Please review below common student recruitment issues and regular solutions:

    Student does not attend on-boarding with proper verification documents:  This is the top reason that student hires get delayed. When offering a position to a student, share with them that they will need official documentation like passports, visas, or a combination of documents (acceptable I-9 documents list found here). No copies are allowed, so they may need to have them mailed from home.

    I required a background check for this position but my student hasn’t scheduled/has an appointment after on-boarding: In high need situations, hiring units have the option of doing a conditional start, where the student has completed onboarding but not their background check. Conditional start employees though should not handle any sensitive items related to the background check being required (money handling, data access, etc.). It is recommended overall though to support the student employee by following up in a reasonable manner and ensuring they received the needed information to schedule a background check, understand that the position is contingent upon passing, and other similar considerations.

     

    My student started earlier this week and is asking why they can’t get report time in TRS/ where their paycheck is: Most new employees are not set up in TRS upon starting due to system delay. All students are issued paper timesheets at on-boarding to use for this short period of time, with units able to submit directly after review and approval to the SSO via Aggie Service.

  • Additional Appointments
  • Students may hold additional positions so long as the total appointment percentage is below 49%. It is the student’s responsibility to notify a unit if they need adjustments made and up to the unit to grant it based off business need. However the SSO may reach out as a courtesy to notify units if another department on campus has submitted an action related to a current student employee. If a non-SSO Payroll Coordinator reaches out requesting an adjustment, please submit a student payroll ticket in AggieService and let them know they will be working with the SSO to update the payroll system.
     
  • Extensions
  • To submit an extension for an existing appointment (as taken from the SSO Student Employment page):

    From the AggieService Community Portal, select the Payroll topic, the Appointment Changes/Separation request, choose Student, and then Appointment Extension.

    Complete applicable fields

    If requesting an increase for more than one student, please attach a spreadsheet to your request.

  • Longevity/Recognition Increases
  • Student Longevity Increase (The following is sourced from the SSO Student Employment page)

    Student longevity increases may be granted once per 12-month period, up to $.25 per hour. To be eligible, the student must have complete three "consecutive" quarters of part-time work or one quarter of full-time work, with satisfactory performance, in the same department. Any work during the quarter qualifies as a full quarter for this purpose. Summer Sessions I/II are considered one quarter.  A break in service of one quarter or for the summer does not interrupt longevity.

    For a complete summary of information, please visit Student Employee Pay Plan PPSM 3 Exhibit B

    To submit a longevity increase for processing:

    From the AggieService Community Portal, choose the Payroll topic, the Funding Changes/Payments request, click Next, choose Student and then the Longevity/Special Recognition Increase type.

    To ensure your request is processed in a timely manner:

    Please submit your request in advance of the effective date of the increase

    Departmental approval must be obtained prior to submitting the request.

    Increases are typically effective at the beginning of a bi-weekly pay period

    If submitting a request for multiple students, please submit one request and attach a spreadsheet.

    Student Special Recognition Increase

    A student may be granted a Special Recognition Increase of up to $.50 per hour in one 12 month period. If granted, the amount of the increase will be based solely upon quality of performance. Please visit Student Employee Pay Plan PPSM 3 Exhibit B for complete information.

    To submit a student recognition increase for processing:

    From the AggieService Community Portal, choose the Payroll topic, the Funding Changes/Payments request, click Next, choose Student and then the Longevity/Special Recognition Increase type

    Complete applicable fields

    If requesting an increase for more than one student, please attach a spreadsheet to your request.

  • Summer Appointments
  • Student employees can work 100% during summer. Please note though that at this percentage, eligibility for vacation and sick leave are available. If students are interested working over the summer, discuss if they will be working anywhere else on campus (see ADDITIONAL APPOINTMENTS), and submit a payroll ticket to the SSO to update the appointment.
     
  • Time Reporting
  • Student employees report time bi-weekly unless being paid on a stipend. If the student is already active in TRS, then the new timesheet will be added within 48-72 hours. If the student is newly employed or active again after being separated previously, there will be a 48-72 hour set up period for their TRS profile.

    New student employees are provided a copy of a paper timesheet to utilize for any time reporting prior to the TRS profile being available. Please discuss time reporting practices, deadlines and share the bi-weekly payroll calendar if necessary.

  • Work-Study
  • Work-Study is a type of financial aid that students and hiring units mutually benefit from. Units can have a finite portion of work-study employees salary compensated by the program and the student can reduce tuition cost by utilizing this specific type of aid.

    The SSO can provide guidance on this process, with a brief outline below:

    -Student will have a document they will need to provide that expires within 30 days of activation, so timeliness is key (the aid will be lost if not utilized).

    -Prior to submitting a request, the supervisor must complete an online Work Study Eligibility Letter Request from Financial Aid. Once the Eligibility Letter is received in the department, the supervisor should update and sign the letter.

    -Once SSO Payroll receives the request, information on the letter will be validated, completed and forwarded to the Work Study Office. PPS and student timesheets will be updated as appropriate. Turnaround time is approximately 5-7 business days.

    -The student must report work-study time on a separate TRS timesheet.

    *Please note that while similar, the graduate work-study process is based out of and awarded from the student’s department of study. Please consult the Graduate Studies website for further information.*

RESOURCES