Enrollment Management
University of Texas at Austin

On-Campus Employers

Work-Study Dates & Policies

For guidance on student eligibility, employment periods, paying students, timesheets and work hours, on-campus employers should follow the policies listed below.

In order to establish eligibility for Work-Study funding at The University of Texas at Austin, a student must:

  • Show documented financial need every year by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Need is determined by an analysis of financial resources available to the student.
  • Be awarded Federal Work-Study on the Work-Study Verification (WSV).
  • Meet Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy standards as set by the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid.
  • Must be enrolled in appropriate credit hours as required by the student’s academic or non-academic title. Additional rules may apply in cases where stricter enrollment is required for Work-Study funds.

Federal Work-Study funds may not be used for work performed after the student drops below half-time or withdrawals (Regulation 34 CFR 675.16). Similar rules are enforced for Work-Study funds from other sources. Once the student drops or withdrawals, the department is responsible for all pay after that date. The employer will be notified and any hours worked beyond their last eligible date must be paid 100% by the employer. Currently, UT Extension courses are not included in official enrollment counts for employment.

  • In extreme cases, such as serious misconduct, students may be barred from participating in the Work-Study Program, even in meeting other eligibility criteria.

«TIP» Remind your students to re-apply for financial aid early every year by January 15 to be considered for the widest range of financial aid, including Work-Study.

The Work-Study award amount represents the total gross amount the student may earn per semester. For example, Sue Student’s pay rate is $8.00/hour. In order for Sue to earn her $1400 Fall Work-Study award, she must work 175 total hours (175 x $8 = $1400). This means Sue must work an average of 14 hours per week. Employers may easily verify the Work-Study award amount during the job interview by asking to see the student’s Work-Study Verification (WSV).

Employers are strongly encouraged to hire their Work-Study students early to secure funding for the position. Students should not begin working until the hire is in progress and final approval is imminent. Employers should initiate job business process at least two weeks prior to the start of a student’s employment to ensure timely approval and payment for your student worker.

Work-Study funds cannot be used to pay hours worked during a prior pay period before the Work-Study position was final approved. If you find yourself in position where a Work-Study-eligible student began working in a prior pay period, process a non-Work-Study position for that prior pay period, then perform an Add Job for the Work-Study position effective beginning in the current or future pay period. Once both positions are approved and current, perform a Switch Primary Job and End Addition Job to end the non-Work-Study position.

A Work-Study Balance Sheet is available to help students and employers determine the amount of Work-Study earned-to-date. The student and the employer are responsible for monitoring Work-Study gross earnings.

«TIP» Review the student’s Work-Study Balance Sheet immediately after each payroll.

Occasionally, the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid may reduce the student’s Work-Study award upon learning of additional resources, e.g. scholarships, tuition waivers or enrollment changes. The notification enables employers to determine the amount of Work-Study award that remains to be earned and determine if the student can continue employment paid 100% by employer.

The award period is the period during which students may earn their Work -Study award.

On-Campus Employer Employment Dates

Students may work during the following dates:
SUMMER:  June 1–August 15
FALL:  August 16–December 31
SPRING: January 1–May 31

Students may be hired for the award year (June 1–May 31) or the academic year (August 16-May 31) if the student was awarded Work-Study for the included semesters.

Hire By Dates

The last day a department may hire a Work-Study student each semester is as follows:
SUMMER:  August 1
FALL:  December 1
SPRING: May 1

A student’s Work-Study award is meant to be earned over the entire award period.

Work-Study students are employed on campus in a variety of positions. These include but are not limited to clerical assistants, data entry operators, photographers, artists and laboratory research assistants. Work-Study students must have the same qualifications as non-Work-Study individuals applying for the same jobs. Students employed in academic and non-academic positions have specific classifications, job codes, and pay ranges which can be found on the University’s Student Employee Compensation site.

Students employed in the Work-Study program are never paid on a salary, commission, fee, or contract basis (this includes variable pay rates of any kind). They are paid instead on an hourly basis for their actual time spent on the job at a rate of pay determined by Human Resource Services (HRS). Many jobs pay more than minimum wage depending upon the student’s experience and skills.

Work-Study funds will not cover:

  1. Hours worked in excess of the student’s Work-Study award
  2. Hours worked prior to the start or after the end of the Award Period (refer to the Work-Study Verification Form)
  3. Hours worked over 8 hours per 24-hour period
  4. Hours worked over Beyond 19 hours per week
  5. Benefits such as sick leave, vacation or holiday pay, employer’s contribution to Social Security, Worker’s Compensation, retirement, or any other welfare or insurance program.

Take careful note of pay periods and timesheet due dates to ensure the student is paid timely. Late timesheets, especially after the end of the semester, may result in those payments not being covered by the Work-Study share. Create a sign in and sign out log to reduce the guess work in completing timesheets.  The employer is responsible for documenting their student’s hours and ensuring they do not schedule hours that conflict with class meeting times. Time entry can be accessed remotely and on mobile devices.

As long as the student is successfully hired into a Work-Study position, the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid will add a Work-Study Cost Allocation at the Worker-Position-Earnings level that will complement the department’s base pay costing allocation at the Worker-Position level. Departments only need to ensure a student is successfully hired in to a Work-Study position and that their base pay is correctly added at the Work-Position level.

Work-Study students cannot be assigned to a position for more than 19 hours per week. In addition, no student can ever work more than eight hours in any 24 hour period or more than forty hours per week.

The Quantity of Work guidelines were established to help students achieve balance between their schoolwork and their job(s). Finding the right balance is the key to maintaining satisfactory academic progress. Employers are strongly encouraged to follow the University’s Quantity of Work Guidelines.

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On-Campus Employers

NOTE: Work-Study programs at UT include Federal Work-Study, State Work-Study, and Institutional Work-Study.